Trump eyes "Hormuz Coalition," seizure of Iran's Kharg Island oil hub

• Iran is blocking Gulf countries from exporting their oil while allowing tankers picking up Iranian crude to pass freely — keeping its own oil flowing to China and other countries.
• As long as the blockade holds and Gulf oil is restricted, Trump could not end the war even if he wanted to, a source with knowledge of the situation said.

Driving the news: In a Truth Social post Saturday, Trump claimed the U.S. and several other countries will send warships to the Gulf to reopen commercial shipping, and called on China, France, Japan, South Korea and the U.K. to help.

• On Sunday, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One he "demands" that NATO countries and other oil-importing nations — including China — help the U.S. secure the strait.
• "We are talking to other countries about policing the straits. It will be nice to have other countries policing with us. We will help. We are getting a good response," Trump said.
• Trump said the U.S. is in talks with seven countries and mentioned some had already declined, while stressing that the mission "will be small" because Iran has "very little firepower" left.

Behind the scenes: Trump and senior administration officials spent Saturday and Sunday on the phones working to assemble the multinational coalition, a U.S. official said.

• Trump spoke Sunday with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer about the effort — a notable reversal after Trump said days earlier it was "too late" for the U.K. to help.
• "It was a busy weekend of diplomacy between the U.S. and European, Gulf and Asian allies," a source familiar with the details said. "The Trump administration's primary focus is to build political commitment from allies for a Strait of Hormuz grouping."

Zoom in: No country has publicly committed yet, but a senior administration official said Trump expects some to announce their support this week, forming what the White House is calling a "Hormuz Coalition."

• "Most of this oil isn't our oil — it goes to other countries. So if they want it and they want the price to come down, they need to help out," the official said.
• The main effort now is securing political commitment, a source familiar with the negotiations said. The question of "who sends what and when" will be worked out later.
• Countries will be asked to contribute warships, command-and-control support, drones and other military assets. The Wall Street Journal first reported that Trump wants to announce the coalition this week.

What to watch: On Thursday, Trump will discuss Iran and safe passage of oil tankers with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi during her first official White House visit.

• Trump is also pressing China to commit to the coalition before he travels to Beijing for his summit with President Xi Jinping at month's end — and told the Financial Times he may delay the trip if Beijing doesn't engage.
• One Iranian official told CNN that the country might allow tankers safe passage if the oil cargo is traded in Chinese yuan — not the U.S. dollar.
• Trump also put NATO allies on notice. "If there's no response or if it's a negative response, I think it will be very bad for the future of NATO," he told the FT.

State of play: The U.S. continues to pummel Iranian targets across the country, with a particular focus on the shores of the Persian Gulf and Kharg Island — a strategic terminal 15 miles off Iran's coast that handles roughly 90% of its crude oil exports.

• Trump announced Friday he had ordered strikes on military installations on the island, while sparing its oil facilities. On Saturday he told NBC the U.S. "may hit it a few more times just for fun."
• "No one should read into anything more than what the president announced," a senior White House official said. "The president has made no decisions on Kharg Island."
• But, the official said, "that could change" if the effort to clear the strait drags on. "The president is not going to wait around and let the Iranians dictate the pace of the conflict."

The intrigue: Trump is drawn to the idea of seizing Kharg Island outright because it would constitute "an economic knockout of the regime" — essentially defunding Tehran, a third U.S. official said

• But the move would require boots on the ground and could trigger Iranian retaliatory strikes against oil facilities and pipelines across Gulf countries, particularly Saudi Arabia.
• "There are big risks. There are big rewards. The president isn't there yet and we're not saying he will be," the official said.

What they're saying: Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), an outspoken Iran hawk, applauded Trump's "decision to take the war to Kharg Island" and said Iran's economy will be "annihilated" if it loses control of the oil hub.

• "Seldom in warfare does an enemy provide you a single target like Kharg Island that could dramatically alter the outcome of the conflict," he wrote on X. "He who controls Kharg Island, controls the destiny of this war."
• Axios first reported last week that the U.S. military was considering seizing Kharg Island and, separately, sending special forces to secure Iran's alleged stockpiles of highly enriched uranium.

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