- Iran released an AI video mocking Trump as a minion trying to open the Strait of Hormuz
- The video shows Iran controlling the strait despite Trump's demands to reopen it
- Shipping traffic remains 90% below normal since Iran's blockade, with few vessels passing after ceasefire
US President Donald Trump has been portrayed as a "minion" from the film Despicable Me in an AI-generated video released by the Iranian Embassy in Russia on Wednesday, showing him repeatedly attempting to open the Strait of Hormuz.
In the clip, a minion version of Trump is seen floating on a wooden plank beside an American flag. "I'm going to count to three. When I open my eyes, the strait must be open," the character says.
Nothing happens. Instead, a group of minions on another plank, representing the UK, France, Japan, the UAE and Qatar, begin cheering.
Moments later, an Iranian minion presses a red button and chuckles as a 'warning' tape drops across the strait, underscoring Tehran's grip over the strategic waterway.
The Trump minion continues insisting the strait will reopen, but Iran responds by dropping an increasing number of 'warning tapes,' eventually triggering frustration among the other minions.
The video is part of a broader series of satirical propaganda clips released by Iran during the conflict, aimed at undermining Trump.
On Wednesday, Trump declared that he is "permanently opening" the Strait of Hormuz in a fresh post on Truth Social, asserting that the key passage would never be blocked again.
Despite that claim, conditions in the Strait of Hormuz suggest that normal shipping operations have yet to resume.
The narrow corridor linking the Persian Gulf to the open ocean remains one of the world's most vital energy chokepoints, handling roughly 20 per cent of global oil and liquefied natural gas flows.
Disruptions began after Iran's Revolutionary Guards effectively shut the strait to vessels it deemed hostile, following an escalation in tensions with the United States and Israel.
The move sharply reduced maritime traffic, with daily crossings dropping from more than 130 vessels before the conflict to significantly lower levels.
Although a two-week ceasefire has been in place since April 8, shipping volumes have yet to recover, and traffic remains about 90 per cent below peacetime levels
According to maritime analytics firm Kpler, only 58 commodity carriers have passed through the Strait of Hormuz since the US-Iran ceasefire came into effect on Wednesday.
Most of the vessels that have transited the strait were either linked to Iran or associated with countries not considered hostile by the Islamic Republic.
