Iran dismisses Trump’s territory claim as ‘delusions’
Speaking at a Friday evening rally in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, President Donald Trump told supporters he now views the Strait of Hormuz — bordered by Iran and Oman and through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s seaborne oil supply typically passes — as American territory.
“We don’t even know if we won, because I view the strait of Hormuz as an American territory right now,” Trump said, addressing the crowd. Trump was in South Carolina to campaign for Darline Graham, the sister of the late Senator Lindsey Graham, who is running to permanently fill his Senate seat.
The comments come as the US military continues its blockade of Iranian shipping and ports, and the Trump administration struggles to end a war now approaching the six-month mark without a negotiated peace. US Central Command (Centcom) wrote on social media on Friday that American forces have redirected 68 commercial vessels to comply with the blockade.
Later in his remarks, Trump joked about further strikes against Iran. “It’s a Friday night. We have plenty of time,” Trump said, before reciting “The Snake,” a poem he frequently uses at campaign rallies. “What the hell do I have to do? Go back and bomb Iran a little bit more?”
Trump first threatened last week to declare the strait a US territory. In remarks at a New York police academy, he said: “Essentially, that’s what it is. We have the blockade. No ships get through unless we want them to.” On Monday, when asked by reporters about those comments, Trump said: “We control it with the blockade, and I like the idea of declaring it a territory.” He also posted an image of a map to social media labeling the waterway as a “new U.S. territory.”
The Trump administration has been seeking to squeeze Iran financially by restricting access to the strait, a vital waterway for the country’s oil exports. American forces have redirected 68 commercial vessels to comply with the blockade, according to US Central Command.
Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, dismissed Trump’s comments as “delusions.”