The US treasury secretary has told Sky News that the US Navy will be escorting oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz.
Speaking to Sky News’ Wilfred Frost, Scott Bessent said: “My belief that as soon as it is militarily possible, the US Navy, perhaps with an international coalition, will be escorting vessels through.”
He added: “There are, in fact, tankers coming through now, Iranian tankers, I believe some Chinese flag tankers have come through. So we know that they have not mined the straits.”
Supreme ruler Mojtaba Khamenei plans to use the effective closure of the strategic waterway as leverage against the US and Israel.
Sky News’ Wilfred Frost and Scott Bessent
As the war nears the two-week mark, Mr Khamenei, in a fiery opening address, promised retaliation for the US-Israeli strikes, saying he “will not refrain from avenging” the blood of their “martyrs” – as a new wave of Israeli strikes hit Beirut.
Iran’s relentless attacks on shipping traffic and energy infrastructure in the Persian Gulf had earlier pushed oil back above $100 a barrel, with stocks dropping worldwide on Thursday.
The hike in oil prices came despite the shock announcement the previous day that developed countries would release 400 million barrels of oil from their strategic reserves – nearly half from the US.
Read more:
What we know about the deadly Iran school strike
How Iran can block the Strait of Hormuz
During the wide-ranging interview, Mr Bessent was called to the Situation Room, an intelligence facility in the West Wing of the White House, and when asked if the escort had been discussed, he did not deny it, saying: “Your words, not mine.”
Speaking after the interview, Mr Frost said that while the market isn’t expecting the safe passage of ships in any meaningful way in the days ahead, Mr Bessent’s implication in the interview might suggest otherwise.
Earlier on Thursday, the US energy secretary, speaking to CNBC, ruled out the possibility that the US will imminently take action to escort oil traffic through the strait.
“It’ll happen relatively soon but it can’t happen now,” Chris Wright said.
“We’re simply not ready.”
Scott Bessent, the US Secretary of the Treasury
Mr Frost pointed out that Mr Bessent had also explicitly said the Iranians had not mined the straits and that some ships are already passing through.
In the interview, Mr Bessent also mentioned that the war has so far cost the US around $11bn.
Mr Frost asked the treasury secretary if there was a price that could cause him to confront Donald Trump and say the war is no longer affordable.
He replied: “Absolutely not.”
He also spoke about the level of oil prices not being the thing that affects the economy, but instead the duration of them being elevated where they were.
The full interview of “The Master Investor Podcast with Wilfred Frost” is available to watch on YouTube or to listen wherever you get your podcasts.
