US President Donald Trump has said that any final agreement with Iran that included fees on shipping or maritime transit through the Strait of Hormuz would be "unacceptable" to the US.
Speaking to reporters during a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the White House, Trump was asked whether he would oppose a final Iran deal if it allowed any form of charges on shipping or maritime activity.
"It would be unacceptable to me," said Trump.
The president argued that permitting fees would set a precedent that could encourage similar demands elsewhere.
"If you did that for them, you'd have to do it for other people,” he said. “I wouldn't allow it there either … It would be a game changer."
Last week, Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian electronically signed a memorandum intended to pave the way to end the war Washington and Tel Aviv launched against Iran on Feb. 28.
Under the deal, Washington and Tehran are due to hold negotiations for 60 days, with the possibility of an extension, aimed at reaching a final agreement covering Iran’s nuclear program and international sanctions.
Trump also said the US is "doing great" in its negotiations with Iran.
Asked about the reported Feb. 28 US strike on an elementary school in Minab, Iran, killing more than 170 people, most of them schoolgirls, Trump said he had not seen a report on it.
"I have to wait for it to be complete ... I don't know that they're ever going to solve that problem, in terms of whose fault was it, because there were missiles flying all over the place," Trump added.
He said what happened was "horrible."
"But there were missiles flying all over the place, and somebody said it was our missile. Well, maybe it wasn't our missile, but I've seen nothing to lead me to believe it was. There were plenty of missiles being flown by other people," Trump said.
Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth said the US has taken the investigation "very seriously."
Trump reiterated that he does not think "it was us."
Asked last week about the attack, Trump told a reporter: “It’s such a strange question to be asked at this date, because you’re talking about a long time ago."
