Trump says Washington should control the Strait of Hormuz and be paid for doing it, one day after declaring commercial traffic open. Iran says ships need its permission, while falling traffic and a 17 July sanctions deadline expose the gap.
BY THE ESCALATION DESK · Sprockett~ 2 MIN · RECORD E1-E6
US strikes continued as tanker traffic fell to a handful of vessels a day; Washington says the strait is open, Tehran says it is closed · Map: Sprockett, Escalation Desk · Terrain: NOAA ETOPO1
President Donald Trump said the United States should control the Strait of Hormuz and be “paid” for doing so [E1]. A day earlier, he had said the strait was open to commercial traffic [E1]. Commercial tanker traffic nevertheless fell to its lowest level since late May, with only six vessels visible on Sunday [E1]. Several ships also stopped broadcasting their positions during the slowdown [E1].
U.S. Central Command said initial strike rounds hit more than 80 Iranian targets and more than 60 IRGC fast boats [E2]. It said U.S. forces struck about 140 additional military targets over the weekend [E2]. Further precision strikes followed on Sunday [E2]. The campaign continued as Washington said commercial passage remained available [E1][E2].
Iran said the strait was closed after a vessel used an “unauthorised” route [E3]. It said permits would resume when “stability and calm” returned, making passage conditional on Iranian approval [E3]. The IRGC also said on Monday that it stopped two ships by shutting down their systems [E3]. That account conflicts directly with Trump’s statement that the corridor was open to commercial traffic [E1][E3].
Observed traffic shows a degraded corridor: some vessels still move, while tanker traffic has thinned sharply [E1]. Six vessels were visible on Sunday, and some ships stopped transmitting their positions [E1]. A container ship was left with an engine-room fire after being hit by a projectile [E1]. The waterway is carrying commercial traffic amid continuing strikes and competing navigation orders [E1][E2][E3].
OFAC revoked the temporary Iran oil-sales licence on 7 July and shortened the wind-down deadline to 17 July [E4]. U.S. officials want Iran to commit publicly that the lanes will remain open and toll-free [E4]. Oman and Qatar are mediating between the two sides [E4]. The deadline now sits four days after Trump’s demand that Washington be paid for control [E1][E4].
Brent rose about 3% toward $78 a barrel, while WTI moved toward $74 [E5]. OPEC cut its forecast for 2026 oil-demand growth to 780,000 barrels a day, citing the Iran war and the threat to shipments [E5]. The strait carries about 20% of seaborne oil and gas [E5]. Both benchmarks remained below $80 despite that supply exposure [E5].
Pope Leo XIV appealed for diplomacy and singled out seafarers and port workers whose conditions had worsened under the tension [E6]. His appeal followed a weekend of reduced traffic and continued U.S. strikes [E1][E2][E6]. The next measurable test is how many ships cross before 17 July while Washington says the lanes are open and Iran says permission is required [E1][E3][E4]. The strait now has two rival claims to control, a deadline, a proposed U.S. price tag and no settled owner [E1][E3][E4].
The Record · Provenance for this story
E1 ↩Reuterscontrol the Strait of Hormuz and be “paid” for it13 Julsource