US Military: United States Will Not Allow Strait of Hormuz to Close
The United States military warned in response to Iran’s threat to close the Strait of Hormuz that this passage in the Persian Gulf must remain open to oil tankers, and the US and its allies are prepared in this regard.
Captain Bill Urban, one of the spokespersons of the US Central Command headquarters, said on Wednesday, July 4, to the Associated Press: “The US Navy and its allies in the region are ready to establish freedom of navigation and free flow of commerce wherever international law permits”.
Hassan Rouhani, the President of Iran, one day before these statements, in a meeting with a group of Iranians residing in Switzerland, referring to American pressures to stop Iran’s oil exports, stated that if Washington manages to do so, it will also face the consequences.
He stated: “Americans have claimed that they want to completely stop Iran’s oil exports. They do not understand what this means, because it makes no sense for Iran’s oil not to be exported while the region’s oil is exported”.
These remarks, which were interpreted as closing the Strait of Hormuz, led to praise from Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, who wrote in a letter to Mr. Rouhani that he kisses his hand.
Mr. Soleimani wrote in his letter: “What was reflected from your statements in the media, stating that if the oil of the Islamic Republic of Iran is not exported, there is no guarantee for the export of the entire region’s oil…is a matter of pride and honor”.
Meanwhile, Brigadier General Ismail Koushari, the deputy commander of the Tharallah headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, while supporting Hassan Rouhani’s statements, more explicitly said: “If it is decided to prevent Iran’s oil exports, we will not allow oil to leave for other parts of the world through the Strait of the Persian Gulf.”
Ismail Koushari emphasized: “Twenty percent of the world’s oil passes through the Strait of the Persian Gulf and the world needs this oil, and any hostile action by America will entail enormous costs for them.”
These statements come as America, by pressuring oil buyers, is seeking to reduce Iran’s exports to zero and not preventing the movement of ships carrying Iranian oil.
The Strait of Hormuz is one of the most important shipping routes for oil tankers in the world and is considered the passage through which approximately one-third of the world’s crude oil exports pass. Iran has repeatedly threatened to close this passage as tensions with the United States have escalated. However, analysts have previously warned that given the US military presence in the region, such action would lead to military confrontation between the two countries if it occurs.
The Donald Trump administration in May announced that by withdrawing the United States from the nuclear agreement with Iran, it would resume sanctions against Tehran.
During this time, reports citing US State Department officials have been published stating that Washington is trying to reduce Iran’s oil exports to zero.
Source: Radio Farda
