Tag: escorted

The US quietly escorted 87 tankers through the Strait of Hormuz – Trump

ISTANBUL, JUNE 20 -- US President Donald Trump said Washington quietly moved at least 87 oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, under the cover of darkness, while the Iranian military was unaware of the operation, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported. "We're going to leave at 1 a.m., all the lights are out, and our navy destroyers are going to sail alongside," Trump told Axios in an interview aired Friday. Trump said the operation was possible because US forces had "destroyed" Iranian radar and defense systems before the conflict. For more than a month, he said, "no one knew" where the oil transported through the waterway came from. The statement came after weeks of disruption to global energy markets following the US-Israeli attack on Iran which began on Feb. 28. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth recently said that "Project Freedom" has successfully escorted 125 million barrels of oil through the Strait of Hormuz. In another development, speaking to US Air Force service members before departing Joint Base Andrews, Trump said the ships were sailing out of the Strait of Hormuz "like no one has ever seen before." The president reiterated that the US has "the greatest military anywhere in the world." Regarding the memorandum of understanding signed with Iran, Trump said Iran has 60 days to reach a final agreement. "We have an agreement that was signed last night. 60 days, they have to make an agreement, otherwise we will do things that will not please them. "I don't think it will get there. If we do that, then all of a sudden, you won't have oil flowing out of the strait," he said. On Wednesday, Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian electronically signed the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding aimed at ending the war between the US, Israel and Iran and halting Israel's attacks on Lebanon. -- BERNAMA-ANADOLU

ISTANBUL, JUNE 20 — US President Donald Trump said Washington quietly moved at least 87 oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, under the cover of darkness, while the Iranian military was unaware of the operation, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported. “We’re going to leave at 1 a.m., all the lights are out, and our navy […]