Iran’s parliamentary speaker warned it would will shut the strait again if the US blockade continues, which Trump said would remain in place until the conflict was fully concluded – key US politics stories from 17 April at a glance
Iran’s foreign minister has said that the strait of Hormuz is now fully open to commercial vessels, reinforcing hopes for an eventual end to the war in the Middle East and sending oil prices tumbling.
In a barrage of social media posts, Donald Trump claimed on Friday that Iran had agreed never to close the strategic waterway again, hailing “A GREAT AND BRILLIANT DAY FOR THE WORLD!”
However, Abbas Araghchi’s pledge was given only qualified support by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which has reinforced its already powerful authority in Tehran during the war.
Iran’s parliamentary speaker later warned it would will shut the strait of Hormuz again if the US blockade continues. The country’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi announced earlier that commercial shipping though the strait was now “completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire”, prompting Trump to welcome to move but also emphasise that the US naval blockade of Iran would remain in place until the conflict was fully concluded.
