Iran Announces Closure of Strait of Hormuz Until Trump Meets Demands
Iran's Supreme National Security Council Secretary Mohammad Baqer Zolghadr stated that the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until the U.S. fully meets its six core demands, including stopping threats and military actions, permanently ending the war, withdrawing naval and air forces from around Iran, compensating for war damages, lifting sanctions, and releasing frozen Iranian assets.
The statement directly responds to expectations that a temporary memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran might reopen the strait, emphasizing that any agreement must ultimately be approved by Iran's Supreme National Security Council. From Tehran's perspective, the memorandum does not equate to an automatic resumption of navigation.
Shipping data shows that only 33 vessels passed through the strait from Monday to Thursday this week, down from 50 during the same period last week. So far this week, only 6 oil tankers have departed, indicating a continued low volume of navigation and highlighting the actual effects of the blockade.
Iran links this move to ongoing "hostile actions" by the U.S. and points out that Washington is trying to restore normal energy flows in negotiations, while Tehran demands significant political, military, and financial concessions as a prerequisite.
Trump has recently indicated a preference for using economic pressure rather than further military strikes to force Iran to concede, while the U.S. continues to enforce a naval blockade on Iranian ports and redirect commercial vessels.
The ongoing restrictions in the strait are directly driving up global energy transportation costs and insurance fees, shifting capital flows to alternative routes and inventory building, putting pressure on oil-importing countries, while oil-producing countries and shipping companies that can provide alternative supplies benefit in the short term, leading to increased event-driven oil price volatility.
Both the U.S. and Iran provide starkly different public interpretations of the same negotiation process, further increasing market uncertainty.
Source: Public Information
ABAB AI Insight
Since the conflict erupted in 2026, Iran has repeatedly used the Strait of Hormuz as a strategic lever, previously announcing closures or strict controls to force substantive responses from the other side on nuclear issues, sanctions, and regional security.
The capital and resource pathways are reflected in transforming control over key waterways into negotiation leverage, creating economic costs by actually reducing transit volumes, and forcing the U.S. and market participants to reassess the costs of continued pressure, while attempting to lock in long-term claims of "exclusive management" over the strait.
Historically, Iran has threatened to close the strait multiple times during periods of U.S.-Iran tension, and the recent rapid reversals following the signing of the temporary memorandum indicate that we are currently in a stalemate phase where navigation rights are exchanged for comprehensive policy concessions.
Essentially, this represents a transfer of pricing power, shifting from traditional free passage in international waterways to actual control by one party in conflict, adding political conditions. The mechanism lies in the global energy supply chain's high dependence on a single chokepoint being transformed into a geopolitical negotiation tool.
ABAB News · Cognitive Law
- Chokepoint equals negotiation leverage
- Actual navigation volume is more powerful than statements
- Energy dependence determines the speed of pressure transmission