WASHINGTON, July 15 — The Trump administration has abandoned a proposed fee for U.S. naval operations in the Persian Gulf, and is now expected to seek alternative cost-sharing mechanisms for the American military presence there.
The decision to scrap the fee, which had been under internal discussion for months, opens the door to a range of other options. Among them: bilateral defense agreements with Gulf states, modeled on the 2023 U.S.-Saudi security pact, or increased contributions to the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF), the multinational naval partnership that patrols regional waters.
The Pentagon’s 2026 budget request, due in April 2025, may include a dedicated line item for Gulf security costs. Those costs are currently estimated at $15 billion annually, a figure that has long been a point of contention within the administration between fiscal hawks and national security aides.
Congress is likely to weigh in. The Senate Armed Services Committee could hold hearings on the issue, giving lawmakers a platform to question the administration’s strategy for sharing the financial burden of protecting oil shipping lanes and countering Iranian naval activity.
Iran welcomes the reversal, but demands more
Iran’s government, through its Foreign Ministry, welcomed the reversal as a “positive step.” But the statement came with a familiar condition: Tehran reiterated its longstanding demand for a full U.S. withdrawal from the region.
No timeline for a replacement policy has been announced. That leaves the Pentagon, the State Department, and the National Security Council working without a public deadline, even as the budget clock ticks toward April.
The fee had been floated as a way to recoup some of the billions the U.S. spends annually to guarantee freedom of navigation in the Gulf, a waterway that carries about a fifth of the world’s oil. Gulf Arab states, while privately acknowledging their dependence on the U.S. security umbrella, had pushed back hard against the idea of a direct charge, arguing it would look like a tax on their sovereignty.
The 2023 U.S.-Saudi security pact, which the administration now sees as a template, involved a package of technology transfers, joint exercises, and commitments to defend the kingdom against external attack — all without a per-vessel fee. Similar deals with the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Bahrain could follow.
What comes next
On the ground in Washington, aides describe a scramble to lock in bilateral arrangements before the next budget cycle forces hard choices. The $15 billion annual price tag for Gulf security operations is unlikely to shrink, and without a fee or new agreements, the cost will continue to fall entirely on U.S. taxpayers.
The Senate Armed Services Committee hearings, if they happen, will provide a public airing of the debate. Some senators have already expressed skepticism about any arrangement that does not require Gulf states to pay more. Others worry that pushing too hard could alienate allies at a time when Iran’s naval provocations are on the rise.
By nightfall, the administration had offered no further details. The White House press office did not respond to a request for comment on the timeline for alternative cost-sharing mechanisms.
For now, the U.S. Navy continues its patrols. The tankers keep moving. And in Tehran, diplomats are watching — waiting to see whether the “positive step” of scrapping the fee leads to anything more.
