President Donald Trump claimed Iran had badly miscalculated by shutting the Strait of Hormuz, saying the “dying” country had effectively stranded itself behind what he described as America’s own “wall of steel.”
Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Trump said Tehran was now desperate to reopen the strategically vital waterway because it was “losing so badly.” He also confirmed that he had rejected Iran’s latest ceasefire proposal.
Iran had proposed reopening the Strait of Hormuz and returning to nuclear negotiations in return for several US concessions, including the removal of the naval blockade imposed on Iranian ports.
Trump dismissed the offer as “unacceptable,” arguing that Iran was seeking an agreement “because they’re dying” and had “no money coming in.”
He said the US was enforcing the “greatest blockade ever in military history” and claimed Iran wanted an immediate deal to reopen the strait because it was “losing so badly.”
The President further declared that the US was “winning tremendously” and had “total control” of the Strait of Hormuz. Before the war with Iran, roughly one-fifth of the world’s traded oil passed through the waterway each day.
“Because they get their money from the Hormuz Strait, so they outsmarted themselves,” Trump said.
Trump has told aides that he expects US bombing operations against Iran to continue beyond November’s midterm elections, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday night.
President Donald Trump said Saturday that Iran was “dying” and wanted to reopen the Strait of Hormuz “immediately” after having “outsmarted themselves.”
Iran would have reopened the strait under the proposed temporary ceasefire, a process Iranian authorities said would take seven days.
Trump also said that 29 ships passed out of the strait on Friday night, carrying what he described as “massive amounts of oil.”
“They don’t have any money now, because they wanted to close the strait, and I said, ‘That’s fine. We’re gonna close it on you, but everybody else is able to use it,’” Trump said.
The President had also mocked Iran on Truth Social on Friday night, shortly after reports emerged that the ceasefire proposal had been rejected.
Trump shared an image labeled the “Trump Strait,” echoing his previous efforts to rename the Gulf of America and Lake America through executive orders. He has not officially renamed the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that the initial steps of the agreement would take approximately four to five days, according to the Associated Press.
Under the proposed timeline, the Strait of Hormuz would reopen on the sixth day, while negotiations with the US would resume on the final day of the agreement.
During an address to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, Trump warned that he could “annihilate” Iran if no agreement was reached to end the conflict, which has lasted nearly seven months.
“Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before? Maybe one of the greatest in the Middle East or even the world?” Trump asked.
“Or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly, never giving them a chance to kill and destroy people and countries again?” he added.
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Trump also said the US was winning the Iran war ‘tremendously’ and had ‘total control’ over Hormuz
The President taunted Iran on Friday night as he posted a picture of the ‘Trump Strait’ on Truth Social
Trump also said he believed a deal would be found ‘right after the election because it doesn’t make sense for them not to.’
‘They’re waiting to see how I do in the midterm election,’ Trump added. ‘What they don’t realize is that I’m not running.’
Crude prices around the world have gone up over disruptions on the strait caused by the Iran war.
That has made gasoline more expensive for Americans, which has been brought into focus ahead of the midterms.
About 61 percent of voters say that gas prices are a major concern, per a Fox News poll published on September 16.
Araghchi had said an agreement ‘would be much better if it is done before the midterm election,’ according to CNBC.
He added that it depended on ‘the US administration to decide’ and claimed Iran was ‘not in a hurry.’
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told the UN that ‘it cannot be the case that everyone benefits from the Strait of Hormuz while we are denied access to shipping’
US special peace mission envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff met with an Iranian delegation on Tuesday
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian left New York for Tehran after attending the UN gathering, the Iranian state sponsored news agency MNA reported early Saturday.
Pezeshkian told the UN General Assembly that ‘the resistance of the Iranian people will only increase in the face of sanctions, increased pressure, increased bullying.’ per the BBC.
The Iranian president also discussed the US blockade on the strait while speaking at the UN.
‘It cannot be the case that everyone benefits from the Strait of Hormuz while we are denied access to shipping through this waterway,’ he said, according to the outlet.
The war in Iran started on February 28 after joint US-Israeli strikes that killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other members of his family.
US special peace mission envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met with an Iranian delegation in New York on Tuesday, according to Axios.
Witkoff said then on X that he hoped the conversations would ‘prove constructive and promising.’
Trump called the meeting ‘very productive’ and said that he thought there was ‘a lot of momentum for them to make a deal,’ the outlet reported.
The Daily Mail has reached out to the White House for comment.
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