The US treasury secretary has told Sky News that the US Navy will be escorting oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei said on Thursday he plans to use the effective closure of the strategic waterway, through which 20% of the world’s oil supplies passes, as leverage against the US and Israel.
Speaking to Sky News’ Wilfred Frost, Scott Bessent said: “My belief is that as soon as it is militarily possible, the US Navy, perhaps with an international coalition, will be escorting vessels through.”
Iran’s bombardment of shipping traffic and energy infrastructure in the Persian Gulf had earlier pushed oil back above $100 a barrel, with stocks dropping worldwide on Thursday, Sky News reported.
Bessent added: “There are, in fact, tankers coming through now, Iranian tankers, I believe some Chinese flag tankers have come through. So we know that they have not mined the straits.”
The UK had earlier said that Iran has most likely begun laying mines in the strait. U.S. President Donald Trump threatened Iran with consequences if it does indeed lay mines.
In the interview, Bessent also mentioned that the war has so far cost the US around $11bn.
The U.S. and Israel launched what they described as a pre-emptive strike against Iran on February 28, claiming that Tehran was developing a nuclear weapon and posed a threat—an allegation Iran has denied. In response, Iran launched counterattacks, firing missiles and drones at Israel, as well as at U.S. assets and other targets across the Middle East.
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