President Donald Trump announced that all naval mines have been removed from the Strait of Hormuz, warning Iran that any new mines placed in the waterway will be destroyed. The declaration, made on Truth Social, caps months of escalating military confrontation over the narrow passage that carries roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply.
Trump went further than just claiming victory over the mining threat. He designated the strait as “new US territory,” a phrase that carries more rhetorical weight than legal meaning but signals the administration’s posture toward maintaining control of the chokepoint.
A conflict months in the making
The standoff traces back to late February 2026, when Iran began deploying small craft to lay mines in the strait amid a broader military conflict involving the US, Israel, and Iran. The vessels used were modest in scale, capable of carrying just two to three mines each, but the cumulative effect on one of the world’s most critical shipping lanes was severe.
On March 10, Trump issued his first public demand that Iran immediately remove any naval mines from the Hormuz Strait. The alternative, he warned, would be “military consequences to Iran… at a level never seen before.”
