Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have threatened to target any ship trying to pass through key waterway
Tankers are seen off the coast of Fujairah, as Iran vows to fire on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, amid the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran, in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, March 3, 2026. PHOTO: REUTERS
The US Navy has refused near-daily requests from the shipping industry for military escorts through the Strait of Hormuz since the start of the war on Iran, saying the risk of attacks is too high for now, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The Navy’s assessments spell continued disruption to Middle East oil exports and reflect a divergence from President Donald Trump’s statements that the US is prepared to provide naval escorts whenever needed to restart regular shipments along the key waterway.
Shipping along the narrow strait has all but halted since the start of the US-Israeli war on Iran more than a week ago, preventing exports of around a fifth of the world’s oil supply and sending global oil prices surging to highs not seen since 2022.
A senior official with Iran’s Revolutionary Guards has said the strait is closed and Iran will fire on any ship trying to pass, Iranian media reported last week. Several ships have already been hit.
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The US Navy has held regular briefings with shipping and oil industry counterparts and has said during those briefings it is unable to provide escorts for the time being, three shipping industry sources familiar with the matter said.
The sources, who declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter, said the shipping industry has been making requests almost daily during the calls for naval escorts through the strait.
One of the sources said the Navy’s assessment during Tuesday’s briefing had not changed and that escorts would only be possible once the risk of attack was reduced.
The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump has said repeatedly in recent days that the United States is prepared to escort tankers through the Strait of Hormuz when necessary.
“When the time comes, the US Navy and its partners will escort tankers through the strait, if needed. I hope it’s not going to be needed, but if it’s needed, we’ll escort them right through,” he said on Monday during a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida.
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The US military has started looking at options to potentially escort ships through the strait, should it be ordered to do so, General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said on Tuesday.
“We’re looking at a range of options there,” Caine told reporters at the Pentagon.
A US official told Reuters the US military has not yet escorted any commercial ships through the strait. Earlier in the day, US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright deleted a post on X in which he said the Navy had successfully escorted one through.
While there have been some voyages through the waterway in recent days, the majority of shipping traffic remains on hold with hundreds of ships anchored.
Saudi Arabia’s Aramco, the world’s top oil exporter, said on Tuesday there would be “catastrophic consequences” for the world’s oil markets if the war on Iran continues to disrupt shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
