Trump claims Strait of Hormuz as US territory in new oil doctrine

Trump annexes Hormuz and oil enters the war zone

The White House has declared the Strait of Hormuz territory of the United States. This is not a translation error or a satirical headline: it is the announcement that has sent oil markets and diplomacy into turmoil.

20% of the world's crude passes through the strait, which turns this decision into direct control over the energy bill of half of Europe. Whoever controls Hormuz controls the lights of millions of homes.

Three reasons behind the move

The geopolitical analysis boils down to three coordinates. First, control of the route that carries one fifth of global oil. Second, pressure on Iran to halt the regime's rapprochement with Russia and China. Third, the Wall Street business: volatility in the barrel is the perfect fuel for speculators, who profit from both the rise and the fall.

The dollar, the real target

The paradox is striking: the United States is energy self-sufficient, so it does not need Hormuz's crude. What it cares about is that Europeans and the rest of the world keep paying for imports in dollars. The annexation, announced at night, seems to be a pretext to deploy aircraft carriers and "guarantee freedom of navigation" — an expression that usually precedes the imposition of tolls.

The questions remain open. How will Iran respond? What will China say? Is this a bluff or the prelude to a genuinely new crisis? With fleet movements already under way, the oil market has reasons not to sleep soundly. History teaches that annexations by decree are not withdrawn without soldiers involved.