The US Central Command has warned that it will strike vessels involved in laying mines in self-defence, amid rising tensions in the Strait of Hormuz.
According to multiple media reports, CENTCOM, through a notice issued by the Joint Maritime Information Center, published an advisory to mariners operating in the strategically vital waterway. The notice warned that mine-laying activity could trigger direct military action by US forces.
The development comes after Donald Trump in a post on Truth Social said that Iran must agree that they will never have a nuclear weapon or bomb, while also demanding the immediate removal of any remaining naval mines in the strategically crucial waterway.
“The Hormuz Strait must be immediately open, no tolls, for unrestricted shipping traffic, in both directions,” Trump wrote.
ALSO READ: 'Hormuz Must Be Immediately Opened': Trump Lists Demands Amid Stalemate Over Iran Deal
He claimed that US naval forces had already detonated “numerous” underwater mines and said Tehran would complete the removal of any that remained.
Trump also announced that what he described as an unprecedented naval blockade would now be lifted, allowing ships stranded in the Strait to begin returning home. “Ships caught in the Strait due to our amazing and unprecedented Naval Blockade, which will now be lifted, may start the process of ‘heading home!'” he said.
Meanwhile, Iran signalled that diplomatic engagement with Washington remains inconclusive. According to multiple media reports, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said messages were still being exchanged between Tehran and Washington, but “no final understanding has been reached.”
Baqaei described the US naval blockade as “illegal from the start” and said Tehran would wait to see whether Washington actually lifts the restrictions or whether the announcement was “just publicity.”
He also warned that Iran and Oman would need to establish new mechanisms to safeguard shipping movement through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most critical energy transit chokepoints.
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