WASHINGTON: US forces have destroyed six Iranian boats and shot down missiles and drones fired at US Navy and commercial vessels by Tehran’s troops, a top US admiral said on Monday.
US Apache and Seahawk helicopters hit “six Iranian small boats threatening commercial shipping,” Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of US Central Command, told journalists.
US forces also “effectively engaged” all of the “missiles and drones that were fired at both us and the commercial ships,” Cooper said.
Also on Monday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News in an interview that the Iranians do not have control of the Strait of Hormuz.
Bessent said the US is opening up the vital waterway, telling Fox: “We have absolute control of the Strait.” Now would be good time for international partners to step up pressure on Iran, he said.
CENTCOM said on Monday that no American Navy ships have been hit by Iranian missiles after Iran claimed it had forced a US warship to turn back.
“US forces are supporting Project Freedom and enforcing the naval blockade on Iranian ports,” US Central Command said on its X account.
It also said two US Navy guided-missile destroyers had entered the Gulf. CENTCOM said two US-flagged merchant vessels had crossed through the strait as the US destroyers operated in the Gulf, adding: “American forces are actively assisting efforts to restore transit for commercial shipping.”
Iran fired a warning shot against a US warship to prevent its entry into Strait of Hormuz, a senior Iranian official told Reuters, but it was unclear whether there was any damage.
Iranian media earlier reported that a US navy frigate was targeted by two missiles in the Strait of Hormuz after ignoring a warning from the Iranian navy.
Iran had warned US forces on Monday not to enter the strategic waterway after President Donald Trump said the United States would “guide out” ships stranded in the Gulf by the US-Israeli war on Iran.
Trump gave few details of the plan to aid ships and their crews that have been confined to the vital waterway and are running low on food and other supplies more than two months into the conflict.
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said on Monday that the United States must reduce its demands on the Islamic republic, with negotiations stalled over ending the two-month-long Middle East war.
“At this stage, our priority is to end the war,” he said in a briefing broadcast by state television. “The other side must commit to a reasonable approach and abandon its excessive demands regarding Iran.”
Negotiations between the two countries have been stalled since a ceasefire took effect on April 8, with only one round of direct peace talks held so far.
Project Freedom
Trump said the new maritime operation, which he dubbed “Project Freedom,” was a “humanitarian” gesture for crews aboard the many ships swept up in the blockade who may be running low on food and other supplies.
“We will use best efforts to get their Ships and Crews safely out of the Strait. In all cases, they said they will not be returning until the area becomes safe for navigation,” Trump posted on Truth Social, saying operations would begin on Monday.
In response, the Iranian military’s central command said any safe passage through Hormuz must be coordinated with its forces “under all circumstances.”
“By now, the Americans should have learned that they cannot use the language of threats and force against the Iranian nation,” said Baqaei.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran has shown that it considers itself the guardian and protector of the Strait of Hormuz and this vital waterway.”
He said the strait was a “secure and safe route” for international shipping before the war.
“The international community must hold the United States and the Zionist regime accountable for imposing insecurity on this waterway and for creating problems that are being felt across the world,” he added, referring to Israel.
Baqaei told state television before Trump’s announcement of an escort plan that Tehran had submitted a 14-point proposal “focused on ending the war,” and that Washington had responded to it in a message to Pakistani mediators.
Hormuz blockage
By blocking the Strait of Hormuz, Iran has choked off major flows of oil, gas and fertilizer to the world economy, while the United States has imposed a counter-blockade on Iranian ports.
Trump in his post said he was “fully aware that my Representatives are having very positive discussions with the Country of Iran, and that these discussions could lead to something very positive for all.”
But he made no direct mention of a 14-point plan that Tehran said it put forward last week to end the war.
US Central Command said it would use guided-missile destroyers, over 100 land and sea-based aircraft, multi-domain unmanned platforms and 15,000 service members in the Hormuz effort.
As of April 29, more than 900 commercial vessels were located in the Gulf, according to maritime intelligence firm AXSMarine.
UKMTO: Strait of Hormuz threat level remains critical
Meanwhile, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said on Monday, on behalf of the Joint Maritime Information Centre, that the maritime security threat level in the Strait of Hormuz remains critical due to ongoing regional military operations, Reuters reported.
UKMTO said mariners are advised to coordinate with Omani authorities via VHF channel 16 and should consider routing via Oman territorial waters south of the traffic separation scheme, where the US has established an enhanced security area.
‘Impossible operation’
US news website Axios, citing two sources briefed on the Iranian proposal, reported that Tehran set “a one-month deadline for negotiations on a deal to reopen the strait,” lift the US naval blockade and end the war.
On Sunday, the Revolutionary Guards sought to put the onus back on Trump, saying he must choose between “an impossible operation or a bad deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
(With agencies)
