Trump Says Iran Wants Strait of Hormuz Opened Due to Lack of Money
US President Donald Trump has claimed that Iran actually wants to keep the Strait of Hormuz open because it is short of money. According to Trump, Iran is financially collapsing.
“Iran does not want the Strait of Hormuz closed; they want it open so they can generate US$500 million per day (which, therefore, is a loss for them if the strait is closed!),” Trump wrote in his latest statement on his social media platform, Truth Social, as reported by AFP and Al Arabiya on Wednesday (22/4/2026).
“They are only saying they want the strait closed because I have completely BLOCKADED (CLOSED!), so they just want to ‘save face’,” the US President snapped.
This statement was made by Trump a few hours after announcing a unilateral extension of the ceasefire on Tuesday (21/4). The two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran, announced on 7 April, was supposed to end on Tuesday (22/4).
Trump, in his statement, emphasised that maintaining the US blockade on this vital waterway for global energy supplies is essential to reaching a deal with Iran.
“People came to me four days ago, saying, ‘Sir, Iran wants to open the Strait of Hormuz, immediately’. But if we do that, there will never be a deal with Iran, unless we destroy the entire country, including its leaders!” he said.
In a separate post on Truth Social, Trump claimed Iran is experiencing a financial crisis due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which is a consequence of the war.
“Iran is financially collapsing! They want the Strait of Hormuz opened immediately – Short of money! Losing US$500 million per day. Military and police complaining because they are not paid. SOS!!!” Trump claimed in his statement.
Trump extended the US-Iran ceasefire to provide more time for peace negotiations. He postponed indefinitely the end of the temporary ceasefire, citing requests from Pakistani mediators and emphasising the need to give Iran’s “divided” leadership time to formulate a proposal.
However, Iran maintains its stance, with advisor to the Iranian Parliament Speaker, Mahdi Mohammadi, stating: “Trump’s ceasefire extension means nothing.”
He highlighted Trump’s policy of continuing the US blockade on Iranian ports despite extending the ceasefire. According to Mohammadi, Trump’s policy must be responded to with military action, not through the negotiating table.