Iran’s Foreign Minister announced on Friday that the Strait of Hormuz is now “completely open” for commercial shipping, coinciding with President Trump’s statement that the United States is prepared to take custody of Iran’s remaining nuclear fuel.
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi communicated via X that, “In accordance with the ceasefire in Lebanon, the passage for all commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz is now declared completely open for the duration of the ceasefire period.”
Araghchi did not clarify if he was referring to the 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, which commenced on Friday, or the ceasefire between the US and Iran scheduled to conclude on Tuesday.
The minister emphasized that the passage is open only “on the coordinated route,” which is a pathway sanctioned by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
According to a senior Iranian official speaking to Reuters, any commercial ships intending to traverse the Strait of Hormuz must coordinate with Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.
The same official noted that military vessels remain barred from navigating through the strait.
Trump later took to Truth Social to tout the news himself, but said that the reopening of the critical chokepoint — which carries roughly 20% of the world’s oil — would instead be permanent.
“Iran has agreed to never close the Strait of Hormuz again,” he wrote. “It will no longer be used as a weapon against the World!”
The commander-in-chief, however, insisted that the US naval blockade on Iranian ships and ports would remain until Tehran signed a deal with Washington to end the war.
Maintaining the blockade allows the US to hold its leverage against Iran — to force the theocratic regime to come to the table for peace talks and agree to a fair deal, while allowing other ships to access the waterway.
Trump also said that Iran and the US would remove all sea mines in the strait. Iran had littered the passage with explosives during the war.
Once those are cleared, there would not be a reason for ships to be required to sail only along Iranian-approved routes.
“Iran, with the help of the U.S.A., has removed, or is removing, all sea mines! Thank you! President DJT,” he wrote on Truth Social.
Crude oil prices plummeted after the announcement â with Brent crude dropping 11% to $88 per barrel and West Texas International declining 10% to $81.
Meanwhile, it was unclear whether the reopening meant Iran would stop charging commercial vessels tolls in order to pass through the strait safely.
âIt seems to me that he [the foreign minister] is saying that any country now can get through, but they still have to pay the toll,â Trita Parsi, executive VP of the Quincy Institute in Washington, DC, told CNN.
After the announcement, Trump railed against NATO, blasting them as a “Paper Tiger.”
“Now that the Hormuz Strait situation is over, I received a call from NATO asking if we would need some help. I TOLD THEM TO STAY AWAY, UNLESS THEY JUST WANT TO LOAD UP THEIR SHIPS WITH OIL. They were useless when needed, a Paper Tiger!” President DJT” he wrote on Truth Social.
Trump also announced in a separate Truth Social post that Iran would turn over all remaining enriched uranium â a key point he had been seeking since well before the war began.
“The U.S.A. will get all Nuclear âDust,â created by our great B2 Bombers – No money will exchange hands in any way, shape, or form,” he said.
He also stressed that the achievement is not dependent on Israel’s war with Lebanon — as Iran’s foreign minister had suggested — while also putting the Jewish state on notice.
“This deal is in no way subject to Lebanon, either, but the USA will, separately, work with Lebanon, and deal with the Hezboolah [sic] situation in an appropriate manner. Israel will not be bombing Lebanon any longer. They are PROHIBITED from doing so by the U.S.A. Enough is enough!!! Thank you! President DJT,” he wrote.
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Iran had initially claimed that Lebanon was included in the US-Iran cease-fire, but Washington held firm that Israelâs battle with the Iranian proxy group was not included.
The US-Iran cease-fire â which is set to expire Tuesday â set the stage for peace talks to occur between the two countries. There has been no agreement to extend the US-Iran cease-fire.
Mediator Pakistan is working to arrange a second round of talks, but the parties have yet to formally commit. Now, the pressure is on to get one scheduled in Islamabad before the clock runs out.
