Trump Claims Hormuz Control as US, Iran Harden Their Stances

By Tooba Khan, Patrick Sykes and Audrey Wan

Aug 12, 2026 (Bloomberg) –President Donald Trump claimed the US had “total control over the Hormuz Strait,” as Washington and Tehran hardened their positions in deadlocked negotiations over the critical waterway.

“We own it,” Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews outside Washington late Tuesday, an assertion Iran has dispelled via intermittent attacks on ships transiting the passage. “At some point, maybe they’ll do something, and then they get blown away.”

Trump has oscillated for months between threatening to resume attacks on Iran and expressing confidence that talks to bring an end to America’s