US President Donald Trump was joking when he suggested that the Strait of Hormuz could become a US territory after the war with Iran, according to a senior White House official cited by US media.
Wall Street Journal reporter Brian Schwartz said on X that Trump had not held discussions with his advisers about taking control of the strategically important waterway.
“President Trump has not met with his advisers about declaring the Strait of Hormuz a US territory post the war and was joking during his speech today in New York,” Schwartz wrote, citing the unnamed official.
Trump made the remarks during a political rally at the Nassau County Police Academy in Garden City, New York.
“After we finish defeating Iran, which is being very badly defeated — pretty soon I’ll be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States,” Trump told supporters, chuckling before adding: “It’s true.”
Schwartz, who attended the event, noted that although Trump laughed after making the initial remark, he subsequently appeared to insist that he was serious.
During the same speech, Trump also claimed that the United States controlled maritime access through the Strait of Hormuz.
“We have the blockade. No ships get through unless we want them to,” he said.
The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s most strategically important maritime routes, connecting the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and serving as a crucial passage for global energy shipments.