Trump’s Hormuz playbook echoes Iran’s attempts to monetize waterway
On Monday, Trump declared that the United States would become the "guardian" of the strategic waterway, reimpose a blockade on Iranian shipping and seek reimbursement equivalent to 20% of all cargo transiting the strait.
US President Donald Trump has spent months condemning Iran's attempts to monetize its control over the Strait of Hormuz. Now, he is increasingly pushing a plan that appears remarkably similar.
On Monday, Trump declared that the United States would become the "guardian" of the strategic waterway, reimpose a blockade on Iranian shipping and seek reimbursement equivalent to 20% of all cargo transiting the strait.
Whether the proposal is practically feasible remains an open question. But both Iran and the United States are now pursuing competing visions for Hormuz that could lead to the same eventual outcome: requiring payments to use the waterway, regardless of who is in control. Such a prospect would unsettle Gulf states, shipping companies and governments worldwide.
What happened: Trump’s announcement came as renewed US-Iran clashes are threatening to completely scuttle the interim agreement that Washington and Tehran reached last month aimed at reopening Hormuz amid ongoing negotiations.
