U.S. Blocks Sea Routes Again, Demands "Tolls" for Passage, Sparking Controversy

[Anchor]

U.S. President Donald Trump has announced the resumption of a maritime blockade against Iran, declaring that ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz will be charged a toll equivalent to 20 percent of their cargo value. The statement, which effectively scraps the previous memorandum of understanding and asserts that the U.S., rather than Iran, will collect the tolls, is causing significant repercussions.

Reporter Kwak Sang-eun has the story.

[Reporter]

On July 13, local time, U.S. President Donald Trump announced the resumption of a maritime blockade targeting Iran.

He intends to tighten the financial grip on the Iranian regime by reinstating the blockade, which had been lifted following the signing of a memorandum of understanding on June 17.

[Donald Trump/U.S. President: No ship trading with Iran will be allowed to pass. Ships from other countries may pass. It is a powerful maritime blockade.]

The U.S. military announced that the blockade would resume effective at 5:00 a.m. KST.

With armed clashes occurring over the Strait of Hormuz, the 60-day ceasefire agreement has been broken. Combined with the resumption of oil export sanctions and the maritime blockade, the confrontation between the two sides has returned to the situation that existed before the memorandum of understanding was signed.

Trump dismissed concerns, stating that the memorandum was "only meant to test Iran" anyway.

Trump also announced that he would impose a fee on civilian ships passing through the strait, charging 20 percent of their cargo value under the guise of security costs.

He identified Middle Eastern oil-producing nations as the countries that should pay.

[Donald Trump/U.S. President: We are protecting the wealthiest region in the world. Since we are spending money to do this, it is time we get paid back.]

The U.S. had previously strongly criticized Iran's attempts to impose such tolls.

[Marco Rubio/U.S. Secretary of State (June 24): The Strait of Hormuz is an international waterway. No country can impose tolls or usage fees on an international waterway.]

The International Maritime Organization (IMO) stated its firm opposition, declaring that President Trump's announcement to impose tolls lacks any legal basis.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi responded by saying, "20 percent is too much; Iran will be fair," effectively using Trump's remarks as a justification to legitimize Iran's own collection of tolls in the Strait of Hormuz.

(Video Editing: Park Chun-bae, Design: Choi Ha-neul)

Reported by Lee Hyun-ju | Video by Park Chun-bae | Graphics by Choi Ha-neul
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.