Trump Hürmüz'ü 'yeni ABD toprağı' olarak işaretledi, İran'la görüşmeyi reddetti

Trump maps Hormuz as ‘new US territory’

• Denies talks with Iran, says naval blockade remains in full force, with strait open • Tehran reiterates waterway will stay closed until Washington meets its demands • Araghchi claims US ‘begging’ for talks on Iran’s terms • UAE accuses Iran of firing ballistic missiles • Houthis target refinery in southern Saudi Arabia WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that no talks with Iran are under way or scheduled, as he posted a map showing the Strait of Hormuz as a new American territory in a fresh jibe at Tehran, which has claimed control of crucial energy waterway. Iran reiterated that the strategic Strait of Hormuz will not be opened until the United States meets Tehran’s demands, including lifting a naval blockade. Trump has been pressing his threat to claim sovereignty over the strait as the nearly six-month-old war grinds on with little sign of resolution. Trump’s envoy and son-in-law Jared Kushner said on Monday that the US and Iran were having “very positive and active conversations”, but the president denied that was the case. “There are no talks or conversations going on, or scheduled, with the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Naval blockade remains in full force and effect,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social network on Tuesday. “The Hormuz Strait is open and operating. All water mines have been removed or detonated.” US sources told AFP there had been “positive” discussions with the Iranians, but added that Trump had decided to wait and asked his team not to engage until Iran was ready to make a deal. Earlier on Tuesday, Trump posted a map on Truth Social showing the Strait of Hormuz as “NEW US Territory”. Iran has effectively shut down the chokepoint, through which a fifth of the world’s oil transits, in retaliation for the war Trump started along with Israel in late February. The US leader revisited the idea again on Monday in comments to reporters in the Oval Office, suggesting it would be a good idea. This is not the first time that Trump, faced with a foreign policy obstacle, has threatened to annex foreign territory. Since returning to power in 2025, he has threatened to make Canada the 51st US state, seize Greenland and Cuba, and has even alluded to taking control of the Gaza Strip, without following through on any of these threats. ‘No opening of Hormuz’ Before the Iran war erupted on February 28, the Strait of Hormuz was an open, international waterway. Iran says it will not reopen the strait until Washington meets a sweeping list of demands including ending the US blockade of Iran’s ports, lifting oil sanctions, freeing up frozen Iranian assets and paying war damages. “I want to state clearly that the Strait of Hormuz will not be opened until the American commitments stipulated in the memorandum of understanding… are implemented,” Iran’s top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said in a speech broadcast on state television. Ghalibaf said Iran was “ready to inflict an even more crushing defeat on the enemy, proportionate to its actions and advances”. Kushner told Fox News on Monday that Trump “is going to be very patient… he doesn’t want to rush to a deal”. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the US has failed to force Iran to surrender and that “America is now begging to negotiate with us according to our conditions,” Al Jazeera reported. Tehran’s top diplomat said the memorandum of understanding contains “13 provisions in our favour and one in theirs”, and accused Israel of doing everything it can to sabotage the deal and prevent its implementation. “We won the war, and we also won in diplomacy, and we forced the enemy to accept our conditions,” he added, noting that Iran’s military capabilities gave it diplomatic leverage in the negotiations. Qatar, a key mediator in the stalled US-Iran talks, said on Tuesday that an agreement between Iran and Oman over the Strait of Hormuz would make it easier to resume negotiations to end the Middle East war. The Iran war has driven up prices for US consumers ahead of crucial midterm elections in November that will decide whether Trump’s Republicans keep control of Congress. Trump has shown signs of frustration, threatening on Monday to “bomb the shit” out of US ally Oman if it interferes with a deal on the Strait of Hormuz. Ballistic missiles The United Arab Emirates on Tuesday accused Iran of firing two ballistic missiles at its territory, marking the first time the defence ministry detected a barrage aimed at the country in months. “UAE air defences detected two ballistic missiles launched from Iran toward the country, with the first falling outside the country’s territorial waters, while the second fell within the territorial waters,” said a statement posted by the defence ministry on X. The statement came nearly two hours after a brief phone alert warned UAE residents of a “potential missile threat”. “Due to the current situation, potential missile threats, immediately seek a safe place in the closest secure building,” the interior ministry said in the phone alert, which was lifted shortly after. Saudi oil refinery Meanwhile, Yemen’s Houthis targeted an oil refinery on Saudi Arabia’s southern Red Sea coast on Tuesday, rebel media reported, as the group ramps up attacks on the kingdom after announcing a maritime blockade. Yemen, embroiled in more than a decade of civil conflict, in July became the latest country to be dragged into the Middle East war as the Houthis upended a 2022 truce with Yemen’s Saudi-backed government, launching attacks on areas it holds as well as Saudi Arabia. The Houthis “targeted the Aramco refinery in Jazan with a number of drones… in response to airspace violations over the governorates of Saada and Hajjah” in Yemen, Houthi news agency Saba said on Tuesday, citing a military source. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said it received a report on Tuesday that a vessel was struck by an unknown projectile while transiting outbound in the Strait of Hormuz, causing engine room damage and a crew casualty. The remaining crew were being assisted by the Omani Coast Guard, according to the report. No environmental impact was reported and authorities were investigating, UKMTO said. Maritime security sources identified the vessel as Liberia-flagged bulk carrier Minoan Dignity, saying it was struck by an unknown projectile while conducting an outbound transit of the waterway. Published in Dawn, August 19th, 2026