Oil & Energy
Trump Declares US 'Guardian' of Hormuz, Seeks 20% Fee on Cargo Transit
President Trump said on Monday that the US would reinstate its blockade of Iranian ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz and demanded a 20% reimbursement on all other cargo shipped through the strategic waterway."The Hormuz Strait is open, and will remain open, with or without Iran," Trump said in a social media post on Truth Social."The USA will be, from this point forward, known as 'the guardian of the Hormuz strait,' but as such, and as a matter of fairness, will be reimbursed, at the rate of 20% on all cargo shipped, for any and all costs necessary to do the job of providing safety and security to this very volatile section of the world," to cover the costs of maintaining security in the region.The process of implementing the plan would begin immediately, but Trump did not provide details on how the US would enforce the proposed blockade.The Hormuz, located between Iran and Oman, carries about 20% of global oil consumption as well as significant volumes of liquefied natural gas, making it one of the world's most critical energy transit routes.Trump's remarks come amid heightened tensions between the US and Iran, with the two countries trading military strikes that have pushed the prospect of a negotiated settlement further out of reach and heightened concerns over energy supplies.The US President characterized the renewed blockade as targeting only "Iran's ships or customers," while saying all other countries would continue to enjoy "fair and open use" of the strategic passage.Meanwhile, the US military said it carried out its first combat use of unmanned surface vessels to strike an Iranian naval facility on Sunday.US Central Command said three Corsair unmanned surface vessels, operating alongside multiple one-way attack drones, struck a submarine and ship maintenance facility at Iran's Bandar Abbas Naval Base.The overnight operation damaged infrastructure used to maintain Iran's naval fleet and reduced the country's ability to carry out attacks on commercial vessels, Centcom said in a post on X.On Monday, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps said that normal shipping through the Strait could only resume if the US halted its military operations in the Middle East, noting that continued American intervention risked broader disruption to global oil and gas markets.Separately, the Iranian authority overseeing navigation in the Hormuz said transit had been suspended following what it described as "illegal movements" by US military forces in the region.The Persian Gulf Strait Authority, in a statement posted on X, said that passage through the waterway was "currently not possible" due to recent US military activity.The impasse over the Strait leaves ship operators and global crude markets facing prolonged uncertainty, as both the US and Iran assert de facto authority over the maritime passage.
