Donald Trump spoke after the end of the negotiations led in Islamabad on April 11, which did not result in an agreement between the United States and Iran. In a lengthy post published on April 12 on his Truth Social platform, the president announced that the US Navy will block “any ship attempting to enter or exit the Strait of Hormuz.” Trump claims that “other countries” will participate in this blockade, “without providing more details,” according to The Wall Street Journal.
“Iran promised to open the Strait of Hormuz and it did not, knowingly,” the president bemoans in his post. The blockade “will be effective very quickly,” he later declared on Fox News.
“Iran de facto holds the strait hostage, imposing a toll and limiting oil exports,” in this crucial artery, notes Axios. “Trump’s blockade aims to reverse the balance of power by depriving Iran of this bargaining chip and preventing it from exporting its own oil,” adds the site, stating that “Trump has been discussing this option with his team for several days, in case diplomatic talks fail.”
“Act of War”
Very early on April 12, the president was pleased to share on his social network an article from Just the News about the “card” of the blockade that Trump could play against Iran, as in Venezuela before the capture of President Maduro.
“A naval blockade is considered an act of war,” and its imposition “would likely have serious implications for other countries using this waterway,” notes The New York Times.
Furthermore, warns the Wall Street Journal, such a blockade would be “a big economic gamble,” risking “a stronger impact on the global economy” by worsening energy supply difficulties and market fluctuations. “For its part, Tehran appears to be in a better economic position, at least in the short term,” as it benefits from its lucrative exports since the beginning of the conflict.
“I have also ordered our naval forces to search for and prohibit any ship in international waters that has paid a toll to Iran,” declares the White House tenant in his lengthy post, adding that the United States will “begin to destroy the mines that the Iranians have laid in the strait.”
These statements suggest “a naval escalation around the strait,” comments the New York Times, and make the ceasefire concluded just five days ago even more precarious, as noted by The Washington Post.
Areas of Agreement but the Nuclear Hurdle
In this first real reaction to the talks, Trump emphasizes, as his vice president J.D. Vance did, that Iran was not ready to abandon its nuclear program. However, he points out an agreement on many subjects that, in his opinion, remain “unimportant compared to leaving nuclear power in the hands” of Tehran.
J.D. Vance and the Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, leaders of the two delegations in Pakistan, did not close the door to diplomacy but both mentioned an impasse.
Trump concludes his long post by warning that the US military is ready and, “at the appropriate time,” he threatens, “will liquidate what little remains of Iran.”
