U.S Secretly Set Up Trade Corridor In Strait Of Hormuz Moving 10 Million Barrels Of Oil Daily

U.S. military forces have secretly set up a shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz to transport millions of barrels of oil out of the Gulf region every day. The news came after U.S President Donald Trump refused to extend the ceasefire with Iran, which has already expired.

Trump has claimed that the waterway is a U.S. territory and also said that it remains open, while Iran said that it remains closed to commercial shipping. U.S has been helping ships cross Hormuz at night through a southern route running along the coast of Oman.

The U.S operation has been made possible after U.S. attacks damaged Iran’s major radar and surveillance systems, and now its ability to monitor ships is limited to a few Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps boats and a few radar systems that have been restored.

According to two U.S Navy officials, at least 15-20 oil tankers have entered and exited the strait each night in the last few weeks, carrying 10 million barrels of oil each day, about half of the pre-war volume. On some days, exports touched 20 million barrels.

U.S forces are also assisting empty tankers sailing from the Arabian Sea through Hormuz to load oil from Gulf ports before returning to the Strait.

According to sources, the operation is being coordinated by a task force at the Army headquarters in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, with the assistance of Gulf allies.

Ships are being categorised into inbound and outbound convoys and then guided through the waterway under U.S surveillance and guidance.

The US Air Force is also protecting ships from Iranian drones and cruise missiles while they exit the strait in the middle of the night. Additionally, Iran has fired missiles and drones towards a few ships, but they were intercepted by the U.S forces.

The U.S operation has helped ease the biggest consequence of the U.S-Iran war, i.e a disruption to oil exports through the Hormuz Strait, which handles one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas supplies.