US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose a 20% toll on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route, as tensions between the US and Iran escalate. In a phone interview on Fox and Friends, Trump stated that the US would become the ‘guardian angel’ of the strait and would charge a fee for safe passage. He later posted on Truth Social, declaring that the US would be known as the ‘GUARDIAN OF THE HORMUZ STRAIT’ and would be reimbursed at a rate of 20% on all cargo shipped.
Iran has swiftly rejected Trump’s proposal, stating that it would not allow the US to intervene in the management of the waterway. The Islamic Republic of Iran Armed Forces said in a statement that any attempt by the US army to arrange transit through the strait outside designated paths and without coordination with Iran’s armed forces would be strongly resisted. The conflict between the US and Iran has reignited, with both sides accusing each other of violating a Memorandum of Understanding.
The US insists that the agreement requires ships to pass through the strait unfettered, while Iran claims that attempts by vessels to traverse the shipping lane along the Omani coast pose an encroachment of its authority. Traffic through the vital shipping route has come to a near standstill with no commercial vessels openly transiting overnight on Monday, although some may have passed with their transponders switched off. The UK has also made a decision to proscribe the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a national security threat, citing threats to life and intimidation on UK soil.
The move comes after years of debate over the IRGC’s role and its close links to international terrorism and human rights abuses in Iran. The UK government has also proscribed another Iran-linked group, the Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Right (IMCR), and the volunteer corps of Russia’s GRU (foreign military intelligence agency) as terrorist organisations. The decision means it is now a criminal offence to invite support for, or express an opinion or belief that is supportive of, these groups.
The US military had announced strikes on Iran to ‘hold Iranian forces accountable’ as tensions over the strait escalated. Despite a fragile interim agreement that required all parties to cease hostilities, tit-for-tat strikes were renewed following Iranian attacks on three commercial vessels last week. The situation in the region remains volatile, with both sides engaging in a war of words and military actions.
The international community is watching the situation closely, with concerns about the impact on global trade and security.
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