'I Kept It Closed': Trump Says He Blocked Hormuz Strait To Pressure Iran For Peace Deal

Last Updated:April 24, 2026, 08:12 IST

Donald Trump says he personally kept the Strait of Hormuz closed to pressure Iran, claiming total control and tying reopening to a "very positive" deal in ongoing talks

US President Donald Trump has claimed that he personally decided to keep the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz closed amid ongoing tensions in West Asia, linking the move to efforts to pressure Iran during negotiations.

Speaking to reporters about the conflict, Trump said, “… I gave them a break. I want to make the best deal. I could make a deal right now. Do you know that if I left right now, we had a tremendous success. It would take them 20 years to rebuild, but I don’t want to do that. I want to have it everlasting… What I am doing, I can’t tell you that. I don’t want to put that kind of timetable on it, but it will go pretty quickly. We will have the Strait opened up. Right now, we have it closed. We have total control of the Strait…"

Emphasising his role in the decision, Trump added, They would have opened it up 3 days ago. They came to us, and they said, " We will agree to open the Strait." All my people were happy except me. I said, “One minute, if we open the Strait, that means they are going to make $500 million a day." I don’t want them to make $500 million a day until they settle this thing. So I am the one that kept it closed. We have total control of it."

The remarks underscore Washington’s hardline stance in the region, where the sea route remains a critical global transit route. Any disruption to shipping through the narrow passage—through which a significant portion of the world’s oil supply passes—has immediate implications for global energy markets.

Trump framed the closure as a calculated move to maintain leverage, suggesting that reopening the Strait would depend on progress in negotiations and what he described as a “very positive" outcome.

“It will open when they make a deal or something else happens that is very positive," he remarked.

News world 'I Kept It Closed': Trump Says He Blocked Hormuz Strait To Pressure Iran For Peace Deal

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