Trump on seized Iranian oil: “We’re like pirates”
Description
President Trump said “We’re like pirates” about seizing Iranian oil. Now his Justice Department is reviving an old law of naval warfare to try to keep it.
At a dinner in West Palm Beach on May 1, Trump told the crowd US forces had taken an Iranian ship and its oil. “It’s a very profitable business,” he said. “Who would’ve thought we were doing that? We’re like pirates.”
By June, US forces had seized 3 tankers of Iranian oil. Bloomberg estimated in September that the oil was worth almost $600 million.
The law is prize law. It lets a court award a captured ship and its cargo to the government that took it. CBS News reported it hasn’t been used regularly since the Spanish-American War. In September, a federal court in Texas adopted rules for prize cases.
But prize law covers only ships captured during a war. Congress hasn’t declared war on Iran or authorized one, though courts have said a war can exist without a declaration. On September 3, Vice President JD Vance told reporters, “I wouldn’t call it a war.”
As of late October, no prize case had been filed. In late September, the 3 tankers were last reported crossing the Atlantic toward the United States.
Trump called seizing Iranian oil a very profitable business. The government hasn’t said publicly where the tankers’ oil is now.
Transcript
Two months into the war with Iran, President Trump told a dinner crowd in Florida that US forces had taken an Iranian ship and its oil. He called the seizure “a very profitable business,” and added, “We’re like pirates.”
By June, US forces had also seized three tankers of Iranian oil. Bloomberg estimated in September that the oil was worth almost $600 million.
To keep that oil, the Justice Department is reviving prize law, an old law of naval warfare that lets a court award a captured ship and its cargo to the government that took it. CBS News reported the law hasn’t been used regularly since the Spanish-American War. In September, a federal court in Texas adopted rules for prize cases.
But prize law covers only ships captured during a war. Congress hasn’t declared war on Iran or authorized one, though courts have said a war can exist without a declaration. On Sept. 3, Vice President JD Vance told reporters, “I wouldn’t call it a war.” As of late October, no prize case had been filed.
In late September, the three tankers were last reported crossing the Atlantic toward the United States. Trump called seizing Iranian oil a very profitable business. The government hasn’t said publicly where the tankers’ oil is now.
Sources and credits
- Reuters via MarketScreener, Trump likens the Navy’s seizure of oil cargo to pirates, May 2, 2026. marketscreener.com
- Bloomberg via gCaptain, seized Iranian oil tankers head toward the US with a $600 million cargo, Sept. 25, 2026. gcaptain.com
- The Maritime Executive, the US appears set to seize $600 million in Iranian crude oil from three tankers, Sept. 25, 2026. maritime-executive.com
- CBS News, the administration turns to prize law for seized Iranian oil tankers, Sept. 3, 2026. cbsnews.com
- US District Court for the Southern District of Texas, General Order No. 2026-12, “In the Matter of Prize Rules and Standing Interrogatories for Prize Proceedings,” Sept. 23, 2026. txs.uscourts.gov
- National Law Review, the new Houston prize court and what energy, shipping and finance clients should know, Oct. 26, 2026. natlawreview.com
- Office of the Law Revision Counsel, US House of Representatives, 10 U.S.C. § 8851, “Scope of chapter.” uscode.house.gov
- gCaptain, Vance blames his own administration’s Iran war for the Republican defeat, Nov. 4, 2026. gcaptain.com
- U.S. Supreme Court, “The Prize Cases,” 67 U.S. 635, March 10, 1863. law.cornell.edu
- The National News Desk via WJLA, “Vance briefs press on Iran: ‘I wouldn’t call it a war,’” Sept. 3, 2026. wjla.com
- Daily Compilation of Presidential Documents, “Remarks and a Question-and-Answer Session at the Forum Club of the Palm Beaches Dinner in West Palm Beach, Florida,” May 1, 2026. govinfo.gov
- AFP via The Times of Israel, “Tankers of Iranian oil that were seized by US are in Atlantic, tracker shows,” Sept. 24, 2026. timesofisrael.com
Picture credits
- President Trump at the Forum Club of the Palm Beaches dinner, West Palm Beach, Florida, May 1, 2026: Official White House photos by Daniel Torok (public domain).
- US forces board the tanker Davina, June 4, 2026: U.S. Pacific Command video via DVIDS (public domain). dvidshub.net
- A Navy destroyer and a tanker on blockade patrol, April 26, 2026: U.S. Navy video via DVIDS (public domain). Wikimedia Commons
- Prize rules order: US District Court for the Southern District of Texas (public domain).
- Prize law text: Office of the Law Revision Counsel, uscode.house.gov (public domain).
- Vice President JD Vance: Official White House photo by Emily J. Higgins (public domain).
The appearance of U.S. Department of War (DoW) visual information does not imply or constitute DoW endorsement.