President Donald Trump on Tuesday warned Iran not to lay sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz, threatening retaliation if the country proceeds with any plan to jeopardize transit through the vital waterway.
"If Iran has put out any mines in the Hormuz Strait, and we have no reports of them doing so, we want them removed, IMMEDIATELY! If for any reason mines were placed, and they are not removed forthwith, the Military consequences to Iran will be at a level never seen before," the president wrote in a social media post.
Just minutes later, the president announced that the U.S. had begun eliminating inactive Iranian minelaying vessels.
'I am pleased to report that within the last few hours, we have hit, and completely destroyed, 10 inactive mine laying boats and/or ships, with more to follow!" he wrote.
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The Strait of Hormuz is a critical chokepoint. Oil tankers and other vessels move roughly 20% of the world's supply of petroleum liquids through the waterway every day.
Disruptions to that flow due to the war against Iran have already caused immediate economic repercussions.
Since the start of the war, Iran has attacked several ships in the strait and threatened tankers that try to pass through it, effectively closing it off even without the presence of any mines.
The price of a barrel of crude oil topped $100 on Monday for the first time since 2022.
In the U.S., the average price for a gallon of regular gas on Monday was $3.48, up nearly 50 cents from a week ago.
And disruptions to the strait's oil cargoes could also affect other market sectors that depend on natural gas and oil, says supply chain management professor Sequin Ozkul.
"We're going to be seeing definitely some huge impacts. Fertilizers may impact food prices. Petrochemicals are going to impact eventually consumer goods, plastic, packaging. So all of this has some ripple effects," Ozkul said.
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