ruth901
US President threatens Iran with attacksTrump is freaking out! “Open the damn road you crazy bastards.”
Trump is putting pressure on – but, as usual, leaving room for a late agreement.
picture alliance / Newscom / Alex Brandon
At least a few selected ships have now been allowed to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Those of the USA are not among them. US President Donald Trump threatens Iran because of his expiring ultimatum.
US President Donald Trump has once again threatened Iran with escalating attacks if the Strait of Hormuz is not opened by the expiry of his ultimatum on Easter Monday. “Open the damn road you crazy bastards,” he wrote on Truth Social. If Tehran did not follow suit, he promised attacks on energy facilities and bridges on Tuesday.
Fox News reported a short time later from a telephone interview with Trump in which he said that he thought it was possible that an agreement could be reached by Monday. “They are negotiating right now,” he said, reported the reporter who spoke to Trump.
Trump had already given Iran an ultimatum to open the Strait of Hormuz, which is important for global oil and gas trade, but extended it again last week. There will be no attacks on Iranian power plants until April 6 (US local time, 2 a.m. CEST April 7), he said at the time, citing “very good” talks.
In recent days there have continued to be violent attacks from both sides. Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which is important for global oil and gas trade, remains largely at a standstill – especially for ships with connections to the USA and Israel, which attacked Iran at the end of February. Iran's control as well as warnings about mines, drone attacks and the withdrawal of war risk insurance make the passage almost impossible for Western shipping companies. Hundreds of tankers, container ships and freighters are stranded in the region. According to some estimates there are even thousands.
Meanwhile, in recent days there has been increasing news that certain ships have been allowed to pass through the strait. A container ship belonging to the French shipping group CMA CGM is said to have been among them, as were two Turkish tankers. Those with connections to the United Arab Emirates, India, China, Malaysia or Saudi Arabia have also been allowed to pass through the Strait of Hormuz since it was closed at the beginning of March or have been given the prospect of doing so, according to reports from the AFP news agency. The Al-Jazeera channel also reports on Pakistani ships that are said to have received permission to pass through from the Revolutionary Guards.
Iran and Oman are also currently trying to regulate shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, which is central to global energy trade. According to the Omani News Agency, representatives of the foreign ministries of both countries and experts are discussing options “on how to ensure smooth passage through the Strait of Hormuz under the current circumstances in the region.”
The strait is only around 33 kilometers wide at its narrowest point. The territorial waters of Iran and Oman completely overlap; there is no neutral high-seas corridor. Iran claims control over the entire passage and is planning a toll system for the passage. Given the efforts of the two countries, it remained unclear for whom “smooth passage” would ultimately be made possible.
According to the UN Maritime Organization (IMO), Iran opened the previously closed Strait of Hormuz to “non-hostile” ships last week. Ships that “neither participate in nor support acts of aggression against Iran” and comply with certain safety regulations will from now on be allowed to pass through the important strait again “in coordination with the relevant authorities,” said Tehran in a statement published by the IMO. According to Kremlin advisor Yuri Ushakov, the Strait of Hormuz is not closed to Russia.
According to its embassy in Spain, Iran was also open to inquiries from Madrid about the Strait of Hormuz. Spain respects international law, the representation said on X last week. The Spanish government was among the first countries to condemn the US and Israeli attacks on Iran as reckless and illegal.
A tanker loaded with Iraqi crude oil is currently passing through the Strait of Hormuz near the Iranian coast, according to data from LSEG and Kpler. Iran recently exempted Iraq from transit restrictions on the important sea route.
Iran continues to block the strait, through which around a fifth of the world's oil and LNG transport flows, for the majority of stranded ships.
Sources used: mpe/AFP/rts/dpa
