Senior Iranian military and diplomatic officials on Saturday insisted that the Strait of Hormuz remains open for international shipping — but with a clear exception: vessels belonging to the United States, Israel, and their allies will not be permitted to pass.
Alireza Tangsiri, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy, said claims by Washington about destroying Iran's navy or providing safe escort for oil tankers through the strait were false. "The Strait of Hormuz has not been militarily blocked and is merely under control," Tangsiri said, according to Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency.
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Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi reinforced the position in remarks to US media. "The Strait of Hormuz is open. It is only closed to the tankers and ships belonging to our enemies, to those who are attacking us and their allies. Others are free to pass," he said.
The stance aligns with the first public message from Iran's new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who pledged to maintain leverage over the Strait of Hormuz following his appointment.
US President Donald Trump on Saturday urged countries dependent on oil shipments through the strait to step up alongside American forces to keep the waterway open.
"Many countries, especially those who are affected by Iran's attempted closure of the Hormuz Strait, will be sending warships, in conjunction with the United States of America, to keep the Strait open and safe," Trump wrote on social media.
Washington has been working to ease elevated oil prices driven by the joint US-Israeli military campaign against Iran and Tehran's subsequent retaliations against US assets across the region.
Trump also claimed the US campaign had effectively neutralised Iran's military. "We have already destroyed 100 per cent of Iran's military capability, but it's easy for them to send a drone or two, drop a mine, or deliver a close-range missile somewhere along, or in, this waterway, no matter how badly defeated they are," he said.
The Strait of Hormuz is a strategic chokepoint through which roughly one-fifth of the world's oil passes daily, making its status a matter of acute concern for energy markets and major importers worldwide.