US President Donald Trump has once again called on China, Japan and other countries to help ensure the reopening and security of the Strait of Hormuz amid ongoing tensions with Iran.
Speaking at a press conference in Washington, D.C., Trump said US forces were rapidly dismantling Iran’s defense systems and had sunk boats allegedly involved in laying naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz.
He noted that only about one percent of US oil shipments pass through the strait, while a much larger share of oil for countries like China and Japan travels through the strategic waterway.
Trump said around 90 percent of China’s oil imports and 95 percent of Japan’s oil imports pass through the Strait of Hormuz, along with about 35 percent of South Korea’s oil, urging these countries to send naval fleets to help secure the route.
The US president claimed that Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks had dropped by about 90 percent, adding that more than 100 Iranian naval vessels had been destroyed and the country’s naval forces severely weakened. He said over 7,000 commercial and military targets had been struck in Iran.
Trump also stated that US forces had destroyed 30 vessels allegedly used to deploy mines in the Strait of Hormuz, though he acknowledged it could not be confirmed with certainty whether Iran had actually laid mines there.
He further claimed that Iran’s naval and air defenses had been effectively neutralized, including the destruction of multiple military targets on Kharg Island. However, he added that Iranian oil facilities had not yet been targeted, though “all options remain open.”
Trump criticized some countries for not showing enough enthusiasm in assisting US efforts in the strait, saying the United States had protected many of them from external threats for decades.
The US president also said Iran had expressed interest in negotiations but that Washington was not ready for talks at the moment. He added that Iran’s nuclear program had suffered a “decisive blow” through an operation he referred to as “Operation Midnight Hammer.”
Trump also claimed that he had warned about Osama bin Laden before the September 11 attacks, suggesting the tragedy might have been prevented if his warnings had been heeded.
