Trump Teases Renaming Strait of Hormuz After Self

US President Donald Trump has sparked fresh attention after jokingly suggesting that the Strait of Hormuz could be renamed the “Trump Strait”.

Trump floated the idea on Wednesday as tensions with Iran escalated around the strategic waterway.

He made the remark while insisting that the United States had full control of the strait, through which a significant share of the world’s oil supplies passes.

“Now that we have it under USA control, should we change the name Hormuz Strait to Trump Strait?” Trump asked in a post on his Truth Social platform.

He added that, like America itself, the proposed name would be “hotter” than ever.

The White House later joined in, posting a map of the Gulf on social media with “Trump Strait” marked on the waterway.

“It’s got a nice ring to it,” the White House said in the accompanying post.

Trump has repeatedly spoken about taking control of the Strait of Hormuz in recent weeks.

He has even shared a map depicting the waterway as a potential “new US territory”.

However, the president later suggested that he was not making a serious proposal to rename the strait.

Asked by an AFP reporter in the Oval Office whether he genuinely intended to change its name, Trump laughed and replied: “It was just thrown out there.”

The remark is nevertheless drawing attention because several of Trump’s previous suggestions about geographical names have moved beyond jokes.

Last week, he signed an order renaming Lake Ontario as “Lake America” amid a trade dispute with neighbouring Canada.

Trump had initially appeared to raise the idea jokingly.

He also renamed the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America” on his first day back in the White House in January 2025.

Mexico and Canada have refused to recognise the changes.

Trump has also pushed his name onto other institutions, including the Kennedy arts centre in Washington.

The latest naming suggestion comes as the US and Iran remain locked in a deadly military confrontation.

Fighting resumed after weeks of relative calm, with US forces carrying out fresh strikes near the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday.

Trump said the strikes followed what he described as new Iranian efforts to lay mines in the strategic waterway.

Iran, however, accused the United States of committing a war crime after one of the attacks reportedly killed four people at a wedding.

Tehran responded with retaliatory strikes on US military bases in Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain and Iraq.

The conflict has also driven up fuel costs in the United States and created mounting political pressure for the Trump administration.

The Strait of Hormuz remains a crucial global energy route, carrying about one-fifth of the world’s oil supplies.

Iran has effectively closed the passage in retaliation for the war launched by Trump and Israel in late February.

Trump said Washington remained prepared to launch another attack on Iran.

“It was a very heavy attack last night, and we’re prepared to do another one any time we want,” he told reporters at the White House.

He, however, added that any renewed military campaign would not last “too long”.