US weighs response options as Strait of Hormuz crisis drags into second month

Members of Donald Trump’s national security team have presented the president with several options for addressing ongoing tensions in and around a key maritime chokepoint after negotiations failed to reopen the waterway, according to a U.S. official and a person familiar with the discussions.

The situation between Washington and Tehran has contributed to what U.S. officials describe as a prolonged disruption to shipping through the strait, a route through which roughly a fifth of global energy supplies typically passes, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

The disruption, now in its second month, has raised concerns about wider economic consequences.

Energy markets have reacted sharply, with average U.S. gasoline prices reaching $4.23 per gallon, the highest level in nearly four years. Brent crude rose to close to $115 a barrel overnight. In Iran, the national currency, the rial, fell to a record low against the U.S. dollar amid mounting economic pressure.

The options discussed at a Monday (April 27) meeting in the Situation Room reportedly included changes to the U.S. military posture in the area, including whether to increase or reduce naval presence and whether to adopt a more assertive operational stance. According to the U.S. official, no final decisions have been made, and it remains unclear when the president may decide.

Diplomatic efforts have so far failed to produce an agreement. The United States has shown limited support for a new Iranian proposal that would end the conflict and reopen the strait without resolving disputes over Iran’s nuclear programme, which remains a central sticking point in negotiations.

Trump commented on the situation early Wednesday (April 29) in a post on Truth Social.

“Iran can’t get their act together. They don’t know how to sign a nonnuclear deal. They better get smart soon!” Trump said.

The post was accompanied by an apparently AI-generated image of Trump holding a gun with the message “NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!”

It was not immediately clear what Trump meant by a “nonnuclear deal”.

Washington has maintained that any agreement must prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons capability. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said this week that any deal must be one that “definitively prevents them from sprinting toward a nuclear weapon at any point.”

A White House spokesperson said: “U.S. negotiators continue to engage with the Iranians, who are struggling to sort out their leadership situation following Operation Epic Fury,” referring to the U.S.-Israeli joint military campaign in Iran. “The president will only enter into an agreement that puts U.S. national security first, and he has been clear that Iran can never possess a nuclear weapon.”

The tensions were also referenced during a state banquet for King Charles III at the White House. Trump said the United States had “militarily defeated” Iran and reiterated his stance on nuclear non-proliferation.

“And we are never going to let that opponent ever — Charles agrees with me, even more than I do — we are never going to let that opponent have a nuclear weapon,” he added.

A Buckingham Palace spokesperson responded: “The king is naturally mindful of his government’s long-standing and well-known position on the prevention of nuclear proliferation.”

On the maritime situation, U.S. forces have continued operations in the region as part of efforts to deter attacks on commercial shipping. U.S. Marines recently boarded another commercial vessel but allowed it to proceed, according to military officials.

Tehran has been accused of targeting commercial ships and seizing vessels during the standoff, which has contributed to heightened tensions in the area.

Shipping data suggests traffic through the strait remains significantly reduced, though not entirely halted. An analysis of vessel movements indicated that 11 ships transited the waterway in a recent 12-hour period.

One sign of limited maritime movement was the successful passage of the Japanese-owned tanker Idemitsu Maru, which entered the strait on Tuesday (April 28) and was confirmed by the Japanese government to have completed its transit safely en route to Japan.

By Aghakazim Guliyev