By Jacki Thrapp
The U.S. Navy will begin blockading the Strait of Hormuz after peace talks with Iran ended without a deal.
“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,” U.S. President Donald Trump said in a Truth Social post on April 12.
Trump criticized Iranian leadership for not allowing ships to pass freely through the crucial waterway, located south of Iran, without fear of hitting an Iranian-planted mine.
“I have also instructed our Navy to seek and interdict every vessel in International Waters that has paid a toll to Iran,” Trump said.
Iran allegedly charged some ships a toll of $2 million each to pass through the Strait of Hormuz last week. Five ships allegedly paid the fee.
The president said he refuses to let the Iranian regime make a profit from the waterway, which did not happen before the conflict in the Middle East.
“No one who pays an illegal toll will have safe passage on the high seas,” Trump said. “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!”
The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) revealed specifics about the blockade hours after Trump’s post and clarified that it will be only for “all maritime traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports.”
The blockade on Iranian ports will start on April 13 at 10 a.m. ET, according to CENTCOM.
It noted that U.S. forces would not impede freedom of navigation for vessels traveling through the Strait of Hormuz “to and from non-Iranian ports.”
In a separate Truth Social post on April 12, Trump criticized Iran for failing to open the Strait of Hormuz, despite the two-week ceasefire agreement.
“This caused anxiety, dislocation, and pain to many people and Countries throughout the World,” Trump wrote.
“They say they put mines in the water, even though all of their Navy, and most of their ‘mine droppers,’ have been completely blown up. They may have done so, but what ship owner would want to take the chance? There is great dishonor and permanent harm to the reputation of Iran, and what’s left of their ‘Leaders,’ but we are beyond all of that.”
Trump said during a Fox News Channel interview on the morning of April 12 that numerous countries will help the United States with the blockade.
Iranian officials said that the “approach of military vessels toward the Strait of Hormuz will be considered a violation of the ceasefire.”
In the United States, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) showed support for Trump’s latest move.
“President Trump’s decision to blockade the strait and regain control of international waterways from Iran is the right move,” Graham wrote on X.
“It is time to finish the job when it comes to Iran’s nuclear ambitions, ballistic missile program, and their continued support for terrorist proxies. I hope the world will finally understand the type of people we’re dealing with in Iran.”
Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) issued a short, opposing reaction.
“This is what having no clue what you’re doing looks like,” Schumer wrote as he shared a screenshot of Trump’s Truth Social post.
The blockade was announced by Trump one day after CENTCOM said it sent two U.S. missile destroyers—the USS Frank E. Petersen (DDG 121) and USS Michael Murphy (DDG 112)—into the waterway to start clearing mines laid by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Oil and gas operations in the waterway have been heavily affected since the United States and Israel attacked the Iranian regime on Feb. 28.
The conflict in the Middle East has caused the price of a regular gallon of gas in America to rise by more than $1 since the beginning of the operation, according to data from the American Automobile Association.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf shared a screenshot of gas prices near the White House on the afternoon of April 12 and warned that the rates were about to surge.
“Enjoy the current pump figures,” Ghalibaf wrote on X. “With the so-called ‘blockade’, Soon you’ll be nostalgic for $4–$5 gas.”
Trump said on April 12 that gas prices could remain the same or go higher over the short term.
“Well, it’s eventually going to be lower,” Trump predicted while speaking with Maria Bartiromo on Fox News. “No, it might not happen initially, but it’s going to go down.”
Trump did not give a timeline on when prices could drop or whether Americans could see relief from pain at the pump by the time they head to the polls in November for the midterms.
“It could be,” Trump said. “Or the same. Or maybe a little bit higher. … But it should be around the same. I think this won’t be that much longer.”
As of April 12, at least 800 commercial ships are stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, and nearly 400 are oil tankers, Emirati Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology Sultan Al Jaber wrote on X.
“The Strait of Hormuz has never been Iran’s to close or restrict navigation in,” Jaber said. “Any attempt to do so is not merely a regional issue, but represents a disruption to a global economic lifeline and a direct threat to the energy, food, and health security of all countries in the world.”
The blockade was announced hours after U.S. Vice President JD Vance announced that peace talks with Iranian leaders in Islamabad had failed to result in a deal.
“The simple question is, do we see a fundamental commitment of will for the Iranians not to develop a nuclear weapon, not just now, not just two years from now, but for the long term?” Vance said while speaking to reporters after 21 hours of negotiations.
“We haven’t seen that yet,“ Vance said. ”We hope that we will.”
Iranian officials accused the United States of conflating the “peaceful use of nuclear energy” with possessing a nuclear bomb.
The Epoch Times reached out to the White House for comment.
Trump has said highly enriched uranium was stockpiled deep beneath facilities in Iran that the United States and Israel bombed.
According to nuclear watchdog the International Atomic Energy Agency, Iran had 972 pounds of enriched uranium of up to 60 percent purity, which represents about 95 percent of the work needed to reach the 90 percent purity required for weapons-grade material.
The stockpile could have allowed the country to build 10 nuclear bombs if it wanted to, according to International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
