Trump drops Strait of Hormuz fee plan after Gulf talks
Trump said a proposed 20% charge on vessels using the Strait of Hormuz would be replaced by trade and investment deals with Gulf states.
By James Whitfield · Staff Writer
3 min read
US President Donald Trump has stepped back from a plan to charge vessels a 20% fee to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, a move that could have affected one of the world’s most sensitive shipping routes during escalating fighting with Iran. Trump said Tuesday that the proposed charge would be replaced by trade and investment agreements with Gulf countries.
Al Jazeera reported that the reversal came one day after Trump announced the fee while clashes between the United States and Iran were intensifying. Trump had described the planned charge on Truth Social as reimbursement for “any and all costs necessary” to provide safety and security in what he called a volatile part of the world.
The Trump administration did not explain how it would guarantee safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, Al Jazeera reported. The waterway is an international passage and is not controlled by the United States.
In his Tuesday statement, Trump said the fee would be replaced by “Trade and Investment Deals that the various Gulf States will be making with the United States.” He said the shift followed “highly productive conversations with Middle East leadership.”
Trump also said Gulf investments in the United States would be “massive,” but he did not give details, according to Al Jazeera. Several countries in the region had already pledged multibillion-dollar investments in the US before the United States and Israel began their war with Iran on February 28, Al Jazeera reported.
Policy shift after earlier toll threats
Trump had previously suggested that Washington could take control of the Strait of Hormuz and collect tolls from ships, according to Al Jazeera. Monday’s fee announcement was the clearest sign that the idea might move from rhetoric toward policy.
The administration had earlier rejected the idea that Iran could charge ships to use the same waterway. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said any such fee in an international waterway would weaken international law, Al Jazeera reported.
Trump appeared to move back toward that position Tuesday. Speaking to reporters, he said he does not “like the concept of a fee.”
Blockade and attacks raise pressure
Trump spoke hours before a US military blockade of Iran was due to restart, according to Al Jazeera. The blockade had been lifted under a memorandum of understanding signed by the two sides in mid-June.
That preliminary deal also ended fighting between the United States and Iran and reopened the Strait of Hormuz, Al Jazeera reported. Renewed attacks have put the agreement at risk.
Iranian media reported recent attacks in Bushehr, Bandar Abbas, Mahshahr and Abadan, with explosions also reported Tuesday on Qeshm and Kish islands. Kuwait said its armed forces were engaging several aerial targets, according to Al Jazeera.
Iran has said it will continue attacks on US assets in the region, Al Jazeera reported. Other attacks have been reported in Bahrain and Jordan, as well as on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.