Iran ceasefire in jeopardy: Strait of Hormuz tensions escalate
The fragile Iran ceasefire is threatened by escalating tensions in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global shipping lane. President Donald Trump warns of potential military action until a “REAL AGREEMENT” is reached. Vice President Vance and other experts discuss Iran’s demands for tolls, strategic islands, and growing cyber threats to US infrastructure. Global oil prices and shipping traffic are closely monitored amidst the uncertainty.
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The United Nations’ shipping agency warned Thursday that imposing a toll on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz would “set a dangerous precedent.”
The remark comes after President Donald Trump suggested Wednesday that there may be a U.S.-Iranian toll system coming for ships that travel through the key waterway. Trump told ABC News, “We’re thinking of doing it as a joint venture,” and, “It’s a way of securing it — also securing it from lots of other people.”
“There is no international agreement where tolls can be introduced for transiting international straits. Any such toll will set a dangerous precedent,” a spokesperson for the U.N.’s International Maritime Organization told Reuters on Thursday.
The Strait of Hormuz, which lies between Iran, Oman and the United Arab Emirates, is one of the world’s most critical energy choke points, carrying roughly 20 million barrels of oil a day along with about one-fifth of global liquefied natural gas.
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A ship is seen passing through the Strait of Hormuz during a two-week temporary ceasefire between the United States and Iran on April 8, 2026. (Shady Alassar/Anadolu/Getty Images)
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis also warned on Wednesday that a reported Iranian plan to charge ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz would be “completely unacceptable.”
“I don’t think that the international community would be ready to accept Iran setting up a toll booth for every ship that crosses the strait,” Mitsotakis, representing the world’s leading shipping power, told CNN.
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A satellite image shows the Strait of Hormuz, a key maritime passage connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman, vital for global energy supply. (Amanda Macias/ Digital)
“This agreement cannot, I repeat, cannot include a sort of a fee that ships will have to pay every time they cross the strait,” he continued. “This was not the case before the war started and it cannot be the case after the war finishes.”
The Trump administration had reached a ceasefire deal with Iran on Tuesday.
The Callisto tanker sits anchored as the traffic is down in the Strait of Hormuz, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Muscat, Oman, March 10, 2026. (Benoit Tessier / Reuters)
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“The United States of America will be helping with the traffic buildup in the Strait of Hormuz. There will be lots of positive action! Big money will be made. Iran can start the reconstruction process,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Wednesday morning. “We’ll be loading up with supplies of all kinds, and just ‘hangin’ around’ in order to make sure that everything goes well. I feel confident that it will.”
Digital’s Amanda Macias and Alexandra Koch contributed to this report.
