Trump says Strait of Hormuz will become US territory after the war

US President Donald Trump has said that once the US-Israeli coalition defeats Iran, he will declare the strategic Strait of Hormuz to be United States territory. "As soon as we beat Iran (…), pretty soon I'm going to declare the Strait of Hormuz United States territory," Trump said, without offering further details about his statement.

According to the British newspaper The Guardian, it is unclear whether Trump was speaking seriously — the outlet notes that the remark came at a moment when the administration has been unable to bring to a close the war that the US and Israel launched together at the end of February this year. The American outlet The Washington Times argues the opposite, claiming Trump was merely joking about "annexation" during a speech in New York focused on crime in the country. The AFP news agency also reports that the president was smiling when he spoke about annexing the strait.

Iran: the strait remains under our control

A few hours later, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi weighed in, stating that the Strait of Hormuz remains under Iran's control. Control over this strategic waterway, and ensuring free passage through it, has become a central issue of the war — both Iran and the United States claim authority over the strait, making it one of the main sticking points in negotiations.

Fragile truce under threat once again

The US and Iran had previously reached a truce, with both sides even signing a memorandum of understanding, but fighting soon resumed. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said no decision has yet been made on resuming talks with the US. According to him, Iran remains in contact with key mediators — Qatar and Pakistan — and is exchanging messages with them, though the mere fact of correspondence does not necessarily mean the negotiation process is continuing.

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz