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Iran hits back after Trump says he may declare Hormuz US territory

Iran International (independent London-based outlet, generally critical of the Iranian government; not state media) · back to the audit
The Strait of Hormuz was unusually quiet Friday, with shipping traffic near a standstill. Hours later, as the day turned to Saturday in Iran, President Donald Trump said in New York that he may soon declare the strategic waterway "a territory of the United States," drawing an immediate assertion from Tehran that the strait remains Iranian and under its command. "Pretty soon I'll be declaring the Strait of Hormuz a territory of the United States," Trump said during remarks at the Police Academy Center for Training and Intelligence. Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi responded that Iran would decide when the strait opened or closed and would continue what he described as its blockade until Washington accepted its "strategic defeat." "The Strait of Hormuz has been Iranian, is Iranian, and will remain Iranian," Gharibabadi wrote on X, adding that the waterway would be "closed and opened under Iran's command." The competing claims over the waterway came as actual traffic through it fell to extremely low levels. Kpler data showed only two vessels passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Friday, with no crude oil shipments visible. Nine vessels crossed Thursday and five Wednesday, compared with an August average of 12. More than 130 ships traversed the strait daily before the US-Israeli war on Iran began in February. US Central Command said Friday that its forces had redirected 62 commercial vessels, disabled three and boarded two as of Aug. 14 while enforcing the US blockade against Iran. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Thursday that the United States could maintain that blockade "indefinitely" by rotating ships in and out. Washington also kept up its economic pressure on Tehran. Trump highlighted Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's remarks on "unprecedented economic isolation" for Iran by sharing a Newsmax report on Truth Social. Bessent said Thursday that the United States would apply measures against Iran that had "never been seen." Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Friday that no decision had been made to resume talks with Washington, semi-official ISNA reported. He said Qatar and Pakistan were continuing to exchange messages and remain in contact with Iran, but stressed that this "does not mean negotiations." In Tehran, Mohammad Mokhber, an adviser to Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, said Thursday that Khamenei's strategy was to shift the war to an offensive posture if Iran's conditions were not met. IRGC Navy commander Ali Azmaei, also formally appointed this week, said Thursday that the Strait of Hormuz remained closed and that no movement through it escaped the force's notice. Rasoul Sanaei-Rad, a senior military official, said Iran was preparing for "worst-case" war scenarios and needed offensive capabilities alongside defensive ones. "Our fighters have their fingers on the trigger," he said, adding that Iran would seek to impose a much heavier defeat if attacked again.