Summary The US president also stated that he would announce important information regarding Iran by the end of the day
WASHINGTON (Dunya News/Reuters) - US President Donald Trump has said that Iran is seeking to close the Strait of Hormuz again, but warned that Tehran “cannot blackmail” the United States.
Speaking to media in the Oval Office, Trump said talks with Iran were progressing positively, reiterating that the US would not be pressured over the Strait of Hormuz issue.
The US president also stated that he would announce “important information” regarding Iran by the end of the day.
Trump also commented on Spain, saying it was “regrettable” to see the country’s condition.
He claimed Spain’s economy had weakened and criticised it for not contributing sufficiently to NATO, adding that it had failed to spend 5% of its GDP on defence.
Trump further said that the US does not require permission from others to carry out its actions and could use bases if it chose to, asserting that Spain has “nothing” the US needs.
On domestic issues, Trump said that reforms were being introduced in the healthcare sector, claiming that medicine prices had been reduced by 50 to 80 percent. He also stated that drug smuggling into the United States had declined.
Also Read: Iran ready to deliver bitter defeat to enemy: Mojtaba Khamenei
Earlier, two merchant vessels reported they were hit by gunfire as they attempted to cross the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, three maritime security and shipping sources said, shortly after Iran said it was once more tightening control of the waterway.
Some merchant vessels received a radio message from Iran's Navy that the vital energy chokepoint was shut again and no ships were allowed to pass through, shipping sources said.
The maritime trackers showed a convoy of eight tankers transiting the waterway in the first major movement of ships since the US-Israeli war on Iran began seven weeks ago.
But Iran then said it was reimposing strict military controls on the narrow route, the conduit before the war of about a fifth of global oil trade, as the US maintained its blockade of Iranian ports.
And in a defiant message posted on his Telegram channel, Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said Iran's navy was ready to inflict "new bitter defeats" on its enemies.
