Kamal Ghorui
US President Donald Trump on Thursday shared a modified map renaming the Strait of Hormuz as the “Strait of Trump” after claiming that the naval blockade against Iran could continue for months.Trump posted the image on his Truth Social account that labelled the strategic Strait of Hormuz as the “Strait of Trump” with no caption. The graphic was originally posted by an account named “IStandWithTrump47.”This is not the first time Trump has made such a remark. In an earlier statement, he appeared to mix up the name, saying Iran needed to “open up the Strait of Trump, I mean, Hormuz.”“Excuse me. I’m so sorry. Such a terrible mistake. The fake news will say, ‘He accidentally said’ — No, there’s no accidents with me, not too many. If there were, we’d have a major story,” he added.
The development comes as Trump indicated that the US naval blockade against Iran could continue for months. The blockade, enforced since mid-April, targets vessels entering or leaving Iranian ports and has contributed to a surge in global oil prices, which recently hit their highest levels in over four years.Earlier, a report by the Institute for the Study of War suggests Iran is unlikely to back down. The analysis indicates that a hardline approach led by Ahmad Vahidi has become dominant within Tehran’s leadership.According to the report, Iran is unwilling to negotiate its nuclear programme until the US lifts the blockade and is exploring alternative strategies to maintain leverage.These include a possible plan with Oman to impose tolls on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, allowing Tehran to present a “new proposal” without compromising its core demands. The report also notes that Iran may seek to pressure the US indirectly by encouraging Houthi groups in Yemen to target vessels in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.Earlier, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had said that the combined impact of sanctions and the naval blockade would inflict long-term damage on Iran’s economy.“The Treasury Department, through Economic Fury, has targeted Iran’s international shadow banking infrastructure, access to crypto, shadow fleet, weapons procurement networks, funding for terrorist proxies in the region, and independent Chinese ‘teapot’ refineries that support Iran’s oil trade. These actions have disrupted tens of billions of dollars in revenue that would be used to fund terrorism,” Scott said.“Kharg Island, Iran’s primary oil export terminal, is soon nearing storage capacity, which will force the regime to reduce oil production, resulting in an additional approximately $170 million per day in lost revenue, and causing permanent damage to Iran’s oil infrastructure. Treasury will continue to exert maximum pressure and any person, vessel, or entity facilitating illicit flows to Tehran risks exposure to U.S. sanctions,” he added.Iran, however rejected the US claims and criticised the strategy. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf dismissed Bessent’s remarks, calling his advice “junk.”“3 days in, no well exploded. We could extend to 30 and livestream the well here. That was the kind of junk advice the US admin gets from people like Bessent who also push the blockade theory and cranked oil up to $120+. Next stop:140. The issue isn’t the theory, it’s the mindset,” Ghalibaf said in a post on X
