The United States and Iran are engaging in a battle of truth over the presence of sea mines in the Middle East's Strait of Hormuz.

The U.S. Central Command stated on its X account on the 31st of last month, local time, "The Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claims that a supertanker passing through the southern lane of the Strait of Hormuz collided with two sea mines and came to a complete halt. This is false."

It went on to point out, "In fact, not a single vessel has collided with a sea mine in the Strait of Hormuz. This is merely another attempt by the IRGC to threaten commercial shipping in the region through false information."

U.S. President Donald Trump also posted on the social media platform Truth Social, saying, "Iran is officially a failed state." He added, "All they have left is fake news coming out of the United States, a willingness to kill protesters now numbering over 100,000, and plausible nonsense."

The Central Command's fact-check is intended to refute reports claiming that "a large oil tanker came to a complete stop after colliding with sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz" or that "a large oil tanker passing illegally through the Strait of Hormuz without Iran's permission suffered a massive fire after being struck by two sea mines."

Such reports originated from Iranian state-run media citing the IRGC Navy. The IRGC Navy claimed, "Vessels that violate the rules for safely passing through the Strait of Hormuz will meet this very fate," and insisted that "compliance with the regulations on passage and navigation announced by the IRGC Navy is mandatory."

The Iranian media reports that a tanker passing through the Strait of Hormuz collided with sea mines contradict President Trump's earlier announcement that all sea mines in the strait had been cleared.

President Trump announced on the 25th of last month, "I have just received a report from the U.S. Navy that all sea mines in international waters of the Strait of Hormuz have been removed and detonated," adding, "We have notified Iran that any vessel laying new mines will be immediately and systematically destroyed."

Five days later, an anonymous U.S. official told foreign media that the U.S. military struck two IRGC rocket launchers used for laying sea mines on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz the previous day, explaining that this was because signs were detected that the IRGC was preparing to launch mine-equipped rockets into the Strait of Hormuz.

The conflicting facts presented by the U.S. and Iran regarding the sea mine issue in the Strait of Hormuz are interpreted as an intention to gain the upper hand in stalled negotiations while each claims control over the strait.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)