Tensions Deepen Around Strait of Hormuz as U.S. Warns of "Indefinite Blockade" and Axis of Resistance Expands Front

Amidst the clouds of war gathering over the Strait of Hormuz, the standoff between the United States and Iran is growing increasingly tangled without finding a breakthrough.

The United States has escalated its pressure to the highest level by warning of an "indefinite blockade," while the pro-Iranian Houthi rebels in Yemen have fired missiles in the Red Sea, fueling a proxy war.

According to major foreign media outlets on the 13th (local time), U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met with reporters during a visit to Panama and stated regarding the situation in Hormuz, "The U.S. Navy can maintain such a blockade indefinitely."

He added, "Because we have rotated warships as we have done up to now, and we will continue to do so in the future."

These remarks came as the U.S. military is deploying the USS George Washington to replace the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, which has been deployed in the Middle East for an extended period.

A U.S. official told CNN that the USS Washington, having completed a port call in Vietnam last May, is currently heading to the Middle East and is planned to replace the Lincoln.

On the same day, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent once again threatened the economic isolation of Iran.

Appearing on the U.S. conservative media outlet Newsmax, Secretary Bessent said, "There will be an additional announcement next week, so please stay tuned," adding, "We will implement unprecedented economic isolation measures."

He added, "This combines economic isolation the likes of which the world has never seen with a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz that cuts off all supplies entering and leaving Iranian ports."

Seemingly unconcerned, Iran continued its war of nerves with U.S. President Donald Trump over control of the Strait of Hormuz.

Targeting President Trump's remarks that the U.S. has complete control over Hormuz, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), saying, "Worse than fake news is fake information. Beware."

At around the same time, the Strait of Hormuz and the entrance to the Red Sea were engulfed in gunfire simultaneously.

The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), a state-owned oil company of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), announced that two of its vessels were attacked while passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

The UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs pointed to Iran as the perpetrator of the attack.

The Houthi rebels of Yemen, an ally of Iran, used drones to attack an oil refinery belonging to Saudi Arabia's state-owned oil company Aramco.

The Houthi rebels also struck a Yemeni government forces' air force facility near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

With the oil routes originating from the Middle East severely choked off, the world is rapidly depleting its stockpiled oil.

In its August oil market report released the previous day, the International Energy Agency (IEA) stated that global oil supply this year will decrease by an annual average of 4.3 million barrels per day.

This is an increase of 600,000 barrels from last month's forecast of a 3.7 million barrels per day decrease.

In addition, it stated that global crude oil inventories plummeted by 2.2 million barrels per day last month, pushing worldwide stockpiles below 7.9 billion barrels for the first time since April 2025.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.