TEHRAN, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- A senior Iranian diplomat said Saturday that the Strait of Hormuz will be closed and opened only under Iran's command.

This file photo on April 30, 2019 shows Iranian soldiers patrol the Strait of Hormuz in southern Iran. (Photo: Xinhua)

Kazem Gharibabadi, Iranian deputy foreign minister for legal and international affairs, made the remarks on X in response to a claim by U.S. President Donald Trump, who said on Friday that he would soon declare the strait a U.S. territory.

"The Strait of Hormuz can be captured neither with a tweet and aircraft carriers nor by issuing orders and a stump speech. Iran is neither afraid of threats nor intimidated by displays of power," he said.

"This strait will only be closed and opened under Iran's command," he added.

Iran tightened its grip on the strait on Feb. 28, barring safe passage of vessels belonging to or affiliated with Israel and the United States following their joint strikes on Iranian territory.

"After we finish defeating Iran -- which is being very badly defeated -- pretty soon I'll be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States," Trump said during a rally in New York.