Pentagon officials detail ship seizures, escalating enforcement in the Strait of Hormuz, and confirm renewed U.S.–Iran talks set to resume in Pakistan
War Secretary Pete Hegseth said Friday that the U.S. blockade on Iran is “growing and going global,” adding that Tehran still has an opportunity to reach a “good deal” with Washington.
Hegseth, alongside Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Dan Caine, held a press conference to provide an update on the status of the naval blockade.
“Just this week, we seized two Iranian Dark Fleet ships in the Indo-Pacific region that had left Iranian ports before the blockade went into effect,” Hegseth told reporters. “They thought they'd made it out just in time. They did not. We seized their sanctioned ships, and we will seize more.”
He said enforcement in the Strait of Hormuz has intensified, with U.S. forces prepared to “shoot to kill” without hesitation against Iranian vessels that attack ships or deploy mines in the waterway.
Hegseth also reiterated remarks by President Donald Trump that the United States maintains total control over the Strait of Hormuz, a critical global shipping route through which roughly 20 percent of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supply passes.
“No one sails from the Strait of Hormuz to anywhere in the world without the permission of the United States Navy,” he said.
Caine provided operational details, stating that 34 vessels have so far been turned away from the Strait of Hormuz by U.S. naval forces.
He also described an incident involving a large container ship, the Touska, which ignored repeated U.S. warnings over a six-hour period on Sunday as its crew attempted to breach the blockade.
According to Caine, after exhausting standard measures, the United States moved to “escalation options,” including firing five warning shots.
A U.S. naval destroyer then disabled the vessel’s engine with precise fire, leaving the Touska “dead in the water.” The crew subsequently complied with U.S. directives.
United States Central Command later ordered U.S. Marines to seize the ship.
“Via helicopters, U.S. marines maneuvered quickly to the disabled ship, boarded her from fast ropes via helicopter infiltration methods, and took custody of the ship,” Caine said.
Meanwhile, the White House confirmed Friday that new rounds of peace talks between the United States and Iran are set to resume in Pakistan.
“I can confirm [Special Envoy Steve Witkoff] and [Jared Kushner] will be off to Pakistan again tomorrow morning to engage in talks,” the White House Press Secretary said. “The Iranians reached out, as @POTUS called on them to do, and asked for this in-person conversation.”
