US President Donald Trump on Friday outlined a fresh set of demands directed at Iran amid continuing uncertainty over a potential nuclear agreement, insisting that the Strait of Hormuz be reopened immediately for unrestricted global shipping traffic.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said Iran “must agree that they will never have a Nuclear Weapon or Bomb,” while also demanding the immediate removal of any remaining naval mines in the strategically crucial waterway.
“The Hormuz Strait must be immediately open, no tolls, for unrestricted shipping traffic, in both directions,” Trump wrote.
He claimed that US naval forces had already detonated “numerous” underwater mines and said Tehran would complete the removal of any that remained.
Trump also announced that what he described as an “unprecedented Naval Blockade” would now be lifted, allowing ships stranded in the Strait to begin returning home.
“Ships caught in the Strait due to our amazing and unprecedented Naval Blockade, which will now be lifted, may start the process of ‘heading home!'” he said.
The US president further claimed that enriched nuclear material buried underground following a U.S. B-2 bomber strike conducted 11 months ago would be excavated and destroyed in coordination with Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency.
“The enriched material, sometimes referred to as ‘Nuclear Dust,' ... will be unearthed by the United States ... in close coordination and conjunction with the Islamic Republic of Iran, plus the International Atomic Energy Agency, and DESTROYED,” Trump wrote.
He added that "no money will be exchanged, until further notice,” while noting that “other items, of far less importance, have been agreed to".
Trump said he would meet officials in the Situation Room to make a "final determination" on the matter.
The remarks come amid an ongoing stalemate over efforts to revive a broader understanding between Washington and Tehran, with tensions in the Gulf region continuing to keep global energy markets on edge.
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