On 21 February, U.S. President Donald Trump posted to his Truth Social platform with a pointed announcement: he would team up with Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry to dispatch a large medical vessel to Greenland, citing the plight of "many people who are sick and not being taken care of there." Trump claimed the ship was already en route. However, his plan was rejected by Denmark, so was his claim that sick people in Greenland were not taken care of.
The reality is, anyone who has been tracking Chinese diplomacy over the past year would recognize this playbook instantly. On 5 September 2025, the Chinese Navy's hospital ship Silk Road Ark departed Quanzhou, Fujian Province, bound for the South Pacific and Latin America to execute Mission Harmony 2025 — a sustained, documented humanitarian deployment that Trump's announcement conspicuously mirrors.
The results have been concrete and verifiable: officers and crew have delivered medical services to communities across South America, with cumulative outpatient visits reaching 22,000.
According to a CCTV report dated the 22nd, the Silk Road Ark has been navigating the Eastern Pacific for over 20 consecutive days. During the Lunar New Year holiday, the ship's command overhauled its food storage and temperature-controlled preservation systems — all to ensure officers and crew could sit down to a fresh, nutritious New Year's Eve dinner. The kitchen team, it turns out, had a few tricks up their sleeves.
Ingenuity in the Pacific
Make no mistake: ocean voyages present brutal logistical challenges, and fresh soy products are among the first casualties of long resupply intervals. So squad leader Ban Hangyuan — nicknamed "Tofu Sergeant" by his crewmates — improvised. He soaked soybeans, ground them into a slurry, boiled and filtered the liquid, then used purified seawater to slowly coagulate the curd. After pressing it into moulds and letting it set for an hour, smooth, silky-white "Silk Road Ark"-brand "seawater tofu" came straight out of the mould — and promptly became the most popular signature dishes among the crew.
Though the ship sailed 13 time zones from home, a spirit of reunion filled every corner of the vessel. On New Year's Eve, the dining hall was decked with lanterns and streamers, warm with the full flavour of the season. A steaming banquet — ten auspicious dishes, balanced between meat and vegetables and rich in nutrition — was served hot, and the crew raised their glasses in toast.
To date, the Silk Road Ark has visited six countries — Nauru, Fiji, Tonga, Jamaica, Barbados, and Brazil — with technical port calls in Nicaragua and Uruguay. The cumulative tally: 22,148 outpatient consultations, 2,417 surgeries, 120 inpatient admissions, and 12 medical exchange sessions. Each stop has deepened China's friendly medical cooperation with the countries visited.
Deep Throat
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Trump's attacks on Iran have now stretched into a month, yet tensions show no sign of easing. International fuel supplies face severe disruption as the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, sending oil prices soaring.
Trump has deployed every rhetorical tool at his disposal—even renaming the waterway the 'Trump Strait'. He’s pursued both carrots and sticks to force a quick deal with Iran on reopening. Iran, however, stands firm, signaling deep disagreement between the two sides over ceasefire terms.
Strait of Hormuz
On March 27, Trump spoke at a summit and called the Strait of Hormuz the ' Strait of Trump,' insisting ' they have to open it up, the Strait of Trump — I mean, Hormuz.' He half-joked about the slip, mocking the fake news would claim he'd misspoken, and quipped that such 'accidents' rarely happen to him.
Trump speaks at a summit, calling the Strait of Hormuz the 'Trump Strait'
'Strait of Trump': US president says Iran must open key waterway
Trump claimed Iran had previously denied participating in talks but is now allowing tankers through the Strait of Hormuz to 'apologized for something they said.' He revealed Iran is actively negotiating and desperate for a deal, noting 'and two days later, they admitted it.' According to Trump, Iran initially proposed allowing 8 tankers, then added 2 more.
As the US-Iran conflict drags on, the Strait of Hormuz has been effectively shut for nearly four weeks, driving international oil and gasoline prices sharply higher. On March 26, average US gasoline prices hit roughly $3.98 per gallon—about $1 more than a month before the conflict erupted. Trump had threatened Iran with 'complete destruction' of its power plants unless it fully reopened the Strait within days, but later extended the deadline by 10 days 'as negotiations with Iran continue,' pushing the new deadline to April 6.
With the US-Iran conflict ongoing, the Strait of Hormuz has been effectively closed for nearly four weeks, driving international oil and gasoline prices sharply higher.
To downplay the impact of rising oil prices, Trump has recently been touting "productive" conversations with Iranian leaders, but this was denied by the Iranian side, stating they are reviewing the ceasefire proposal presented by the US but have not engaged in any negotiations with the United States.
Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi said on the 25th that the Strait of Hormuz isn't completely closed and countries not involved in military action against Iran can transit with Iranian coordination. But that same day, Trump threatened to open the "Trump Strait." Iran's Mehr News Agency reported that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps issued a statement saying the Strait of Hormuz remains "closed" to vessels and has turned away three container ships.
The statement detailed what happened after Trump falsely claimed the strait was open. Three container ships of different nationalities tried to enter the "Tehran toll booth " that morning. After receiving warnings from the Revolutionary Guard Navy, they were forced to turn back. The Revolutionary Guard emphasized the Strait of Hormuz is currently closed. Any vessels heading to or coming from ports of the United States, Israel, and their supporters are prohibited from passage. Attempts to transit without authorization face "severe measures."
The Revolutionary Guard emphasizes that the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, with all vessels bound for or departing from US, Israeli, and allied ports barred from passage.
According to Reuters, on March 26 Trump claimed in a cabinet meeting that he received a "gift" from Iran. He said that Iran, to demonstrate sincerity in negotiations, had allowed 10 oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Trump used this to validate his earlier claim that Iran is participating in negotiations and to suggest his judgment was correct.
Trump linked the release of tankers to Iran's acknowledgment of negotiations. Analysts see a clear pattern: Trump is trying to stabilize oil price volatility from the past month. He's extending deadlines to hold the line while downplaying market reactions by repeatedly calling dialogue with Iran "productive." Iran, meanwhile, has adopted a "you're anxious, I'm not" posture. It continues denying direct negotiations with the United States and reaffirms through Revolutionary Guard statements that the strait remains closed. It's using the Strait of Hormuz as leverage without signaling any willingness to open it.
On the same day, the United States and Iran released starkly conflicting accounts of strait conditions and negotiation progress. One side signaled that tanker releases and talks were moving forward in tandem; the other took concrete action to block vessel passage and reaffirmed its blockade stance. As global oil prices swung on the back of strait tensions, the divergent messaging made it harder for observers to gauge actual transit conditions and the direction of US-Iran relations.
