Trump says U.S. Navy will begin blockading all ships trying to enter or leave Strait of Hormuz

▲ This photo, released by AFP, shows U.S. President Donald Trump speaking during a press conference at the White House in Washington on April 6, 2026. (Yonhap)

Trump-Hormuz Strait

Trump says U.S. Navy will begin blockading all ships trying to enter or leave Strait of Hormuz

By Song Sang-ho

WASHINGTON, April 12 (Yonhap) -- U.S. President Donald Trump said Sunday that the U.S. Navy will begin blockading all ships trying to enter or leave the crucial Strait of Hormuz "effective immediately" after Washington and Tehran failed to reach an agreement during peace talks in Pakistan over the weekend.

Trump made the remarks in a social media post, saying that the negotiations "went well" as the two sides agreed to "most points," excluding the "one point that really mattered" -- Iran's nuclear issue.

"Effective immediately, the United States Navy, the Finest in the World, will begin the process of BLOCKADING any and all Ships trying to enter, or leave, the Strait of Hormuz," he wrote on Truth Social, noting that other countries will also be involved with the blockade.

He added that at some point, the U.S. will see "all being allowed to go in, all being allowed to go out," while decrying Iran for not allowing safe passage through the waterway, a vital oil shipping route.

"Iran has not allowed that to happen by merely saying, 'There may be a mine out there somewhere,' that nobody knows about but them," he said. "THIS IS WORLD EXTORTION, and Leaders of Countries, especially the United States of America, will never be extorted."

The order for the blockade comes as Iran has used the Strait of Hormuz as a pivotal lever to pressure the U.S. at a time when its restrictions on traffic through the strait led to a surge in oil prices and fanned fears of higher inflation ahead of the U.S midterm elections slated for November.

Trump has instructed the U.S. Navy to seek and interdict every vessel in "international waters" that has paid a toll to Iran, he said.

"No one who pays an illegal toll will have safe passage on the high seas. We will also begin destroying the mines the Iranians laid in the Straits. Any Iranian who fires at us, or at peaceful vessels, will be BLOWN TO HELL!" he said.

"Iran knows, better than anyone, how to END this situation which has already devastated their Country ... The Blockade will begin shortly ... Iran will not be allowed to profit off this Illegal Act of EXTORTION."

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