Iran-U.S. War Grinds On: Hormuz Tightens as Trump Heads to China Summit

President Trump, departing for a summit in China, dismissed Iran's latest ceasefire proposal as not a 'letter of surrender' while declaring the war 'very much under control.' Iran's IRGC Navy has formally expanded its declared operational zone in the Strait of Hormuz to a 500-kilometer 'crescent' stretching from Jask and Sirik to beyond Greater Tunb Island. Iran simultaneously sued the U.S. at the Permanent Court of Arbitration for reparations from a June 2025 military strike. New reports allege Saudi Arabia and the UAE conducted covert airstrikes against Iran during the initial U.S.-Israeli offensive in March, widening the known coalition and deepening Iran's isolation calculus. Physical crude premiums, which briefly exceeded $30/barrel above Brent in early April, have collapsed back toward parity as refiners defer purchases anticipating a resolution that has not materialized.