US President Donald Trump has said that the US has “very strong control” over the Strait of Hormuz and is closely monitoring Iran’s military activity in the strategic waterway. He claimed American forces detected and destroyed a rocket system being developed to lay mines.
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Addressing the press about the situation in Iran, Trump said that US forces had also removed mines from the strait and were continuing to move oil tankers through the key shipping route.
"We've controlled, and we are controlling the Hormuz Strait. We are bringing lots of boats out every day with millions of barrels of oil. We are, for the most part, doing it without trouble."
Trump said Iran had been attempting to rebuild radar systems and missile capabilities in the region. He claimed US surveillance had detected preparations for a rocket designed to deploy mines in the waterway.
"They were trying to rebuild their radar systems and a missile system and a mine drop. You know, we got rid of all the mines in the Hormuz Strait."
According to Trump, the US identified the rocket system before it became operational and struck it while construction was nearing completion.
"They were building it. It was almost finished, so we took it out. We saw that they were building it. We see everything that they're doing."
Trump also claimed that US forces had targeted other Iranian military assets. He portrayed American surveillance capabilities as extensive enough to track Iran's movements in near real time.
"They can't move. They can't go to the bathroom without us seeing it. So we saw that. We took it out. We took out some other things..."
He said US forces had faced limited resistance while operating around the strait. Trump claimed that Iranian forces occasionally fired drones, but said American forces had been able to intercept them.
"Every once in a while, they shoot a drone and we knock it down. But we have control, very strong control."
The Strait of Hormuz is a crucial global oil shipping route. Any disruption there can affect energy supplies and international oil markets, making control of the waterway a major strategic issue in the US-Iran confrontation.
