Trump replaces 20% Strait of Hormuz transit fee with investment deals with Gulf states

Diplomacy often takes unexpected turns: tariff threats give way to investment negotiations. Yet the blockade of Iranian vessels continues, and the conflict smoulders on.

On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump said the United States would sign investment agreements with Gulf states instead of collecting transit fees for ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz. "Based on highly productive talks with Middle Eastern leaders, I have decided to replace the 20% US reimbursement fee with trade and investment agreements that various Gulf states will enter into with the United States," Trump wrote on Truth Social. Trump said the strait would remain open to all shipping except Iranian vessels, while the naval blockade would continue.

"UNEQUIVOCALLY, the Strait of Hormuz is open to ALL shipping except Iranian vessels," he said. "Therefore, we will impose a COMPLETE blockade, but only on ships travelling to and from Iranian ports, or carrying anything related to Iranian cargo," he added. The decision came a day after he proposed a 20% levy on ships to reimburse the US for protecting the vital waterway. Trump said he formally notified Congress on Friday that the US was resuming military operations against Iran.

New US airstrikes and Iranian retaliation have again plunged Washington and Tehran into open conflict less than a month after signing a 14 point memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the war. Meanwhile, Mohsen Rezaei, a senior adviser to Iran's supreme leader, said on social media on Tuesday that the US had resumed war and violated the terms of the Iran US memorandum by re imposing sanctions and restoring the naval blockade, rendering the memorandum void.

In recent days, several commercial vessels have been attacked in the Strait of Hormuz, and the US military has resumed strikes on Iran, saying they were in response to Iranian attacks on commercial shipping. On 10 July, the US Treasury announced a new round of sanctions against Iran following recent "Iranian attacks on commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz."

The Strait of Hormuz remains a strategic flashpoint between the US and Iran. Trump's move to replace tariffs with investment deals may ease economic pressure on allies, but the blockade of Iranian ships and continued strikes keep the risk of escalation high.

As CCTV+ reports. Experts note that the conflict is far from resolved, and the memorandum has effectively lost its force.