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United States President Donald Trump was “joking” when he said he would declare the Strait of Hormuz a U.S. territory after the war with Iran, U.S. media reported Friday.
Trump has not met with advisers to discuss such a move, Wall Street Journal reporter Brian Schwartz said on X, citing an unnamed senior White House official.
“President Trump has not met with his advisers about declaring the Strait of Hormuz a U.S. territory post the war and was joking during his speech today in New York,” Schwartz wrote.
Trump made the remark during a political rally at the Nassau County Police Academy in Garden City, New York.
“After we finish defeating Iran, which is being very badly defeated — pretty soon I’ll be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States,” Trump said with a chuckle.
“It’s true,” he added.
Schwartz, who attended the speech, said Trump chuckled after making the remark but then appeared to insist that it was true.
Trump also claimed Washington controls maritime access through the strategically vital waterway.
“We have the blockade. No ships get through unless we want them to,” he told supporters.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi rejected Trump’s remarks, saying the Strait of Hormuz would remain under Iran’s control.
“The Strait of Hormuz has been Iranian, is Iranian, and will remain Iranian,” Gharibabadi said on X.
He added that the waterway “will be opened and closed only at Iran’s command.”
In a separate response, Gharibabadi said the strait “cannot be seized by a tweet, an aircraft carrier, an order, or an election speech.”
He said the United States must acknowledge what he described as strategic defeats suffered against Iran.
“Iran is neither afraid of threats nor can it be intimidated by a show of force,” he said.
“The Strait of Hormuz was Iran’s, is Iran’s, and will remain Iran’s. This strait will be closed and opened only at Iran’s command, and until you accept the reality of your defeat and abandon your fantasies, Iran will continue to impose a blockade,” he added.
Iranian military officials have also disputed Trump’s claim of U.S. control over the waterway.
Iran’s central military command on Thursday called assertions of U.S. control over the Strait of Hormuz “baseless lies and fabrications.”
Ibrahim Zolfaqari, spokesperson for the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, Iran’s highest military body coordinating the war, also rejected Trump’s claim.
“No vessel will be permitted to pass through the Strait of Hormuz without Iran’s permission and supervision,” Zolfaqari said.
Iranian officials have repeatedly said the strait will not be reopened as long as the United States continues its intervention there, maintains a naval blockade and fails to fulfill the requirements of the June framework agreement between Tehran and Washington.
As of Aug. 12, some 3,371 vessels had crossed the Strait of Hormuz in the 166 days since the war began, representing about 20% of prewar traffic volumes, according to data from commodities and shipping analytics firm Kpler cited by CNN.
The Strait of Hormuz connects the Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and is one of the world’s most important energy shipping routes.
The United States and Iran agreed to a Pakistan-brokered cease-fire in April and later signed a deal on June 17, launching negotiations toward a final agreement.
The talks later stalled over disagreements on security guarantees and freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.
From July 8 to 24, the United States and Iran exchanged further military strikes, with Washington launching attacks on targets inside Iran.
Tehran responded by striking what it described as U.S. military facilities and equipment in several Arab countries, including Jordan, Bahrain and Kuwait.
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