President Donald Trump said on Friday that U.S. naval forces were operating "like pirates" as they carried out a U.S.-imposed naval blockade of Iranian ports during the ongoing conflict between the U.S. and Israel and Iran. He made the comments while recounting a recent seizure by U.S. forces.
Describing the operation, the president said:
"We took over the ship, we took over the cargo, we took over the oil. It’s a very profitable business,"
"We’re like pirates. We’re sort of like pirates but we are not playing games."
The United States has seized several vessels linked to Tehran in recent weeks, including ships taken after leaving Iranian ports as well as sanctioned container ships and Iranian tankers located in Asian waters. Separately, Iran has blocked nearly all ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz - apart from its own - since the start of the war, while the U.S. has imposed a blockade on Iranian ports.
The military confrontation escalated when the U.S. and Israel struck Iran on February 28. Iran replied with strikes on Israel and on Gulf states that host U.S. military bases. Subsequent U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks in Lebanon have resulted in thousands of deaths and the displacement of millions of people, according to reporting on the conflict.
These developments have pushed oil prices higher and affected shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic chokepoint responsible for roughly 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments. The blockade of the strait and other disruptions in the region are cited as factors behind the upward pressure on energy markets.
Trump has offered shifting timelines and changing objectives for the campaign, and the war remains unpopular domestically. He has faced broad condemnation for several comments on the conflict, including a threatened remark made last month to "destroy" Iran's entire civilization. Following threats to target civilian infrastructure, many U.S. experts last month said American strikes on Iran could amount to war crimes.
The president's recent comments about naval seizures underscore the fraught and highly public nature of military and economic measures being employed as the conflict continues to reverberate through regional security and global energy markets.