US President Donald Trump has urged Americans to accept higher gasoline prices as the cost of confronting Iran, as tensions over the Strait of Hormuz continue to disrupt global oil flows and threaten to prolong pressure on energy markets.

Speaking at a political rally in Garden City, New York, on August 14, Trump said Americans would have to pay “a little bit more” for gasoline to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, according to Reuters. He also escalated his rhetoric over the Strait of Hormuz, saying the United States would soon declare the strategic waterway US territory.

The comments come as US gasoline prices have climbed sharply amid the disruption. The average US gasoline price reached about $4.08 per gallon on August 14, up 29% from a year earlier, according to data cited by Reuters from the American Automobile Association (AAA).

Trump’s remarks mark a notable shift from his administration’s earlier emphasis on keeping energy prices low. The higher fuel costs are emerging as a domestic economic challenge as the Iran conflict continues to affect crude supplies, transportation and refining costs.

The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s most important energy chokepoints. The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that around 20 million barrels per day (bbl/d) of crude oil and petroleum products passed through the waterway in 2025, equivalent to approximately 25% of global seaborne oil trade. Nearly 15 million bbl/d of crude oil alone transited the Strait.

The IEA has stated tanker movements through Hormuz have fallen from roughly 20 million bpd before the conflict to a near standstill, creating what it described as the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market.