Trump backtracks on Hormuz toll after resuming Iranian naval blockade

The U.S. military’s naval blockade against Iranian ships in the Strait of Hormuz resumed on Tuesday afternoon after oil prices jumped to a one-month high overnight. The resumption of the blockade came after several days of strikes between U.S. and Iranian forces, which effectively ended the temporary peace agreement brokered last month. Iran’s state-run broadcasting outlet reported Tuesday that over half of the Iranian parliament demanded retaliation and a formal end to last month’s Islamabad agreement.

Iran also began launching fatal strikes on commercial vessels traveling in the strait. Iran launched missile attacks on Monday against two United Arab Emirates tankers, according to the UAE Defense Ministry. The attacks killed at least one crew member and injured eight others, while also causing material damage to both tankers, according to the Monday night statement. U.S. Central Command continued striking on Iran overnight, hitting half a dozen targets to handicap Iran from attacking commercial vessels, according to a Tuesday night update.

President Donald Trump released a Tuesday statement insisting that the Strait remained open for commercial traffic despite the blockade and ongoing strikes. Oil is flowing like never before, he wrote. The Strait is open to all maritime traffic except ships entering or leaving Iranian ports, or any ships carrying cargo relating to Iran, he added.

Isn’t Trump charging a safety toll? Trump initially planned to charge commercial vessels a 20% fee for safe passage through the Strait. The U.S. military will function as the guardian of the Hormuz Strait, and it’s only fair that vessels pay that 20% to cover security costs, he wrote on Monday. Trump later spoke with Middle Eastern leaders and decided against a safety toll, choosing instead to implement trade deals and obtain other investments from Gulf states, according to the Tuesday statement.