Tehran says Strait of Hormuz ‘will remain Iranian’ after Trump territory claim

Tehran reaffirmed Saturday that the Strait of Hormuz “will remain Iranian” after U.S. President Donald Trump claimed the strategic passage would become part of U.S. territory once Iran is “defeated.”

The conflict between the two countries, which has lasted for more than five months and caused thousands of deaths, is currently centered around the crucial maritime route for global oil transport.

After a U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran in late February sparked the war in the Middle East, Tehran retaliated by attacking neighboring countries allied with Washington and closed the strait, causing oil prices to soar.

The United States, for its part, has imposed a blockade on Iranian ports.

“Once we finish defeating Iran … soon I will declare the Strait of Hormuz as United States territory,” Trump said Friday with a slight smile during a rally in Garden City, near New York.

Trump has repeatedly claimed that the United States has “control” of the Strait of Hormuz, a statement Tehran has called a “lie.”

According to Brian Schwartz, a Wall Street Journal reporter who cited a senior White House official on X, the president was “joking” when he said Hormuz would become “American territory.”

Iran, however, wasted no time responding to Trump’s statement.

“The Strait of Hormuz has been Iranian, is Iranian and will remain Iranian. This strait will be opened and closed only on the order of Iran,” Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said Saturday morning on X.

‘I will never apologize’

Gharibabadi added that the strait “cannot be conquered with a tweet or an aircraft carrier, nor by a presidential decree, nor by a campaign speech.”

One of the reasons given for the late-February attack on Iran was concern that Tehran might acquire nuclear weapons. Trump also said Iran would “never” have them.

Iranian authorities deny having such ambitions, asserting their right to civil nuclear power.

“If you have to pay a little more” for gas, “it’s OK. … I will never apologize. I made the right decision,” Trump said Friday.

Compared with prewar levels, U.S. gasoline prices were up more than 35% on Friday, as were prices elsewhere in the world.

The conflict is unpopular, and household discontent over the cost of living has contributed to a sharp decline in Trump’s approval ratings.

A memorandum of understanding signed in June between Iran and the United States to bring a lasting end to the war collapsed in early July, notably because of disputes over the Strait of Hormuz, followed by a resumption of strikes on both sides.

While hostilities have eased in recent days, negotiations between the warring parties remain at a standstill.

After repeatedly threatening to deal a harsh blow to Iran if no agreement was reached over Hormuz, Trump now appears to favor a more wait-and-see approach based on economic pressure.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Thursday threatened Iran with economic isolation “like the world has never seen.”

On the ground, attacks attributed to Iran continue to regularly target ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

The United Arab Emirates on Friday accused Iran of attacking two of its vessels affiliated with state-owned oil company Adnoc as they were passing through the strait.

On the other side of the Arabian Peninsula, in the Red Sea, Yemen’s Houthi rebels, allied with Tehran, are targeting Saudi ships and oil infrastructure in Saudi Arabia, a U.S. ally.