Donald Trump to Newsweek on Hormuz Opening: ‘Working Out Very Well'

President Donald Trump responded to a question from Newsweek on Wednesday about the status of the Straight of Hormuz.

The Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway off Iran's coast that has effectively been shut by the war, is so critical to the global economy that governments are already drawing up plans to quickly reopen it to oil tankers and other shipping once fighting ends.

The president responded to a question from White House reporter Leonardo Feldman about reopening the crucial straight to cargo, “It's working out very well, and I think you are going to see that.”

A surge in oil prices points to what may be Iran's most effective weapon and the United States' biggest vulnerability in continuing the campaign: Damaging the world economy. Wednesday's major developments include Iranian attacks against commercial ships - setting a Thai cargo ship ablaze in the Strait of Hormuz - and drones targeting Dubai International Airport, escalating a campaign of squeezing the oil-rich region as global energy concerns mount.

Iran appears to be continuing oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz despite the escalating conflict, according to U.S. officials and shipping data. The United States has vowed to keep the vital waterway open and has carried out heavy airstrikes targeting Iran's navy and the port city of Bandar Abbas.

The U.S. military said Tuesday it destroyed 16 Iranian minelaying vessels near the strait, though President Trump said on social media there were no reports that Iran had actually mined the passage. Some oil tankers believed to be linked to Iran have continued transiting the strait using so‑called "dark" voyages, switching off tracking systems commonly disabled by vessels carrying sanctioned crude.

The commodity‑tracking firm Kpler said Iran has also resumed crude exports through its Jask oil terminal on the Gulf of Oman, reporting that a tanker loaded about 2 million barrels there on March 7.

Former naval officers familiar with the narrow Strait of Hormuz say ships would be highly vulnerable if military forces attempted to reopen the waterway before fighting ends.

"In today's context, sending warships or civilian vessels into the Strait of Hormuz would be suicidal," retired French Vice Adm. Pascal Ausseur told The Associated Press.

A cease-fire with Iran, he said, "would move the situation from suicidal to dangerous," allowing military vessels to deploy and escort operations to begin.

This is a breaking news article. Updates to follow.

This article includes reporting by the Associated Press.

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This story was originally published March 11, 2026 at 1:07 PM.