Trump links higher fuel costs to Iran policy, floats Hormuz claim
Trump urges Americans to accept higher gas prices as the cost of confronting Iran, and says he will soon declare the Strait of Hormuz a US territory.
President Donald Trump has asked Americans to accept a modest rise in gasoline prices as a necessary cost of preventing Iran from developing a nuclear weapon, while also escalating his rhetoric over a vital global shipping lane.
Speaking in Garden City, New York, on Friday, Trump said that paying "a tiny little bit more" at the pump was a fair trade-off for ensuring that "a very evil country" could not acquire a nuclear bomb. He described the ongoing military campaign against Iran as "a great service for the world" and said he would never apologize for the strikes.
The comments come as the administration's promise to lower energy costs collides with market realities. Brent crude has climbed toward $90 a barrel this week, and average US gasoline prices have risen to around $4 a gallon. Democrats are already seeking to turn the economic fallout of the conflict into a campaign issue ahead of November's midterm elections.
Trump also made a striking claim about the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly 20% of global oil and LNG shipments pass. "After we finish defeating Iran ... pretty soon I'll be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States," he said. It was not immediately clear whether the remark was a serious policy proposal or rhetorical flourish.
The strait remains a critical pressure point for global energy markets, and any prolonged disruption there would likely push prices significantly higher.