Trump announces immediate blockade of the Strait of Hormuz

“With immediate effect, the United States Navy — the best in the world — will begin the process of blocking any vessel, regardless of its origin, attempting to enter or leave the Strait of Hormuz,” Mr. Trump said on the Truth Social network.

“The blockade will begin shortly,” the U.S. president added, noting that “other nations will join this blockade.”

Ultimately, he continued, “we will arrive at a system based on the principle that ‘every ship is allowed to enter, every ship is allowed to leave.’”

This decision follows the failure of talks between the American and Iranian delegations, largely due to Tehran’s refusal to abandon its nuclear ambitions.

“The meeting went well; most points were agreed upon, except for the only one that truly mattered: the NUCLEAR issue,” he explained.

“Iran knows, better than anyone, how to put an end to this situation that has already devastated its country (…) because of its nuclear ambitions,” Mr. Trump stated.

The U.S. president also addressed the mining of the Strait of Hormuz by the Iranian military, which he described as “extortion on a global scale,” asserting that “the leaders of nations — and especially those of the United States of America — will never be extorted.”

The occupant of the White House also indicated that he had ordered the U.S. Navy “to locate and intercept, in international waters, any vessel that has paid a toll to Iran,” adding that “no one paying an illegal toll will be granted safe passage on the high seas.”

The U.S. Navy will also undertake to “destroy the mines that the Iranians have laid in the strait,” he assured.

“They want money and, more importantly, they want nuclear weapons,” Mr. Trump said, adding that when the time comes, “we will be fully ready to open fire, and our armed forces will finish what remains of Iran.”