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The United States said that it could maintain a naval blockade of Iran indefinitely and would ratchet up economic pressure on Tehran as ceasefire talks have floundered, global oil supply is dropping and regional tensions are rising, Reuters reported.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters that the U.S. military has the capability to maintain a naval presence in the region to enforce its blockade of Iran, which has inflicted severe economic damage on the country.
"Indefinitely the United States Navy can maintain a blockade like that because we'll rotate ships in and out, as we have, and we'll continue to," Hegseth told reporters during a trip to Panama.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Thursday that the United States planned to inflict more financial damage on Iran.
The statement comes as Iran and the U.S. have made competing claims over control of the Strait of Hormuz in recent days.