According to Axios, which cites an American official, several US Navy ships passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday. However, a senior Iranian military official, quoted by state television, denied these reports.
Donald Trump stated on Saturday, April 11th that the United States had started the process of “clearing the Strait of Hormuz”, at the same time when multiple American media outlets reported that US Navy ships had crossed the strait on the same day controlled by Iran.
“We are now beginning the process to clear the Strait of Hormuz as a favor to countries around the world, including China, Japan, South Korea, France, Germany, and many others,” the American president wrote on his Truth Social platform. “Incredibly, they do not have the courage or the will to do the job themselves,” he asserted.
According to Axios, which cites an American official, several US Navy ships crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday. An operation aimed at giving confidence to commercial ships to undertake the strait passage in turn, Axios stated.
Trump claims Iran is “losing”
The Wall Street Journal then added that these ships were two missile-launching destroyers of the US Navy, citing three American officials. However, a senior Iranian military official, quoted by state television, denied the information that American ships had crossed the strait.
In his message on Truth Social, Donald Trump also criticized the media for claiming that Iran is winning the war against the United States, stating that “everyone knows they are LOSING, and losing BIG”.
“The only thing in their favor is the threat that a ship might ‘hit’ one of their naval mines” in the Strait of Hormuz, he acknowledged, while claiming that “all 28 of their mine-laying ships lie at the bottom of the sea” since the American strikes.
Talks in Pakistan
Donald Trump’s message comes at the beginning of peace talks between the United States and Iran in Pakistan, where the issue of traffic in the strait will be significant.
Navigation remains hindered in this strategic maritime route for oil and global trade, almost blocked by Iran since the start of the war, whereas its reopening was a condition of the ceasefire.
Without providing details, the American president also stated that “empty tankers from many countries are all heading to the United States of America to LOAD UP on oil”.
