Hegseth: US can maintain blockade of Iranian ports indefinitely

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said the United States can maintain a blockade against Iranian ports indefinitely by rotating warships in and out of the region as needed.

“We can maintain the blockade for as long as necessary. Indefinitely, the US Navy can maintain such a blockade because we will continue to rotate ships in and out of the region,” Hegseth told reporters in Panama on Thursday.

Hegseth said this capability is supported by the strength of the US Navy, which he claimed no other country in the world possesses.

“No other country or navy in the world has the ability to form a steel wall like the US Navy, nor the willingness to use it as we have done,” he said.

According to Hegseth, Iran knows that it cannot exit or enter through the blockaded area and that there is no time limit on the imposition of the blockade.

Previously, US President Donald Trump said the United States had “full control” over the Strait of Hormuz and pledged to maintain a naval blockade of the strategic waterway.

“The false US claims regarding the normal passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz, which reflect the impotence and confusion of that country’s military, are nothing but baseless lies and falsehoods,” read a statement from Iran’s military command broadcast by Iranian state broadcaster IRIB.

The US and Iran had previously agreed to a Pakistan-mediated ceasefire in April and then signed an agreement on 17 June to begin negotiations towards a final deal.

However, the negotiations stalled due to differences over security guarantees and freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, one of the key strategic routes for global energy supplies and trade.

On 8-24 July, the US and Iran exchanged attacks once again. Washington struck a number of targets in Iran, while Tehran retaliated by attacking US facilities, infrastructure and military assets in several Arab countries, including Jordan, Bahrain and Kuwait.