The United States’ plan to blockade Iranian ports and marine traffic has sent oil prices surging, as the countries reignited their tussle over the crucial Strait of Hormuz after peace talks ended without a deal.
American forces began enforcing the blockade at 10 a.m. ET Monday after President Donald Trump vowed to block “any and all Ships from trying to enter, or leave” the strait, which he had spent weeks pressuring Tehran to reopen.
The current two-week ceasefire came into force after Trump threatened to obliterate the “whole civilization” of Iran if it did not reopen the waterway, through which some 20% of the world’s oil passes.
The announcement of the blockade sent stocks falling and the price of crude oil soaring to above $100 amid questions around why the U.S. might cut off a trade route it had been trying to force open, how the blockade would work and what it could mean for countries across the world.
U.S. Central Command, or CENTCOM, clarified Trump’s Sunday comments, saying the blockade would affect only maritime traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports. It stressed that U.S. forces would not “impede freedom of navigation” for vessels transiting the strait to and from other ports.
CENTCOM said the blockade on the key trade route would be enforced “impartially” against any and all vessels entering or departing Iranian ports, including those on the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.
