Back
Trump Says Strait of Hormuz Open After Mine Sweep as Bolton Urges Pressure on Iran

Trump Says Strait of Hormuz Open After Mine Sweep as Bolton Urges Pressure on Iran

Trump said the U.S. Navy controls the strait, but oil climbed further as markets remained unconvinced and analysts warned price moves could worsen if the impasse extends into next week.

Fact Check
Politico, PBS/AP and NBC/AP all confirm that in April 2026 Trump declared the Strait of Hormuz 'completely open and ready for business,' said the U.S. Navy was clearing Iranian mines, and that a U.S. naval blockade allowed only approved commercial traffic to pass (21 ships turned back). These match the claim's core: reopening after a Navy mine sweep with U.S. control of passage. The specific '100%' figure is where the paraphrase drifts—Trump's '100%' referred to completing the transaction with Iran (per Politico's quote of his Truth Social post), not explicitly to '100% control of the waterway.' The strait's opening was also jointly declared by Iran with Iranian-designated routes, not solely a unilateral U.S. reopening. Because the substantive claims are well-corroborated while one quantitative attribution is loosely characterized, the claim is likely true with a minor accuracy caveat.
Summary

President Donald Trump said the U.S. Navy has "100%" control of the Strait of Hormuz and that the waterway is open, but oil prices continued to rise as investors remained wary that disruption risks have not eased. U.S. crude rose about 2% early Tuesday after gaining more than 5% on Monday, trading at $82.80 a barrel at 3:53 a.m. ET, while Brent crude was up 2.2% at $89.62. The price gains came as an agreement between Tehran and Washington had yet to materialize and prospects for a deal appeared to deteriorate over the weekend. Jefferies economist Modupe Adegbembo told CNBC that market moves may not remain so "benign" if the current deadlock continues into next week. Trump had previously said the U.S. Navy swept the entire strait for mines and claimed Washington has complete control of the chokepoint, while also saying Iran could still create problems by laying mines. Separately, former U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton urged Washington not to ease pressure on Iran, arguing that lifting the blockade would hand Tehran political leverage over the shipping route and that the U.S. should maintain pressure and, if needed, use force to keep the Gulf Arab side open for oil shipments. The competing signals highlight the gap between U.S. claims of operational control and market pricing that still reflects supply fears around one of the world's most important energy chokepoints. The broader CNBC roundup also said Asian markets were mixed, Nvidia is working with six U.S. asset managers on a financing effort tied to AI chips and data centers, and Indian billionaire Gautam Adani's U.S. bribery case was dismissed by a judge, but the Hormuz standoff remained the key market focus.

Terms & Concepts
  • Strait of Hormuz: A narrow waterway that carries a significant share of global oil shipments, making disruptions there highly sensitive for energy markets.
  • Naval blockade: A military effort to restrict a country's access to maritime routes and shipping in order to apply strategic or economic pressure.