U.S. president Donald Trump has declared the Strait of Hormuz to be part of the territory of the United States.
Speaking publicly in South Carolina on Friday (30 Asad), local time, Trump said: “I am now declaring the Strait of Hormuz to be U.S. territory. This strait is U.S. territory.”
Trump also reiterated that the United States cannot allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapons, warning that otherwise, “very bad things” would happen.
The remarks come as the United States is currently carrying out a major economic campaign against Iran.
While the United States continues to maintain a substantial military presence in the region and enforce a maritime blockade against Iran, it has also imposed sanctions aimed at preventing U.S. allies, and even China, from engaging in trade or financial cooperation with Iran.
Esmaeil Baghaei, spokesperson for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, described the new U.S. sanctions as “far beyond economic warfare.”
In a post on X, Baghaei said the measures represent an attempt by Washington to “impose extraterritorial jurisdiction” on other countries.
He said the U.S. sanctions targeting Iran’s commercial partners have no basis in international law, arguing that “no government has the right to force banks and economic enterprises in other countries to halt their legitimate cooperation with third countries.”
The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson warned that complying with such policies would amount to a “return to an era of overt colonialism” and would lead to the “erosion of the concept of national sovereignty in the international system.”
Writer:Salima Aryaei
