US politics as it happened: ‘Stupid question’: Trump scolds reporter

Ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has plunged to a fraction of normal levels, with just five vessels recorded passing through the waterway on Monday.

The latest figures show the disruption gripping one of the world’s most important shipping routes is continuing, with traffic still hovering around the lows recorded over the weekend.

Data from trader tracker Kpler and cited by Reuters showed just four vessels entered the strait and only one exited, compared with a 10-day average of about 14 ships.

Not a single liquid tanker was recorded making the journey through the passage on Monday.

Of the four ships that entered, one was an empty gas tanker travelling via the Iranian route, while the other three were laden dry bulk carriers.

The figures do not capture ships travelling with their transponders switched off, meaning some may have passed through undetected.

The Falkland Islands have long been a diplomatic flashpoint between Britain and Argentina.

But the prospect of Washington reconsidering its position on the disputed territory is not new within the Trump administration.

A leaked Pentagon email in April revealed US officials had previously considered reviewing their stance after Britain's lack of support for American military operations in Iran.

Now, the Trump administration is reportedly considering leveraging this to push Britain towards a defence spending target of 5 per cent of GDP.

Washington officially remains neutral on the competing British and Argentine sovereignty claims, with Donald Trump confirming on Monday the US position was under review.

During the 1982 Falklands War, the Reagan administration abandoned initial neutrality to provide Britain with military, intelligence, and diplomatic support.

Decades on, sovereignty over the islands remains fiercely disputed.

Tensions flared again following Argentina’s victory over England in the World Cup semi-finals earlier this year, when Argentine players displayed a banner reading “The Malvinas are Argentine”, referring to the Falkland Islands.

FIFA fined the Argentinian Football Association USD $321,000.

In a move that will raise alarm bells in the UK, Trump has said he will review the United States’ position on British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands.

The islands are administered by the UK government but are claimed by Argentina, whose president is a Trump ally.

Britain and Argentina fought a bloody war in 1982 for control of the Falkland Islands, located about 500km south of the South American continent.

“I always review every ⁠position,” Trump told reporters at the White House, when asked about the islands’ sovereignty. “That's just one of many."

Reports in The Telegraph say reviewing the US position is a potential way to leverage the British government over increasing defence spending.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has been holding talks with finance ministers from the world’s largest economies in Asheville, North Carolina.

They come at a time of global trade disruption, with aggressive tariffs on American allies and the Iran war keeping fuel prices high.

Speaking with The Associated Press ahead of the G20 meeting, Bessent said the Trump administration was aiming to intensify economic pressure on Iran.

He said the US is prepared to exact “financial violence if we have to.“

Bessent was also asked about how long it would take for the Iranian economy to collapse.

“I think it could be within weeks or months - and the economy doesn’t have to collapse, we just have to have the regime come to their senses.”

Donald Trump has held talks with Hollywood ambassador and veteran actor Jon Voight (below) about federal financial support for the US film and television industry.

In a Truth Social post, the president declared his backing for tax credits to bolster the industry which is facing stiff competition from overseas competitors.

“Hollywood is a Complete and Total Disaster! Despite the name, it is getting very little work. There is no incentive to be there, and it is hurting California very badly,” Trump wrote.

Voight, a staunch Republican supporter, was named as a Hollywood ambassador along with right-leaning Mel Gibson and Sylvester Stallone when Trump took office in 2025.

They’ve been tapped by the Trump administration to “Make Hollywood Great Again”. 

Another top military official is leaving the Trump administration.

US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is stepping down after 18 months on the job, the White House said.

Officials gave no explanation for the exit of Driscoll, who is a friend of Vice President JD Vance, but tensions with Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth have been widely reported.

“Secretary Driscoll has been highly effective in advancing President Trump’s agenda to Make America Strong Again at the Department of the Army by providing outstanding leadership during historic military operations, restoring an emphasis on readiness and lethality, assisting with negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, and more,” White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said.

Here are more details about our earlier report of a Saudi oil tanker being attacked in the Persian Gulf.

The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) says the vessel reported being struck by three unknown projectiles while completing an outbound transit of the Strait of Hormuz, 31 kms east of Khasab in Oman.

No casualties or environmental impact have been reported.

Two Iranian women charged over anti-government protests in January have been sentenced to death by the regime, human rights groups say.

They were convicted in separate cases, but both were related to incidents in the central city of Isfahan, a hotbed for nationwide demonstrations, reports AFP.

Taraneh Rahimi, 20, was sentenced to death along with nine men over incidents during the protests in a square in Isfahan.

In the other case, Leila Abolhasani, a 43-year-old mother, was convicted by a court of setting fire to a store during the demonstrations, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) says.

Since the war with the US began in February, the Iranian regime has stepped up executions of protesters, human rights activists say.

According to the Norway-based group Iran Human Rights (IHR), 29 men have to date been executed for taking part in demonstrations, but no women.

Reuters, citing Iranian state media, is reporting a Saudi oil tanker has been stopped while transiting through the southern part of the Strait of Hormuz.

There was no immediate Saudi confirmation.

Earlier, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade ‌Operations ⁠agency said it received a report of an incident involving a ⁠tanker and military forces in the Indian Ocean ⁠on Monday, without providing further ⁠details.