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What is the story about?
President Donald Trump on Wednesday floated renaming the Strait of Hormuz the “Trump Strait” as tensions continue to escalate in the ongoing US-Iran war.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump asked whether the strategic waterway should be renamed after him, claiming that the United States now controls the strait.
“Now that we have it under U.S.A. control, should we change the name Hormuz Strait to TRUMP STRAIT???” Trump wrote.
“Like America itself, it would be ‘hotter’ than ever before!” he added.
The proposal comes less than a week after Trump signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario “Lake America” for US federal use. The order directed Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and the Department of the Interior to update the Geographic Names Information System within 30 days. Canada has rejected the name change, while Google and Apple have adopted “Lake America” for US users.
Trump also previously ordered the US government to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America”, a move that has not been adopted universally outside the United States.
It remains unclear whether Trump could take any formal steps to rename the Strait of Hormuz. Unlike Lake Ontario, the strait is an international waterway and the United States does not have the authority to unilaterally impose a new name on it globally.
The Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and is one of the world's most important energy routes. Nearly 20% of global oil shipments passed through the waterway before the conflict.
Trump's administration has repeatedly said the US controls the strategic waterway, while Iran disputes that claim. The White House said last week that US forces had cleared Iranian mines from international shipping lanes and were protecting commercial vessels passing through the strait.
However, commercial traffic remains well below pre-war levels. Kpler data showed only four commodity vessels transited the strait on Tuesday, compared with a 10-day average of about 13 vessels. However, ship-tracking data can be affected when vessels switch off their transponders.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump asked whether the strategic waterway should be renamed after him, claiming that the United States now controls the strait.
“Now that we have it under U.S.A. control, should we change the name Hormuz Strait to TRUMP STRAIT???” Trump wrote.
“Like America itself, it would be ‘hotter’ than ever before!” he added.
The proposal comes less than a week after Trump signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario “Lake America” for US federal use. The order directed Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and the Department of the Interior to update the Geographic Names Information System within 30 days. Canada has rejected the name change, while Google and Apple have adopted “Lake America” for US users.
Trump also previously ordered the US government to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America”, a move that has not been adopted universally outside the United States.
It remains unclear whether Trump could take any formal steps to rename the Strait of Hormuz. Unlike Lake Ontario, the strait is an international waterway and the United States does not have the authority to unilaterally impose a new name on it globally.
The Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and is one of the world's most important energy routes. Nearly 20% of global oil shipments passed through the waterway before the conflict.
Trump's administration has repeatedly said the US controls the strategic waterway, while Iran disputes that claim. The White House said last week that US forces had cleared Iranian mines from international shipping lanes and were protecting commercial vessels passing through the strait.
However, commercial traffic remains well below pre-war levels. Kpler data showed only four commodity vessels transited the strait on Tuesday, compared with a 10-day average of about 13 vessels. However, ship-tracking data can be affected when vessels switch off their transponders.
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