Donald Trump has threatened to declare the strait of Hormuz as “a territory of the United States” as his administration struggles to conclude the war with Iran.
During a speech at a police academy on Long Island, New York, on Friday, the US president said he would “pretty soon” designate the waterway – a crucial chokepoint for global trade, through which about a fifth of the world’s seaborne oil supplies typically pass – a US territory.
The comment came as peace talks with Iran remain at an impasse following failed negotiations, with Tehran refusing to reopen the strait, which has been all but closed since the US and Israel launched their war on Iran in February.
Almost six months into the war, there is little indication that negotiations will soon yield peace, as Iranian officials continue to defy Trump’s demands. The US has been blockading Iranian shipping and ports in recent months in an effort to pile economic pressure on Tehran.
“After we finish defeating Iran, which is being very badly defeated, pretty soon I’ll be declaring the Hormuz strait a territory of the United States,” Trump said on Friday. “Essentially, that’s what it is. We have the blockade. No ships get through unless we want them to.”
The seriousness of Trump’s remark, and whether it signaled a new policy position for his administration, was not immediately clear. » | Maya Yang | Friday, August 14, 2026
Trump wants it all: Venezuela, Panama, Cuba, Canada, Greenland, the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s rare earth minerals, and all the billions he can filch, pilfer, and steal! This dude works on one simple principle: what mine is mine, and what’s yours is mine also! Trump is a natural born schemer! — © Mark Alexander
