Beginning at midnight tomorrow (Tuesday AEST), the US military is set to implement a naval blockade on the Strait of Hormuz following failed negotiations between Washington and Tehran.
As well as President Donald Trump’s assurance that any Iranian ship firing on any American ship would be “blown to hell.”
The US Central Command announced the blockade which was expected to start at 10 A.M. US Eastern Time today and would cover all shipping traffic coming to or leaving Iranian ports.
Ships passing through the straits to and from other destinations than Iranian ports would remain unaffected by the blockade.
Vice President JD Vance’s delegation had been negotiating with the Iranian delegation for more than 21 hours in Islamabad, Pakistan.
Vance said negotiations failed because Iran could not agree to renounce its ambition of acquiring nuclear weapons.
Trump said that Iran was “extorting the world” by charging ships a toll to pass through and limiting access to the waterway.
He told the Navy to stop any ship on the high seas that had paid Iran to go through. Lloyd’s List Intelligence recently said that at least two ships had paid the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Chinese yuan to be safe while passing through.
Reactions in oil markets were prompt. Futures for US crude surged nearly 8% to above $104 a barrel, while Brent crude, the international benchmark saw an increase of approximately 7%, climbing past US$102.
Brent crude has fluctuated significantly during the course of the war, spiking from approximately US$70 prior to the war’s inception in February to over US$119 at its height.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards issued threats of a strong response for any military ships attempting to enter the waterway.
Iran’s main delegate, the parliament’s speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf took to posting a picture of fuel prices in America with taunts of the Americans enjoying themselves while they could.
There have been no confirmed reports of any backing from key allies.
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Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said that Australia was not involved, telling the Nine network on the Today show “They’ve made this announcement overnight and they’ve done that in a unilateral way.”
The UK also confirmed that they will not be participating, opting instead to work with France and over forty other countries to form a new coalition protecting navigational freedom.
According to shipping experts, there are more than 400 oil tankers waiting in the Gulf, but fewer than 100 empty ships are ready to enter.
This means that normal oil flows may not start up again until July, even in the best conditions.
There are no new talks planned, and Trump is said to be thinking about starting limited strikes again. This makes it seem less likely that the problem will be solved quickly.
