US President Donald Trump said on Friday that the US Navy was acting “like pirates” in enforcing Washington’s naval blockade of Iranian ports, framing the seizures of Iranian vessels and cargo as a profitable extraction operation.
“We took over the ship, we took over the cargo, we took over the oil. It’s a very profitable business,” Trump said in remarks on Friday evening, according to Reuters reporting carried by Ada Derana. “We’re like pirates. We’re sort of like pirates but we are not playing games.” He made the comments while describing the seizure by US forces of a ship a few days ago.
US forces have seized Tehran’s vessels leaving Iranian ports along with sanctioned container ships and Iranian tankers in Asian waters since the war began on February 28. Iran has blocked nearly all third-party shipping through the Strait of Hormuz; Trump has imposed a separate blockade on Iranian ports.
The remarks come as the US Treasury warned shippers against paying Iranian Hormuz tolls — even via charity to the Iranian Red Crescent — and after Trump on Thursday signalled continued dissatisfaction with Iran’s negotiating stance. The “pirates” framing is the most candid public characterisation by the President of the seizure operations that have squeezed global tanker insurance and routing, and tightened the supply outlook for fuel-importing economies including Sri Lanka.
Source: Ada Derana (citing Reuters).
