The president of the United States, Donald Trump, has communicated this Thursday that he has given direct instructions to the U.S. Navy to open fire on any vessel that places naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz. At the same time, he has stressed that Washington is working "at this moment" on the removal of the mines that have already been deployed in this strategic maritime route.
"I have ordered the U.S. Navy to shoot and eliminate any boat (...) that lays mines in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz," he stated in a message disseminated on social media. In that same text, he emphasized that "all" Iranian Navy ships, "the 159," are "at the bottom of the sea" as a consequence of the offensive launched on February 28 alongside Israel against the Asian country.
"Furthermore, our deminers are clearing the strait at this very moment. Therefore, I order that activities continue, but tripling their level," added the US leader, in a context of maximum tension on this key passage for global energy trade.
Trump's announcement came just hours after the Pentagon described the possibility of the Strait of Hormuz closure lasting six months as "completely unacceptable." This warning followed the publication of an article in 'The Washington Post' newspaper which, citing an analysis by the Department of Defense itself, estimated that this period of time would be necessary to complete the removal of naval mines placed by Iran.
Washington's move is framed within an already delicate scenario, just one day after a two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran became public —agreed on April 8 and extended by Trump on Tuesday—. In that context, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard urged ships transiting the area to follow "alternative routes" to avoid possible minefields, accompanying its recommendation with the dissemination of a detailed map.
Later, Iranian authorities announced on April 17 that they were lifting their restrictions on maritime passage in the strait after a temporary ceasefire was confirmed in Lebanon the day before. However, Tehran assured that it was re-imposing said limitations after Trump responded —after initially praising the Iranian gesture— that US forces would maintain their blockade of the maritime route with the aim of sustaining the closure of Iranian ports.
Trump himself confirmed on Tuesday the extension of the temporary ceasefire at the request of Pakistan, a country that acts as a mediator in diplomatic talks, although he insisted that the naval blockade will remain active. This siege, along with the recent assault and seizure of Iranian ships in the area, has been one of the arguments used by Tehran to be absent from a recent meeting in Islamabad, considering that these operations violate the ceasefire and hinder the progress of the dialogue.