Skip to content
Frozen copy retrieved 2026-08-15T02:24:00Z for audit 2026-08-15T02-42-29Z. Original URL:
https://www.notus.org/donald-trump/strait-of-hormuz-us-territory. The Stochastic Parrot does not host or redistribute; this snapshot exists solely so that quoted spans remain verifiable if the original page changes. Character offsets below index into this plain text; highlighted spans are the quotes cited in the audit.
Trump: I Plan to Declare the Strait of Hormuz a "Territory" of the United States
President Trump announced Friday that he intends to declare the Strait of Hormuz a U.S. territory following the conclusion of the Iran conflict. He stated: "After we finish defeating Iran, I will be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States." The proposal faces significant obstacles. Iran has asserted control over the waterway since its 1979 revolution, and the country closed the strait in 2026 after initially blocking passage during earlier disputes. Before hostilities erupted in February, roughly 100 vessels transited daily under international maritime regulations. Trump acknowledged the ongoing conflict has disrupted shipping and raised consumer prices, including gasoline costs. He characterized the economic burden as acceptable given U.S. objectives regarding Iranian nuclear capabilities. Historically, the United States controlled the Panama Canal through treaty rather than military conquest, eventually returning full authority to Panama in 1999. That precedent demonstrates territorial control typically requires formal agreements rather than unilateral declarations.