The military command Centcom, which is responsible for the US's military operations in the Middle East, confirmed on X, backing reporting by Axios, that American warships have been operating in the strategic strait.
According to Centcom, these were two missile destroyers that participated in "a broader mission" to ensure that the Strait of Hormuz is completely free of mines laid by the Iranian regime's military.
“Today we began the process of establishing a new passage, and we will soon share this safe route with the shipping industry,” said Centcom commander Brad Cooper on X.
Trump: Will clean up the Strait
The incident comes as delegations from the United States and Iran are in Pakistan for peace talks.
“We are now beginning the process of clearing the Strait of Hormuz as a service to countries all over the world, including China, Japan, South Korea, France, Germany and many others,” Donald Trump previously wrote on Truth Social, adding:
“Incredibly, they don’t have the courage or the will to do this work themselves.”
Trump also repeated his claim that Iran's navy, air force, all 28 minelayers, and most of the country's weapons factories have been destroyed in the war. The only threat from Iran, according to Trump, is that a ship would sail into remaining Iranian mines.
Axios' sources say the American warships sailed from the Persian Gulf through the strait into the Arabian Sea and back.
Warning details
Iran denies reports that US ships have passed through the strait, according to state-controlled media.
The Fars news agency wrote on the Telegram messaging service that Iran's military issued a warning to a US destroyer approaching Hormuz from Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates, giving it 30 minutes to turn back to avoid being attacked. The ship then reportedly turned back.
The US denies that any such warning was issued, according to Axios' sources.
Since the US and Israel began bombing the country on February 28, Iran has blocked most of the oil supplies through the Strait of Hormuz.
