US official: ‘Not true’ Navy successfully escorted oil tanker through Strait of Hormuz

Energy Secretary Chris Wright posted on social media Tuesday saying the U.S. Navy had escorted an oil tanker through the Strait of Hormuz; the post was later deleted.

“Skip to Main Content US official: ‘Not true’ Navy successfully escorted oil tanker through Strait of Hormuz Energy Secretary Chris Wright claimed in a now-deleted social media post that the Navy escorted an oil tanker through the Strait of Hormuz”

POLITICO

A U.S. official told POLITICO before White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt’s briefing that Wright’s post was “not true.”

The Department of Energy said the post was deleted after it was “determined to be incorrectly captioned by Department of Energy staff.”

The DOE spokesperson did not answer questions about who wrote the caption or how the mistake was introduced.

In remarks in Colorado on Monday Wright referenced a tanker passing through the Strait but did not mention naval escorts.

Leavitt confirmed during a briefing that the Navy has not escorted any vessels “at this time,” while stressing the option remains on the table if President Donald Trump decides to use it.

Leavitt said the post was “taken down pretty quickly” and referred further questions to the Energy Department.

“Skip to Main Content US official: ‘Not true’ Navy successfully escorted oil tanker through Strait of Hormuz Energy Secretary Chris Wright claimed in a now-deleted social media post that the Navy escorted an oil tanker through the Strait of Hormuz”

POLITICO

A DOE statement said the administration is closely monitoring the situation and that the U.S. military is drawing up additional options to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, including the potential for Navy escorts.

Crude prices tumbled below $80 a barrel on Wright’s announcement before jumping again after the post was deleted.

“Skip to Main Content US official: ‘Not true’ Navy successfully escorted oil tanker through Strait of Hormuz Energy Secretary Chris Wright claimed in a now-deleted social media post that the Navy escorted an oil tanker through the Strait of Hormuz”

POLITICO

One vessel, the Marshall Islands-flagged bulk carrier Star Maria, passed through the Strait of Hormuz from West to East on Tuesday, commodities research firm Kpler told POLITICO.

The U.S. announced plans to escort tankers through the Strait last week but had not provided details or a timeline for the effort.

The article says Iran has continued to threaten vessels passing through the strait, and that U.S. intelligence has assessed it is taking steps to place mines in the waterway; the sentence in the article appears incomplete and provides no further detail.

Administration officials indicated military assets were tied up at the time taking out Iran’s offensive capabilities.

President Donald Trump said Monday that the Navy was prepared to launch the escorts but he did not expect them to be necessary.

“Skip to Main Content US official: ‘Not true’ Navy successfully escorted oil tanker through Strait of Hormuz Energy Secretary Chris Wright claimed in a now-deleted social media post that the Navy escorted an oil tanker through the Strait of Hormuz”

POLITICO

Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Dan Caine said military officials had yet to finalize plans and added: “If tasked to escort, we’ll look at the range of options to set the military conditions to be able to do that, and then, like we always do with every potential mission, come to the secretary and the president with both, what are the resources required, what is the command and control required, and what are the risks, and how do we mitigate those risks?”

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, seized on Wright’s post to accuse the U.S. of market manipulation, saying, “U.S. officials are posting fake news to manipulate markets.”