A French-owned container vessel and a liquefied natural gas tanker have successfully passed through the Strait of Hormuz after weeks of Iran halting traffic through the route.
The Malta-flagged CMA CGM Kribi en route to Western Europe crossed the strait on Friday, according to vessel tracking data. It is the first Western cargo ship to exit the body of water since the conflict began in late February.
Similarly, the Panama-registered Sohar LNG tanker headed toward Oman after transiting the narrow strait on Friday. It arrived at the Omani capital of Muscat along the coast, becoming the first LNG tanker to safely pass through the water during wartime.
These events could signal one of two scenarios: Either Iran is losing its military capability to attack commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz or the Islamic regime is holding off on the attack due to the renewed peace talks.
President Donald Trump and War Secretary Pete Hegseth have strongly pushed the idea that the U.S. military is battering Iran so hard that most of its military capabilities are gone. The vast majority of Iran’s naval vessels and aerial systems have been destroyed, according to the Pentagon. Intelligence reports show that many of its missile launchers and one-way drones are still in operation, according to CNN.
During his address to the nation Wednesday night, Trump said Operation Epic Fury will see Iran heavily bombed in the next two to three weeks, with electric-generating plants as the main targets if no deal to end the war is reached. A day later, Trump posted that the U.S. is setting its sights on destroying Iran’s bridges before targeting the nation’s energy facilities.
Earlier Thursday, he shared a video of the tallest bridge in the Middle East that was damaged following U.S.-Israel airstrikes near Tehran.
Trump has made reopening the Strait of Hormuz a key priority of Operation Epic Fury as global oil prices and domestic gas prices surge due to the strait’s closure. He has called on other countries to help the United States secure the strait, but those nations have taken a more diplomatic approach to the conflict.
MACRON DOUBTS US ABILITY TO OPEN STRAIT OF HORMUZ BY FORCE
France, for one, does not support using military force to reopen the key maritime lane. This week, French President Emmanuel Macron called the idea “unrealistic” and argued it would only “expose all those who go through the strait to risks from the [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps] but also ballistic missiles.” It remains to be seen if more commercial vessels can safely pass through the strait.
Trump has threatened to pull the U.S. from NATO if member states continue refusing to aid in forcibly taking the Strait of Hormuz. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte is meeting with Trump next week to discuss the issue.