US Treasury Secretary: Iranian oil shipments bound for China have stopped via the Strait of Hormuz - Sarmad

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Friday that Iranian oil shipments have not successfully transited the Strait of Hormuz bound for China since the United States resumed imposing a naval blockade on Iranian ports.

In a post on the social media platform X, Bessent stated, “Since the United States resumed enforcing the blockade, no Iranian crude oil shipments have managed to transit the Strait of Hormuz en route to China.”

He added that “Iran cannot replenish its oil reserves amid a buildup of crude on tankers stranded within the strait,” affirming the effectiveness of the “economic strangulation” measures against Iran.

He further noted in this regard, “This is how Iran’s lifeline for exports faces the risk of disruption, given stranded oil, limited storage capacity, and rapidly declining revenues.”

The United States launched the “Economic Outcast” operation on August 24 last year, a campaign aimed at cutting off the financial and trade channels Iran relies on and tightening sanctions on entities that assist it in circumventing sanctions or generating revenue. The campaign includes expanding secondary sanctions, threatening entities that continue to deal with Iran with exclusion from the dollar-based financial system.