Trump lashes out at allies, says securing the Strait of Hormuz is 'not
for us'
[April 01, 2026]
By JON GAMBRELL, MIKE CORDER and DARLENE SUPERVILLE
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — President Donald Trump lashed out
Tuesday at allies who have been unwilling to do more to support the U.S.
war effort against Iran, telling them to “go get your own oil” and
saying it was not America's job to secure the Strait of Hormuz.
The president said the military could end its offensive in two to three
weeks and that the U.S. “will not have anything to do with” what happens
next in the strait that has been closed by the Islamic Republic.
Instead, he told reporters, the responsibility for keeping the vital
waterway open will rest with countries that rely on it.
There’s “no reason for us to do this,” Trump said after signing an
executive order that seeks to restrict mail-in voting. “That’s not for
us. That’ll be for France. That’ll be for whoever’s using the strait.”
The White House said Trump would deliver a prime-time address Wednesday
evening to update the public on the war.
In other developments, the closure of the strait sent average U.S. gas
prices past $4 a gallon, and U.S. strikes hit the central city of
Isfahan, sending a massive fireball into the sky. Tehran attacked a
fully loaded Kuwaiti oil tanker in the Persian Gulf.
The attacks showed the intensity of the war more than a month after the
U.S. and Israel launched it. The conflict has left more than 3,000 dead
and caused major disruptions to the world’s supply of oil and natural
gas, roiling global markets and pushing up the cost of many basic goods.
Trump, whose comments have vacillated between talk that diplomatic
progress is being made with Iran and threats to widen the war, had
earlier shared footage of the attack on Isfahan.
Fuel prices rise, rattling global markets
Iran’s stranglehold on the strait, the waterway leading out of the
Persian Gulf through which a fifth of the world’s oil is transported
during peacetime, has driven up global oil prices, as have Tehran's
attacks on regional energy infrastructure.
Spot prices of Brent crude, the international standard, hovered around
$107 a barrel Tuesday, up more than 45% since the war started Feb. 28.
In a social media post, Trump directed blame at U.S. allies such as the
United Kingdom and France that have refused to enter a war with no clear
endgame that they were not consulted on.
“You’ll have to start learning how to fight for yourself, the U.S.A.
won’t be there to help you anymore, just like you weren’t there for us.
Iran has been, essentially, decimated. The hard part is done. Go get
your own oil!” Trump wrote.
He singled out France for not letting planes fly over French territory
while taking military supplies to Israel.
France has allowed the U.S. Air Force to use the Istres base in southern
France because it had guarantees that planes landing there would not be
involved in carrying out strikes.
Allies have refused to get involved
Spain, which has emerged as Europe's loudest critic of the war, said
Monday that it had closed its airspace for U.S. planes involved in the
conflict.
Italy recently refused to allow U.S. military assets to use the
Sigonella air base in Sicily for an operation linked to the offensive,
an official with knowledge of the matter said, confirming a local press
report. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were
not authorized to speak publicly.
Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto wrote on X that Italy is still
allowing the U.S. to use its bases, adding that there has been no
cooling of relations between the two countries.
Journalist kidnapped in Iraq
An American journalist was kidnapped Tuesday in Baghdad, and Iraqi
security forces are pursuing her captors, Iraqi officials said. The
journalist was identified as freelancer Shelly Kittleson by Al-Monitor,
one of the news outlets she worked for.
A U.S. official blamed the Iranian-backed Iraqi militia Kataib
Hezbollah.
Two cars were involved in the kidnapping, one of which crashed, and a
person inside was apprehended. The journalist was then transferred to a
second car that fled the scene, according to two Iraqi security
officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not
authorized to speak publicly about the case.
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Israeli security forces and rescue teams inspect a site struck by an
Iranian missile in Petah Tikva, Israel, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP
Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Dylan Johnson, U.S. assistant secretary of state for public affairs,
said on X that the State Department had "fulfilled our duty to warn
this individual of threats against them.”
In a statement, Al-Monitor said it stands by her “vital reporting.”
Kittleson has been a longtime freelancer in the region, reporting
extensively from Syria and Iraq.
Another aircraft carrier deploys to Middle East
The aircraft carrier USS George H. W. Bush deployed Tuesday from
Norfolk, Virginia, and is slated to head to the Middle East, two
U.S. officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss
sensitive military plans.
It would be the third carrier sent out to support the Iran war,
along with the USS Gerald R. Ford, which is now undergoing repairs,
and the USS Abraham Lincoln, which arrived in the region in January.
Trump warned this week that if a ceasefire is not reached “shortly,”
and if the strait is not reopened, the U.S. would broaden its
offensive, including by attacking the Kharg Island oil export hub
and possibly desalination plants.
Speaking at the Pentagon, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth would not
say if U.S. ground forces would enter the war. “We don’t want to
have to do more militarily than we have to,” he said.
A ground invasion could alienate Iranians who despise the ruling
theocracy and who rose up in mass protests that were crushed earlier
this year. Some could see it as an attack on Iran itself and rally
around the flag.
Since the Iran war began, 13 U.S. service members have been killed
and 348 wounded, six seriously, according to a formal count provided
Tuesday by Capt. Tim Hawkins, spokesman for U.S. Central Command.
Iran hits oil tanker as Israel strikes Iran and Lebanon
The Israeli military said early Wednesday that it had killed a
senior Hezbollah commander and another senior leader in two separate
strikes in the Beirut area.
Military officials said they launched strikes targeting what they
described as Hezbollah infrastructure in the Lebanese capital.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel plans to control the area
south of the Litani River — some 20 miles (about 30 kilometers)
north of the border.
Israel invaded southern Lebanon after Hezbollah began launching
missiles into northern Israel days after the outbreak of the wider
war. Many Lebanese fear another prolonged military occupation.
Elsewhere, the United Arab Emirates has barred Iranians from
entering or transiting the country as the war rages, three major
airlines said. The long-haul carriers Emirates and Etihad, as well
as the lower-cost airline FlyDubai, made the announcements Wednesday
on their websites.
In Iran, authorities say more than 1,900 people have been killed,
while 19 have been reported dead in Israel.
Two dozen people have died in Gulf states and the occupied West
Bank. In Lebanon, officials said more than 1,200 people have been
killed, and more than 1 million displaced.
Ten Israeli soldiers have died in Lebanon, including four announced
Tuesday.
___
Corder reported from The Hague, Netherlands, and Superville from
Washington. David Rising in Bangkok, Abby Sewell and Sally Abou
AlJoud in Beirut, Sylvie Corbet in Paris, Amir-Hussein Radjy in
Cairo, Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad, Giada Zampano in Rome,
Giovanna Dell’Orto in Miami and Konstantin Toropin in Washington
contributed to this report.
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