Illustrative image. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Nathan K. Serpico/Released)
Several United States Navy warships crossed the Strait of Hormuz on April 11, Axios reported, though Iran denied this and threatened to attack any unauthorized vessels in the strategic waterway.
An American official told the news website that the move was not coordinated with the Iranian Navy and was the first time U.S. Navy ships made such a move since the start of the war.
The warships crossed the waterway from east to west to the Persian Gulf, and then made their way back through the strait to the Arabian Sea, according to the official.
A separate report by The Wall Street Journal confirmed, citing three different American officials, that two U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyers passed through the waterway without facing any issue in what was described as a “freedom-of-navigation mission.”
One of the warships that took part in the mission was identified based on maritime traffic data as the USS Michael Murphy.
Soon after, a senior Iranian military official denied the reported crossing of U.S. warships on the state TV of the Islamic Republic.
The TV additionally released a warning that any U.S. warships will be attacked within 30 minutes if it attempts to cross the Strait. It also reported that one warship turned back after receiving the warning.
The reports came out after President Donald Trump said that the U.S. has started to clear the Strait of Hormuz and that all of Iran’s minelaying ships have been sunk.
“We’re now starting the process of clearing out the Strait of Hormuz as a favor to Countries all over the World, including China, Japan, South Korea, France, Germany, and many others,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Earlier in the day, an American official told The New York Times that Iran cannot reopen the Strait of Hormuz for shipping because it’s unable to find and remove all the mines it placed in the waterway throughout the war.
As these developments were taking place, talks between Iranian and American officials began in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan.
Iranian TV reported that the Islamic Republic’s delegation has set out its red lines to Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, adding that these concerned the Strait of Hormuz, the release of Iran’s blocked assets, the payment of war reparations and a ceasefire to be enforced across the region.
The agenda specifically includes the acknowledgment of Iran’s authority over the Strait of Hormuz, where the Islamic Republic aims to collect transit fees and control access. The strait is a chokepoint for about 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to reopen the Strait of Hormuz for force, although the U.S. has done very little towards achieving this goal before the two-week ceasefire was agreed on. The waterway remains under de facto Iranian control, and the latest U.S. Navy mission, successful or not, does not change this fact.
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not that anyone wasn’t aware of the game plan by the u.$. oil corporation(s) before the iran war that de-dollarization was nearing it’s finish… but the 33 minute video by richard medhurst labeled “the petrogas dollar-the secret us strategy behind the iran war” makes logical sense since the demolition of nordstream ii and the buy-in (through force) of the eu peanut gallery. towards lng tanker piracy thereafter… now the only question remains…
…if there are no international standards of law anymore, and maritime piracy has replaced it -then why haven’t the briics nation(s) left the un yet?…
because they are actually zionist stooges.
so the act of piracy on the high seas by western naval forces will be sufficient for the countries getting hi-jacked?…. and more importantly russia, china and iran will remain loyal defacto un members in the face of said “looting operations” and destruction of their oil and gas by the u$ual $uspects???….
…russia should have left the un after the maidan in 2014 with a formal statement that in good conscience it could no longer remain within the un given the acts of terrorism by the u.$, u.k. and i$rael in the overthrow of that legitimate government. i believe had they done that with a formal announcement and arrangement for standing up the briics -then, the prc and iran would have followed them…
southfront reporting is so subtly biased western propaganda.
“a separate report by the wall street journal “confirmed”,”
“a senior iranian military official “denied” the reported crossing”
do you see the suggestive wording?
agreed. ….
my homosexual shoe shine boy bob like to lick vanya surgically created peniz
all these reports of us ships crossing the strait have the same source…washingtub. keep the salt handy for its next report. meanwhile bungled operations are costing the us taxpayer several small fortunes. there is also a loss in faith amongst its vassals which will fester into a future distrust of us lip service. still, i hear the shitehouse ballroom is coming on just fine. warmongers always need a ballroom to parade around in.
zločinec a terorista trump sa zase chvastá. klame až sa mu od huby práši. svetu mier a mysleniu zdar.
those who threatens too much but don’t do a shit – nobody will listen to them anymore.