The President of the United States, Donald Trump, announced on Sunday that the American Navy would proceed to blockade the Strait of Hormuz, after talks between the two camps in Islamabad failed. While this strategy may be an attempt to overturn control of the maritime corridor, it raises several questions about the American plan in the Middle East, according to experts.
“I don’t really understand the strategic logic [of this announcement],” said Julien Tourreille, a researcher at the US Observatory of the Raoul-Dandurand Chair. “I fail to see how blocking maritime traffic [by the US Navy] would alleviate the negative effects of the conflict on the global economy and even on the American economy.”
Despite this, Mr. Tourreille mentions a “symbolic signal” from the American president, who would be trying to overturn control of the Strait of Hormuz, currently in the hands of Iran.
“From now on, the US Navy, the best in the world, will start the process of blocking all ships attempting to enter or exit the Strait of Hormuz,” wrote the American president in his first reaction to the announcement after the talks failed, without providing any details on the modalities of such an operation.
Later on Sunday, the US military command for the Middle East (CENTCOM) announced that the American army would start its blockade of Iranian ports from Monday at 10 a.m. Montreal time in the absence of an agreement to end the conflict in the Middle East.
“This blockade will be applied impartially against vessels of all nationalities entering or leaving Iranian ports and coastal areas, including Iranian ports located in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman,” specified CENTCOM in a statement on X.
This announcement comes after direct negotiations between American representatives, including Vice President J.D. Vance, and Iranian representatives on Saturday in Pakistan, the mediator in the talks. After more than 20 hours of talks, J.D. Vance returned to the United States without an agreement.
[Context: Tensions in the Middle East have been heightened due to the failure of talks between the US and Iran, leading to the US decision to block Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz.]
“The main lever of Iran”
“[Donald Trump] has understood that the most effective lever in the Iranian strategy is really their control over the Strait of Hormuz,” explains Sami Aoun, director of the Middle East and North Africa Observatory of the Raoul-Dandurand Chair. The Iranian blockade of the strait since the start of the war “disrupts” the plans of the American president regarding Iranian concessions he would like, particularly regarding nuclear issues.
Therefore, by announcing this American blockade, Mr. Trump is trying to “deprive Iran of a card to play … that is in their favor,” according to the expert.
Mr. Tourreille agrees. “This could force [the Iranians] to return to the negotiating table, because they themselves will not be able to transit their ships,” he says, pointing out that they are no longer exporting much oil.
The expert admits that he still has “difficulty understanding and evaluating to what extent this is part of a negotiation strategy.”
[A Fact Check note concerning the implication of blocking Iranian ports and the impact on global maritime traffic.]
“American Blockade”
Donald Trump also indicated that the navy would intercept all ships that have paid “a toll to Iran,” which would “weaken the measure of illegal taxation imposed by the Iranian regime,” according to Sami Aoun. Washington would thus position itself in favor of respecting international law, according to the expert, mentioning an attempt to isolate Iran internationally.
[Context: The US decision to involve other countries in the blockade of Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz.]
“Maritime Traffic”
Since the start of the war, only a few ships have managed to pass through the strait, compared to an average of 120 ships per day before the Israeli-American strikes. After the ceasefire announcement on Tuesday evening and an opening of the strait, according to Iran, 19 ships have been able to cross in three days, according to a BBC account. “Who will the US Navy actually prevent from navigating in the end?” wonders Mr. Tourreille.
According to Mr. Aoun, Donald Trump would also be trying to increase “impacts [of the war] on powers that could pressure Iran, particularly China,” which benefits from over 80% of Iranian oil exports. The expert also mentions the discreet role that Beijing played in the Middle East truce behind Pakistan’s scenes.
“We know, for example, that there were Chinese and Pakistani ships that had been able to transit through the strait,” says Julien Tourreille. “Will the US Navy take the risk of intercepting, for example, an oil tanker heading to China?” he asks, citing one of the challenges to anticipate.
“To hope for a return of the Iranians to the negotiating table, the Americans will have to negotiate in good faith,” according to Mr. Tourreille. “We have seen in particular on the American side, when negotiating, we are still ready to use armed force,” he notes.
[Fact Check: The impact of the US blockade on maritime trade between Iran and other nations.]
:fill(black)/2026/04/12/69db8b3aa15e9089341822.jpg "War in the Middle East: failure of negotiations between Iran and the United States.")
