US President Donald Trump in a 13 August 2019 visit to Shell Pennsylvania Petrochemicals Complex told a gathered crowd that the US is seeking to dominate the energy market, and no longer needs oil from the Middle East.
He noted that there are “very few American boats” in the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic chokepoint that has been at the centre of geopolitical conflict in recent months. Most recently, Iran seized the UK-flagged vessel Stena Impero for what it says was a violation of maritime regulations.
“…We have very few boats going there anymore because we have our own oil and gas,” Trump said. “We don’t need it from the Middle East anymore.”
He continued to say that the US already has energy independence, and noted that “what we want now is not independence; we want American energy dominance.”
