With diplomacy losing ground and tensions spreading across the region, pressure is mounting around the Strait of Hormuz as Washington weighs economic and military options while Iran escalates its response.
When U.S. President Donald Trump called on voters in his speech at the New York Police Academy on Friday to take into account that the price of a gallon of gasoline rising above $4 was the price they were paying to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, he was preparing U.S. public opinion, particularly his supporters, for the possibility that the war with Iran could extend beyond the midterm elections on Nov. 3. He promised them a major reward in return for their patience and endurance: his intention to declare the Strait of Hormuz “American territory” after victory.
Although a White House official quickly clarified that the president had been “joking” when he spoke of his intention to annex the strait, Iranian officials responded that Hormuz is Iranian waters and that keeping it open or closing it would remain subject to Iran’s decision. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that Tehran and Muscat had finalized the details of an agreement on transit routes through the maritime passage on which the world relies for 20 percent of its energy needs.
With the 60-day ceasefire period stipulated in the memorandum of understanding signed on June 17 now over, there is currently no framework governing the directions in which the already fragile situation on the ground between the United States and Iran could develop.
U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth says the naval blockade of Iranian ports could continue for an “indefinite period.” U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is threatening to impose unprecedented economic and financial sanctions on Iran in the coming days.
Hormuz has recently moved to the forefront of the U.S.-Iranian dispute, at the expense of the nuclear issue. This is clearly indicated by Vice President J.D. Vance, who told Trump’s preferred network, Fox News, on Thursday that “the first goal is to keep oil and gas prices cheap for Americans across the United States... and then obviously the second goal is to ensure that Iran does not get a nuclear weapon.” This is entirely inconsistent with the goals announced by the Trump administration when the war began.
Although economic pressure is the option Trump is currently pursuing, the United States is not setting aside its military options. The U.S. aircraft carrier George Washington entered the Arabian Sea over the weekend to replace the Abraham Lincoln, which had been at the center of considerable controversy in recent days over the mental health of its crew after spending nine consecutive months at sea, resulting in shortages of food and other logistical necessities. To put an end to the controversy, Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command, concluded an extended tour of the region with a visit to the Lincoln carrier.
An American fighter jet takes off from the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln on July 31, 2026. (U.S. Central Command)
Diplomatic prospects suffered another setback, with no indication of what came of Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s visit to Tehran last week. Meanwhile, relations between Iran and Qatar have deteriorated, with Tehran on Saturday demanding that Doha return three Iranian pilots whom it said had been shot down on the first day of the Feb. 28 war, when they were on a mission to bomb a military base in Qatar. Doha, however, strongly denied that it was holding the pilots. It explained that the relevant Qatari authorities had found the body of one of the Iranian pilots and had contacted the Iranian side to come and take possession of it. Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed Al Ansari said on X: “We are surprised by these misleading statements at this particular time, amid the continued diplomatic efforts and endeavors aimed at de-escalating tensions in the region.”
With no prospects for a diplomatic breakthrough in the near future, there are fears that the spreading tensions across the region could lead to a broader escalation. These include Iran’s continued targeting of oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, most recently three attacks in recent days on vessels belonging to the UAE’s ADNOC, as well as Houthi attacks in Yemen on Saudi Arabia’s Aramco facilities and on vessels in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, in addition to Israel stepping up its attacks in Lebanon.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by the writers are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Annahar
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