Trump backs down on Hormuz toll threat as US bombing continues

US President Donald Trump has abandoned his plan to impose a 20 per cent charge on cargo passing through the Strait of Hormuz, only hours before it was due to take effect, while maintaining a naval blockade of Iranian ports and ordering further attacks on Iran. Trump announced on Tuesday that he had withdrawn the proposed fee following what he described as “highly productive conversations” with Middle Eastern leaders. He appeared to portray the apparent U-turn not as a retreat but as a negotiated victory, claiming that Gulf Arab states had offered trade and investment commitments in place of the proposed toll.  No details, however, were given about the countries involved, the value of the agreements or when they would […]