A new pattern of deceptive activity by some vessels around the critical waterway suggests the new American blockade is changing how some ships linked to Iran are behaving.
In a thinly veiled critique of the war in Iran, China’s leader said the world could not risk reverting “to the law of the jungle.”
Ship-tracking data showed that several vessels, including some that had been docked at Iranian ports, had moved through the strait as the U.S. military began its blockade.
Oil markets shrugged it off, but the effort to hurt Iran could provoke retaliation that inflicts more damage on energy assets and the global economy.
The U.S. military has provided few details on how it might carry out President Trump’s orders as he seeks to pressure Tehran on a peace deal. But history and established practices offer some clues.
European countries declined to take part in the action, which is designed to pressure Iran into making concessions by cutting off its oil income.
The vessels exited the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, hours before a U.S. naval blockade took effect.
President Trump is trying to choke off the country’s lifeline with a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. But the Iranians are betting that his tolerance for political pain is limited.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the U.K.’s diplomatic efforts are directed at keeping the vital waterway “open, not shut.”
President Trump’s announcement of a U.S. blockade was his latest effort to pressure Iran to negotiate after direct talks over the weekend did not yield an agreement.