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Indefinite blockade, new pressure
The United States said it can maintain an “indefinite” naval blockade on Iranian ports while also imposing new economic measures to isolate Iran as ceasefire talks remain in deadlock.
“Indefinitely, the United States Navy can maintain a blockade like that because we’ll rotate ships in and out”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters that “Indefinitely, the United States Navy can maintain a blockade like that because we’ll rotate ships in and out, as we have, and we’ll continue to,” during a trip to Panama.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. would apply economic measures “that have never been seen in the history of economic isolation on a country,” linking them to “the continued blockade in the Strait of Hormuz that will keep anything from going in or out of the Iranian ports.”
The dispute is tied to the Strait of Hormuz, where Iran has rejected U.S. claims of control and where ship movements have declined compared with pre-war levels, with the U.S. saying it is enforcing a blockade of Iranian ports rather than preventing ships bound for non-Iranian ports from passing through the strait.
Carrier conditions stir lawmakers
As Washington pressed for indefinite blockade and more economic isolation, U.S. lawmakers raised alarm over reports of dire conditions aboard the flagship USS Abraham Lincoln, including accounts of sailors trying to jump overboard.
The Navy Times spoke on the record with one sailor’s wife, identified as Annabelle Loma, who said he had attempted to jump overboard amid what she described as “severe burnout”.
In response to those reports, Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal wrote that the aircraft carrier has now been “continuously at sea for a record length of nearly seven months,” and he raised concerns about deteriorating mental health and shortages of basic supplies.
The Hill also framed the administration’s shift toward economic warfare and blockade as a strategy to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, quoting former deputy assistant secretary of Defense William Wechsler saying the U.S. going back to war with Iran would have “significant risks.”
Two narratives over Hormuz
While the U.S. argues it can sustain the blockade indefinitely, Iran insists the Strait of Hormuz remains under its control and administration and that no vessel can pass without its consent.
““do not change the reality that the strait is closed”
Iran’s Hormuz Strait Authority affirmed that repeated claims by American officials that the strait is open “do not change the reality that the strait is closed,” and it said Hormuz will not be reopened until Iran’s terms are accepted.
In parallel, the U.S. President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that “The U.S.A. has total control over the Strait of Hormuz. I THINK WE WILL KEEP IT!” while Iran’s Basij commander Hossein Taib said the strait is “under Iran’s control and administration.”
The stakes are immediate for shipping and energy flows, with ship-tracking data showing Hormuz traffic at about 130 to 140 ships per day before the February 28 war, and then declining to 8 ships passing on Tuesday and 9 ships on Thursday, compared with an August average around 12 ships per day.
