Strait of Hormuz: US toughens stance against Iran

Published on April 12, 2026 at 20:34 | Updated on April 12, 2026 at 23:16

In a climate of extreme tension around the Strait of Hormuz, Washington announces a possible naval blockade while Tehran denounces a ceasefire violation. Amid threats of sanctions, military deployments, and Russian mediation, the crisis between the United States and Iran intensifies.

In the silence of a still locked capital, the American delegation leaves without anything obtained. After 21 hours of tumultuous historic negotiations, J. D. Vance prefers to slam the door, he leaves Pakistan. And Donald Trump announces a unanimous change of strategy in a telephone interview: “We couldn’t agree on the important issues. They want a nuclear weapon, they won’t get it. So we will set up a complete blockade in the Strait of Hormuz. We will not let Iran make money by selling oil to those they like and not to others. It’s all or nothing.”

At least two American ships, the USS Michael Murphy and the USS Frank E. Peterson, are positioned on either side of the strait, ready to block everything in the coming hours. Donald Trump’s goal? Privatize and make his asset in negotiations and cripple the Iranian economy. Still on April 12, about ten ships crossed the strait. According to the United States, some would pay up to two million to Iran as passage fees. And in the month of March, every day, Tehran allegedly managed to export up to one and a half million barrels of oil, a way to finance its war.

Tehran’s response: any blockade would be a violation of the ceasefire. Iran releases a video taken from a surveillance drone above the Strait of Hormuz, with images and a threatening message: “Any wrong move will drag the enemy into the deadly whirlpools of the strait.”

The Iranian navy claims to have pushed back one of the American ships after radio exchanges: “You must change course and return to the Indian Ocean immediately. This is the final warning,” can be heard on the recordings

The diplomatic solution therefore seems to be moving away in the immediate term. Donald Trump threatens China with 50% tariffs if it militarily assists Tehran and hints at new strikes in a message on his social network: “When the time comes, we will be fully ready to fire and our armed forces will finish off what little remains of Iran”. On the evening of April 12, it is the Russian president who proposes to serve as a mediator to resolve the conflict in the Middle East.