Trump Proposes 20% Toll on Ships for Safe Passage Through Strait of Hormuz

President Donald Trump said this week that the United States is "reinstating" a blockade on Iran in the Strait of Hormuz and would charge ships for safe passage after another heavy exchange of fire threatened negotiations aimed at ending the war, Jon Gambrell reported for The Associated Press (AP).

Trump's proposed blockade targets Iranian shipping and imposes a 20% transit toll in the Strait of Hormuz. (Photo: U.S. Central Command Facebook)

Trump said on social media that Iranian ships would no longer be allowed to travel through the strait and that the United States would impose a 20% toll on eligible cargo as the conflict with Iran intensified following the collapse of peace talks.

"We are reinstating the Iranian blockade, so named because it is only stopping Iran's ships or customers from entering or leaving," Trump wrote.

"All other countries will have fair and open use of the Strait."

The president said the toll would help cover "any and all costs necessary to do the job of providing safety and security to this very volatile section of the world."

Before Iran asserted control over the Strait of Hormuz following the outbreak of the war, about one-fifth of the world's oil and gas shipments passed through the strategic waterway.

The latest exchange of fire was triggered by an Iranian attack on a container ship in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday.

Iran has maintained control over the critical shipping route since the United States and Israel launched military operations on Feb. 28.

Iranian officials say they have the right to regulate maritime traffic through the strait and potentially impose fees under an interim peace agreement reached last month, according to an Associated Press report by Munir Ahmed and Stella Martany.