Vehicle traffic through the Strait of Hormuz all but ground to a halt on Sunday after remarks by US President Donald Trump about the prospects for resolving the conflict with Iran, Bloomberg reported, citing data on maritime traffic tracking.
On May 3, the US president said he was unlikely to accept Iran's response to Washington's proposals to resolve the conflict, claiming that Tehran had not paid a “high enough” price.
While nine ships used the sea corridor in both directions on Saturday, Bloomberg recorded the passage of only two Iranian merchant ships on Sunday. The agency wrote that the limited ship activity indicates that “access to the strait appears to be limited to certain vessels with regional affiliation or approval from regional authorities“.
The agency also noted that in recent weeks, many ships have passed through the strait with their transponders turned off. In particular, some Iranian merchant ships, amid a naval blockade by the US Navy, may turn on their transponders once they reach Southeast Asian waters.
Bloomberg reports that after Trump's announcement, hopes for a quick restoration of unrestricted shipping in the Strait of Hormuz have faded.