By Bo Erickson and Kanishka Singh
WASHINGTON, April 10 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump told reporters on Friday that the U.S. will have the Strait of Hormuz “open fairly soon” but did not elaborate and acknowledged that it will not be an easy step.
Trump also suggested that other countries were offering help but did not identify any nation.
“Other countries use the strait. So we do have other countries coming up, and they’ll help out,” Trump said.
“It won’t be easy … I would say this – we will have that open fairly soon,” Trump added.
The blockade of the strait by Tehran since the start of the Iran war has caused the worst disruption to global energy supplies in history. The strait is a chokepoint for about 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments.
Trump has been upset at NATO allies’ failure to help secure the Strait of Hormuz. Reuters reported on Thursday that NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte, after meeting Trump, told European governments that the U.S. president wants concrete commitments to help secure the strait within days.
The U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on February 28. Iran responded with its own strikes on Israel and U.S. bases in Gulf states. U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks on Lebanon have killed thousands and displaced millions.
The war has raised oil prices and shaken global markets. Trump announced a fragile ceasefire with Tehran on Tuesday, after having previously threatened to destroy Iran’s entire civilization. Ship traffic through the strait has remained stalled.
(Reporting by Bo Erickson and Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Michelle Nichols and Matthew Lewis)
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