US Warships Transit Strait of Hormuz as Trump Announces Clearing Operation

Kathmandu. The United States has announced that it has begun 'clearing' the strategic waterway, with two US warships passing through the Strait of Hormuz for the first time since the conflict with Iran began.

The US Navy guided-missile destroyers passed through the strait without incident, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing three US officials.

The US media outlet noted that the transit was conducted without coordination with Tehran officials. "We are now beginning the process of removing obstructions in the Strait of Hormuz," Trump stated on his Truth Social platform. "This is a 'favor' to countries like China, Japan, and France. They do not have the courage or the will to do this work themselves."

He also stated that Iran has 'suffered great losses' in the conflict. President Trump acknowledged that the route, which carries about 20 percent of the world's crude oil, remains dangerous due to Iranian explosives planted in the strategic strait.

Trump wrote, "There is still a danger that ships could be attacked in the narrow sea lane." Other US officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the report by AFP.

Since the United States and Israel began bombing Iran on February 28, Tehran has effectively blocked the key route for its enemies off the Iranian coast, although reopening the strait has been a key condition in ceasefire talks that began on Saturday.

According to Iranian media, Iranian and US officials began talks in Pakistan on Saturday in an effort to end the conflict that has plunged the Middle East into violence and shocked the global economy.

In an earlier post, President Trump stated that 'empty tankers from around the world' were heading to the US to purchase oil.