US Warships Enter Strait of Hormuz for First Time Since War Began
Two American guided-missile destroyers passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, the first US warships to cross the contested waterway since the Iran war erupted on February 28, in a move that simultaneously challenged Iran's territorial claims and exposed a darkly ironic problem: Iran cannot find many of its own mines.
The USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG 121) and USS Michael Murphy (DDG 112) conducted the transit east to west into the Persian Gulf and back, with CENTCOM confirming it had "begun setting conditions for clearing mines" in the strait. Admiral Brad Cooper, CENTCOM commander, stated: "Today, we began the process of establishing a new passage and we will share this safe pathway with the maritime industry soon to encourage the free flow of commerce."
Iran immediately denied the transit occurred. The IRGC's Khatam Al-Anbiya Central Headquarters stated: "The claim by the CENTCOM commander is strongly denied. The initiative for passage of any vessel is in the hands of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran." Iran warned that passage would be "granted exclusively to non-military vessels" under specific regulations. A regional intelligence source told Fortune that the destroyers were "forced to turn back" after encountering IRGC threats and a drone launch, a claim CENTCOM did not address.
Iran's embarrassing mine problem
The New York Times reported what may be the most consequential detail of the strait crisis: Iran has lost track of many of the naval mines it deployed. Starting in March, Iran mined the strait "haphazardly" using small boats. "It is not clear that Iran recorded where it put every mine," the NYT reported. "Even when the location was recorded, some mines were placed in a way that allowed them to drift or move."
This means Iran cannot reliably locate or recover all of its own weapons, one reason it has been unable to fully comply with demands to reopen the strait. Iranian FM Abbas Araghchi referred obliquely to the issue, saying the strait would be opened "with due consideration of technical limitations." At least a dozen underwater mines were placed in the waterway, according to US officials.
Iran had established a makeshift "tollbooth" system since March 13, routing ships through Iranian territorial waters around Larak Island. Only 26 ships used this route between March 13-27, according to Lloyd's List Intelligence. Iran charged vessels $1 million or more for passage and launched 21 confirmed attacks on merchant ships, leaving over 600 vessels stuck in the Gulf region.
Trump dismissed the threat on Truth Social: "The only thing they have going is the threat that a ship may 'bunk' into one of their sea mines, which, by the way, all 28 of their mine dropper boats are also lying at the bottom of the sea." He described the mine-clearing operation as "a favor to Countries all over the World, including China, Japan, South Korea, France, Germany, and many others" that lack "the Courage or Will to do this work themselves."
The staggering economic toll of closing the world's most important chokepoint
The Strait of Hormuz closure has produced what the International Energy Agency calls "the greatest threat to global energy security in history" and "the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market." Through this 33-kilometer-wide passage flows roughly 20% of global oil and 20% of global LNG.
Oil production from Kuwait, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE collectively dropped by approximately 10 million barrels per day by mid-March. Brent crude surged past $120 per barrel before settling to around $104 post-ceasefire. US gas prices hit $4 per gallon by March 31, a 30% surge, with some stations exceeding $6. Asian LNG spot prices increased by over 140%.
The disruption extends far beyond energy. Thirty percent of global urea fertilizer trade passes through the strait, along with 20% of ammonia and phosphate trade, 8% of global aluminum supply, and 50% of seaborne sulfur trade. The Philippines became the first country to declare a national energy emergency on March 24. Airlines began canceling flights due to jet fuel shortages. Shipping traffic through the strait collapsed from 2,652 transits in the March 1-25 period of 2025 to just 142 in the same period of 2026. Two hundred thirty loaded oil tankers waited inside the Gulf as of April 9.
Even with the ceasefire holding and commerce resuming, analysts warn disruptions will persist for months as oil refineries need repairs and shipping companies require at least two months to resume normal operations.