Donald Trump has called for US forces to open a new front in Iran as jets pound Iranian ships in an all-out battle to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Global fuel supplies have been under intense pressure because of Iran´s stranglehold on the strait, a strategic waterway through which a fifth of the world’s oil is transported.
American forces have sent low-flying A-10 Warthogs and Apache attack helicopters to shoot at Iranian ships and drones.
The Pentagon is trying to nullify danger from Iranian weapons and reopen the strait, which has only seen about 90 ships cross since the war began.
The belief is that US military warships could act as an escort for ships to get in and out of the region through the strait.
Air Force general and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan ‘Raizin’ Caine said the mission is taking the attack ships to the southern Iranian coast.
‘The A-10 Warthog is now engaged across the southern flank, targeting fast-attack watercraft in the Strait of Hormuz,’ he said Tuesday.
He added that the Apaches have ‘joined the fight on the southern flank’ and said that some allies have used them to ‘handle one-way attack drones.’
Strikes are being conducted against Iranian military targets by US forces
CENTCOM says US is attacking targets that ‘threaten international shipping in and near the Strait of Hormuz’
Air Force general and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan ‘Raizin’ Caine said the mission is taking the attack ships to the southern Iranian coast
However, The Wall Street Journal reported that it could take weeks for the US to clear out the strait to get it operating closer to normal again.
At the same time, the US has been striking Iranian bases and IRGC cruise missile batteries, taking out over 120 of the country’s naval ships, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said Thursday.
Iran has responded by using small, unmanned boats with explosives, projectiles and airborne drones to attack enemy ships.
However, many of America’s allies confirmed they would be unwilling to join Trump’s proposed coalition to keep the strait secure.
Six major international powers said Thursday they were ready ‘to contribute to’ ensuring safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, though three stressed that any initiative would take place post-ceasefire.
Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the Netherlands said Thursday they were ready ‘to contribute to appropriate efforts to ensure safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz’.
The grouping said they ‘welcome the commitment of nations who are engaging in preparatory planning’, as they condemned ‘in the strongest terms recent attacks by Iran on unarmed commercial vessels in the Gulf’.
American forces have sent low-flying A-10 Warthogs to shoot at Iranian ships and drones
Caine said that Apache helicopters have ‘joined the fight on the southern flank’ and said that some allies have used them to ‘handle one-way attack drones’
But Italy, Germany and France made clear later Thursday that they were not talking about any immediate military help, but rather a potential multilateral initiative after a ceasefire.
European leaders have demanded the reopening of the strait and a moratorium on strikes on water and energy infrastructure in the Middle East as they met in Brussels to grapple with rising energy prices caused by the war.
All heads of the 27 European Union nations known collectively as the European Council issued a joint statement Thursday calling for the stabilization of energy shipments and ‘de-escalation and maximum restraint’ from warring parties.
President Trump said that he and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi would be discussing in their meeting Japan´s level of support for the US in the Iran war, saying, ‘They are really stepping up to the plate.’ He did not offer details.
The president later said that much of the oil Japan relies on passes through the Strait of Hormuz and said, ‘so that´s a big reason to step up. He also mentioned U.S. spending in Japan and the number of troops it has stationed there.
‘I expect Japan to step up, you know, because we have that kind of relationship,’ Trump said.
After her meeting with Trump, Takaichi told reporters that they agreed that ensuring the safety of the Strait of Hormuz was of the utmost importance, but she gave Trump a detailed explanation of the actions Japan can and cannot take under its law.
About 90 ships including oil tankers have crossed the Strait of Hormuz since the outset of the war with Iran and it is still exporting millions of barrels of oil at a time when the waterway has been effectively closed, according to maritime and trade data platforms.
President Trump said that he and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (pictured left) would be discussing in their meeting Japan´s level of support for the US in the Iran war, saying, ‘They are really stepping up to the plate.’ He did not offer details
Iran has still managed to export well above 16 million barrels of oil since the beginning of March, trade data and analytics platform Kpler estimated. Due to Western sanctions and associated risks, China has been the biggest buyer of Iranian oil.
More than one-fifth of the 89 vessels were believed to be Iran-affiliated, while Chinese and Greece affiliated ships are among the rest, it said.
Other vessels also have been getting through.
The Pakistan-flagged crude oil tanker Karachi, controlled by the Pakistan National Shipping Corp., passed through the strait on Sunday, Lloyd’s List Intelligence said.
Shariq Amin, a spokesman at the Pakistan Port Trust, refused to confirm or deny which route the MT Karachi had used but he said the ship would soon safely reach Pakistan.
The India-flagged liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers Shivalik and Nanda Devi, both owned by state-owned Shipping Corp. of India, also traveled through the strait around March 13 or 14, according to Lloyd’s List Intelligence. LPG is used as a primary cooking fuel by millions of Indian households.
Oil prices have jumped more than 40 percent to above $100 per barrel since the Iran war began, and Iran has threatened it won’t allow ‘even a single liter of oil’ destined for the US, and Israel and their allies to pass through.
To try to stabilize oil prices, the US said it was allowing Iranian oil tankers to cross the strait.
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (pictured) said he would heed the president’s warning to not go after Iranian oil infrastructure in the region after Trump criticized the strike on the South Pars gas field
About 90 ships including oil tankers have crossed the Strait of Hormuz since the outset of the war with Iran and it is still exporting millions of barrels of oil at a time when the waterway has been effectively closed, according to maritime and trade data platforms
‘The Iranian ships have been getting out already, and we’ve let that happen to supply the rest of the world,’ Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in an interview with CNBC on Monday.
Meanwhile, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would heed the president’s warning to not go after Iranian oil infrastructure in the region after Trump criticized the strike on the South Pars gas field.
The prime minister insisted that Israel ‘acted alone’ and agreed to Trump’s request that Israel hold off on any further attack on Iran’s giant gas field.
The prime minister also sought to downplay any disagreements between him and Trump.
‘It’s been said that for 40 years I’ve been saying that Iran is a danger to Israel and a danger to the world. That is true,’ Netanyahu said at a news conference in Jerusalem. ‘You know who else said that? President Trump.’
Netanyahu later added: ‘Look, I don’t think any two leaders have been as coordinated as President Trump and I. He’s the leader. I’m his ally. America is the leader.’
The president made headlines late Wednesday night in clarifying that he had no say in the attack on South Pars.
During an Oval Office meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on Thursday, Trump told reporters that he neither agreed with nor approved of Israel’s attack on the world’s largest gas field.
‘I told him, ‘Don’t do that,” Trump said of Netanyahu’s decision to strike.
‘We get along great. It’s coordinated, but on occasion he’ll do something. And if I don’t like it — and so we’re not doing that anymore.’
Two people familiar with the matter who were not authorized to comment publicly told the Associated Press that the US was made aware of Israel’s plan ahead of the attack.
One of the people said Israel’s targets are being coordinated with the US.
Top US administration officials on Thursday made the case that Trump is simpatico with Netanyahu, but is ultimately guided in his Iran strategy by what he believes is in the US national security interest.
The US air campaign has focused on decimating Iran’s missile program, pummeling its already beleaguered nuclear program and destroying its navy.
Israel, meanwhile, has carried out one high-level assassination after another as it looks to topple the Islamic authority that has led the country since 1979.
