Mar 13, 2026
3 min read
The US president indicated that he has no plans in the face of the blockade of the Straits, which once again crossed $100 per barrel this Thursday morning, and the rise in oil prices.
Iran shifts focus to war in Hormuz and shows Trump's intransigence in the face of economic turmoil
Events continue to surprise Donald Trump.Even the most expected ones, such as the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and subsequent increases in oil prices and automatic gasoline prices for all Americans.And after saying without evidence that gas costs less than two dollars a gallon - 3.8 liters - now he's going for four.But not only.The war in Iran, started by the USA and Israel, is being waged from Tehran.The closure of the Strait of Hormuz is causing a global disruption, a barrel of oil and a high cost to the American pocketbook: According to the Pentagon, the US military spent $11.3 billion in the first week of bombing Iran.
Until Wednesday this week, countries were reluctant to draw down their stockpiles. President Trump played down the idea of tapping US strategic reserves over the weekend, insisting supplies were plentiful and prices would fall quickly.
But that has changed.This Wednesday, the US president told WKRC Local 12 in Cincinnati that his Administration will use the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) - "a little" - to lower prices.Energy Secretary Chris Wright later confirmed that the US would release 172 million barrels as part of Wednesday's decision by the International Energy Agency.
The price of a barrel of Brent crude oil - the international benchmark - surpassed $100 early Thursday, days after rising to nearly $120, amid the latest shock to affect financial markets and the global economy as a whole.
"We're going to do it very quickly," Trump said, "and then we're going to replenish our reserves. They don't have a navy or an air force. They don't have air defenses or anything like that. They don't have control systems that allow us to operate in that country with complete freedom. Now we're going to be very focused on all of their throats, but I think we're going to be in a very good position. In the end, a lot of news reports say it's just a matter of time.
Trump thrived until oil prices fell due to an announcement by the IEA, whose members agreed this Wednesday to liberalize the largest strategic oil reserve in history.In particular, they will release 400 million barrels of these reserves to the market to cover supply losses due to the disruption of sea traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, the focus of tensions and attacks in the war with Iran.
"Today [Tuesday] I was in a two-hour briefing on the Iran war [with the Trump administration] and this is what I can share," Connecticut Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy said Tuesday: "The question they didn't leave was: What happens when they stop bombing and continue to work? They showed thatthe bomb is increased.This is, of course, a never-ending war.It can block the stress, but suffice it to say that they do not know how to remove it safely, it is not acceptable because that part of the damage is predictable.
At the same time, the US military sank 16 ships in Hormuz, allegedly intended to lay mines in the strait. Of course, he has yet to show evidence that this happened.
According to CNN, Iran has begun laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important energy center, through which about a fifth of all oil is transported.Iran has warned that any ship passing through the strait will be attacked;In fact, the canal has been closed since the start of the war.The situation in the strait has been described by CNN as a "valley of death", due to the danger of its passage.
The Trump administration said on Tuesday that the US Navy had not sent any ships through the strait, although the US president said on Monday that his team would review ways to do so.
Iran appears to be willing to do everything in its power to control the Strait of Hormuz, its main weapon of pressure on global energy markets, hoping that these exchanges will finally force the United States and Israel to stop the bombardment that began more than ten days ago.
The naval commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guard announced on social network X that any ship wishing to pass must obtain Tehran's approval or face the same consequences as the two ships the Iranian navy attacked in the Persian Gulf this Wednesday.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards claimed responsibility for both attacks and said in a statement published by the official IRNA agency that it fired on two ships and detained them because they ignored the orders of their forces.One of the ships is the ship "Express Room" belonging to the "Zionist entity" (Israel) and flying the flag of Liberia;the other is the container ship "Mayuri Nari" flying the Thai flag, which was attacked and had to be evacuated after it "insisted on illegally crossing the Strait of Hormuz."
In the statement, he added that the Strait of Hormuz is under the "discretionary management of a strong naval force" to protect the Iranian revolution and that "US aggressors and allies have no right to pass through this seaway", which has always been of strategic importance, but which these days has become one of Iran's main assets.
The military has made it clear that it will not allow oil to pass through Hormuz without its permission.A spokesman for the main body of the regular army, which aligns with the Revolutionary Guards, said Iran would not allow "a liter of oil" to go to the United States and its partners, while supporting international measures to curb energy prices.Ibrahim Zolfakari suggested that oil could rise to $200 per barrel in the region.He blamed the United States for the instability.
Tehran was further defiant on Wednesday after what it described as a "false promise" by Donald Trump to ensure safe passage of oil tankers in Persian Gulf waters.Sources familiar with the matter told Reuters that the US Navy has rejected daily requests from shipping companies for ships to escape through the Strait of Hormuz since the start of the illegal military campaign against Iran.they
According to the British Maritime Trade Agency (UKMTO, in English), around twenty cargo ships have been attacked in the Strait of Hormuz since the start of the campaign on the morning of February 28.Three recent attacks have been reported this Thursday.
"In the current situation, sending warships or civilian ships to the Strait of Hormuz would be suicidal," former vice admiral of the French Navy Pascal Asser told the AP agency.According to the expert, military ships can be deployed and "escort operations" through the strait only after a ceasefire agreement with Iran, although the situation remains "dangerous".
U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright acknowledged on Thursday that the U.S. Navy is not yet ready to escort ships in the Strait of Hormuz, although it will soon do so.
Wright pointed out that it is likely that the US Navy will be able to bring oil, tankers, gas, oil, fertilizer or sulfur (all strategic raw materials for the world economy) through the Strait of Hormuz by the end of the month.
