US Vice President JD Vance has hit out at Iran, accusing the state of ‘economic terrorism’, hours after the US blockade on the Strait of Hormuz got underway.
Speaking on Tuesday, Vance hit out at the blocking of traffic through the Strait – a key economic trade route, insisting “two could play at that game”.
The US insisted the “ball is in Iran’s court” with regard to the blockade, as Vance vowed that “no Iranian ships are getting out either” in an apparent tit-for-tat move.
Donald Trump warned that Iranian naval ships approaching the US blockade of the country’s ports will be “eliminated” overnight, using the same “quick and brutal” method to destroy drug dealers’ boats.
Overnight, a tanker sanctioned by the US was seen to pass through the the Strait of Hormuz, despite a US blockade being in place.
Shipping data appears to show the vessel, Rich Starry, a Chinese-owned medium-range tanker carrying around 250,000 barrels of methanol, passing through the waterway loaded the cargo from the UAE, Reuters reported.
It comes as the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called for the US and Iran to resume negotiations, with the fallout of the blockade having knock-on effects on the price of oil and wider markets around the world.
He added that it is “clear” that “there is no military solution” that will end the war.
