The United States is intensifying its minesweeping activities in the Strait of Hormuz, following reports that Iran has deployed additional mines in this critical oil passageway, which has been largely non-operational for several weeks.
President Trump announced on Truth Social on Thursday, “Our minesweepers are currently clearing the Strait. I am ordering this effort to continue, but at three times the current scale!”
The exact scope of the U.S. minesweeping mission in the strait remains somewhat unclear; however, at least four anti-mine vessels are presently stationed in the area.
According to a report from Axios on Thursday, U.S. officials suspect that Iran has been laying more sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital channel through which 20% of the world’s oil supply moves when operational.
Additionally, the president issued a directive to the Navy to “shoot and kill” any Iranian vessels found attempting to lay mines in the Strait of Hormuz.
“There should be no hesitation,” he emphasized.
The issue of mine clearing in the water has been a major issue â both during the war, and for the cleanup of the Strait after it.
Politico reported Thursday that British military divers are preparing to carry out mine-clearing operations in the strait as part of a potentially multinational effort, with Royal Navy specialists trained in explosive ordnance disposal ready to deploy alongside autonomous mine-hunting systems, according to the United Kingdomâs Ministry of Defense.
The UK and other European nations have spent weeks talking about a broader coalition mission to secure the waterway and restore safe navigation.
But so far, those efforts have largely remained in the planning stages.
So far, the USS Chief and Pioneer minesweepers were ordered to leave their naval base in Japan to help neutralize the Iranian mines, with the littoral combat ship USS Tulsa departing the Strait of Malacca on April 2.
All three vessels, whose location have yet to be updated by maritime trackers, feature mine countermeasure capabilities that can locate and neutralize Iran’s mines.
The USS Canberra, another littoral combat ship, is in the Gulf, but it’s unclear if it has gone into the Strait of Hormuz to clear the mines.
Along with the ships, the US has also deployed underwater drones into the Strait of Hormuz to take out Iran’s mines, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Fully clearing the strait, however, could take up to six months, the Pentagon allegedly told Congress, according to the Washington Post. The Defense Department dismissed the report as “false.”
The Trump administration has suggested that there are only a few mines in the strait that are more a nuisance than an actual threat, but cargo ships and tankers have yet to brave the waters over the risks.
