President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social on Tuesday that nations finding themselves short of jet fuel because of a closure of the Strait of Hormuz should either purchase supplies from the United States or take military action to reopen the channel.
In his post, the president singled out the United Kingdom and wrote: "All of those countries that cant get jet fuel because of the Strait of Hormuz, like the United Kingdom, which refused to get involved in the decapitation of Iran, I have a suggestion for you: Number 1, buy from the U.S., we have plenty, and Number 2, build up some delayed courage, go to the Strait, and just TAKE IT."
Trump added that the United States would not assist allies in efforts to reopen the strait, writing: "Youll have to start learning how to fight for yourself, the U.S.A. wont be there to help you anymore, just like you werent there for us."
The presidents comments followed a Wall Street Journal report that said he told aides he was willing to end the U.S. military campaign against Iran even if the Strait of Hormuz remained largely closed. Administration officials told reporters that Mr. Trump had recently assessed that a mission to reopen the chokepoint would extend the conflict beyond his preferred timeframe of four to six weeks.
Officials said the president determined that Washington should focus on achieving core objectives - weakening Irans navy and missile stocks - and then wind down ongoing hostilities while continuing diplomatic pressure on Tehran to restore the free flow of trade. If diplomatic pressure and those measures fail to reopen the strait, the administration said it would press allied countries in Europe and the Gulf to take the lead in reopening the waterway.
In a separate Truth Social post, Mr. Trump criticized France for not permitting flights carrying military supplies to Israel to transit French airspace. He wrote: "France has been VERY UNHELPFUL with respect to the Butcher of Iran, who has been successfully eliminated! The U.S.A. will REMEMBER!!!"
The presidents social media posts and the administrations internal assessment outline a posture in which Washington prioritizes specific military degradations of Iranian capabilities while limiting the duration of direct U.S. military engagement. Officials described a decision-making horizon of four to six weeks for U.S. operations, and signaled a willingness to rely on allied partners to take more direct action to reopen the Strait of Hormuz if diplomatic pressure does not produce results.
The statements underscore a public push by the president for allies to shoulder greater responsibility for reopening a strategic maritime chokepoint and for countries affected by restricted fuel access to consider U.S. purchases as an immediate alternative.