In a counter to Trump, Iran's military command insisted it would not allow the US to "interfere" in the key conduit for oil and gas, while also warning its Gulf neighbours — who have borne the brunt of Tehran's attacks — against cooperating with Washington.
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The competing claims came as the two sides traded attacks of
a scale unseen since an April ceasefire. The US military said it hit dozens of
targets on Monday, while Iran's IRGC announced new strikes in response on
Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait and Oman.
The Strait of Hormuz was not an issue before the Iran war
broke out in February, and passage through it was free.
However, Tehran subsequently blocked the waterway and now
sees it as essential leverage over Washington.
The US has vehemently opposed Tehran's desire to charge
tolls in the strait, which international law generally forbids, but on Monday,
Trump flipped the script and declared that Washington itself would collect
fees.
In a post on his Truth Social site, Trump declared that the
US would be "known as 'The Guardian of the Hormuz Strait'," and
"be reimbursed, at the rate of 20% on all cargo shipped, for any and all
costs necessary to do the job of providing safety and security to this very
volatile section of the world".
Related video: US launches fresh strike wave on Iran as UN warns of catastrophe (KameraOne)
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US launches fresh strike wave on Iran as UN warns of catastrophe
While Iran's ports would again be blockaded, he said,
"all other countries will have fair and open use of the strait".
In addition, Trump warned Iran of more strikes, blaming
Tehran for breaking the framework deal to end the war signed by both sides in
mid-June.
“It was a done deal and then they broke it. They always
break it. We’ve had 10 deals with these people – and so we’re just going to hit
them very hard,” the US president said in a statement released by the White
House.
“They’re a bad group of people. They’ve been this way for a
long time,” Trump added.
The spokesman for Iran's Khatam Al-Anbiya central military
command, however, insisted that Tehran "under no circumstances will
allow... the United States to interfere in the management" of the
strategic waterway.
In addition, Mohammed Mokhber, an adviser to Iran’s Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, said Tehran will “defend” the Strait of Hormuz.
“We defend it so that in the future, for the passage of our
ships, we are not forced to pay tribute to the enemy,” Mokhber said in a post
on X.
“Retreating from this vital matter has no place in the mind
of any friend of Iran.”
Shots fired again
The military confrontation in the Strait of Hormuz continued
on Monday, with Iranian state television reporting that “this morning, two
ships that were attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz illegally were
targeted and stopped by warning shots fired by the navy of the Revolutionary
Guards.”
In parallel, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that
for the first time, the US military used maritime drones to strike an Iranian
submarine and a maintenance facility at the Bandar Abbas naval base on Sunday.
CENTCOM published a video of the operation, saying that “three Corsair unmanned surface vessels hit the port at Bandar Abbas Naval Base, marking the first time American forces have employed sea drones in combat operations.”
Meanwhile, in a concerted European effort, the foreign ministers
of Germany, France, and Britain condemned Tehran's
attacks on the Gulf countries on Sunday.
“We condemn Iran’s heinous attacks on merchant shipping in
the Strait of Hormuz and on countries in the region including Qatar, Kuwait,
Oman and Jordan,” they said in a joint
statement.
The UK announced that it would designate Iran's IRGC as a
national security threat, which would see its supporters potentially face jail
sentences.
Framework deal 'in crisis'
Despite declaring the ceasefire with Iran was
"over" last week, Trump has said negotiations aimed at finding a
permanent settlement would continue.
He told Fox News that there were hours of talks on Sunday,
but accused Iranian negotiators of going back on their agreement.
Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said
earlier on Monday that the June framework deal, which formed the basis for the
negotiations and lifted the US blockade, was "in crisis".
The previous blockade, in place from April to June, cut off
Iranian oil exports and threatened a damaging shutdown of the industry.
Baqaei said Iran would ignore its obligations under the deal
if the US did the same, but nonetheless added that Tehran was continuing talks
with mediators from Qatar, Pakistan and Oman in an effort to prevent further
escalation.
The past week's hostilities have centred on the critical
energy trade route, which Iran's IRGC said was "closed".
On Monday, IRGC spokesperson Hossein Mohebi accused
Washington of endangering global oil and gas supplies by interfering in the
strait, saying it "must be held accountable" while insisting on
Tehran's sovereignty over Hormuz.
Amid the fighting, mediators have been trying to salvage a
diplomatic resolution to the war.
Pakistan, one of the two key intermediaries in negotiations together with Qatar, expressed "deep concern at escalation in regional tensions", according to its foreign office../-
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