War

Trump Responds to Iranian Blockade of Strait of Hormuz By Blockading It

After walking out of peace talks in Pakistan, the U.S. and Iran are now playing a game of chicken.

Matthew Petti | 4.12.2026 3:43 PM

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A Eurocopter AS565 Panther helicopter transports cargo to the flight deck of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) during a replenishment-at-sea with Lewis and Clark-class dry cargo ship USNS Carl Brashear (T-AKE-7) in support of Operation Epic Fury, March 18, 2026. (U.S. Navy)

For weeks, the goal of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran has been to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran had closed in response to the war. Now that there is a ceasefire, President Donald Trump has declared that U.S. policy is to keep the strait closed, to prevent Iran from extorting vessels that cross. If we can't have it, he seems to be declaring, no one can.

"Effective immediately, the United States Navy, the Finest in the World, will begin the process of BLOCKADING any and all Ships trying to enter, or leave, the Strait of Hormuz," Trump wrote in a social media rant on Sunday morning. "I have also instructed our Navy to seek and interdict every vessel in International Waters that has paid a toll to Iran. No one who pays an illegal toll will have safe passage on the high seas."

The Strait of Hormuz is the only naval passage out of the Persian Gulf, and around 20 percent of the world's oil and natural gas normally passes through it, along with many other key industrial inputs. The disruption to this trade due to the war has been Iran's main point of leverage.

Last week, the Iranian military declared that the Strait of Hormuz was filled with sea mines and the only........

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