US President Donald Trump has escalated tensions with Iran after posting a map on his Truth Social platform showing the strategically important Strait of Hormuz as "NEW U.S. Territory".
The post comes days after Trump first raised the possibility of claiming the vital waterway as US territory. He repeated the idea on Monday, saying that taking control of the strait would be a good move.
The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world's most important energy chokepoints, with about one-fifth of global oil supplies passing through the waterway. Before the war between the US, Israel and Iran erupted on February 28, the strait was an open international waterway.
Iran has effectively shut the strategic waterway amid the ongoing conflict. Tehran has said it will not reopen the strait until Washington meets a series of demands, including ending the US blockade of Iranian ports, lifting oil sanctions, releasing frozen Iranian assets and paying war damages.
Trump's latest move comes as diplomatic efforts between Washington and Tehran remain stalled. On Tuesday, Trump said there were no talks with Iran taking place or scheduled, while claiming that the US had control over the waterway and that naval mines had been cleared. Iran, however, maintained that the strait remained closed.
The latest development has added to concerns over the impact of the conflict on global energy supplies. Oil prices rose for a third consecutive session on Tuesday as hopes for a US-Iran agreement faded, with Brent crude trading above $91 a barrel.
Trump has previously floated territorial claims involving other regions, including Canada, Greenland and the Gaza Strip. However, none of those proposals has resulted in a formal change of sovereignty.
The Strait of Hormuz remains a key flashpoint in the US-Iran confrontation, with any prolonged disruption to shipping through the waterway potentially affecting global oil markets, energy security and inflation.
