President Donald Trump on Thursday said that Iran “better stop now” if it is charging fees to oil tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump’s warning in a Truth Social post put even more strain on the fragile ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran less than two days after it began.
Trump said Tuesday evening that the U.S. would agree to a two-week suspension of hostilities against the Islamic Republic on the condition that it agree to “the COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING of the Strait of Hormuz.”
But vessel traffic through the strait, a vital artery for about 20% of the world’s oil supply, remains tightly throttled, as it has since the war began on Feb. 28.
Iran is meanwhile planning to charge shipping firms fees, to be paid in cryptocurrency, to allow their vessels to sail through the waterway, the Financial Times reported Wednesday.
