War Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Friday that the U.S. blockade on Iran is “growing and going global,” adding Tehran had a chance to make a "good deal" with Washington.
Hegseth, along with Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Dan Caine, held a news conference Friday 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."
Hegseth said the blockade in the Strait of Hormuz has expanded and ships will "shoot to kill” without hesitation against Iranian vessels that attack ships or lay mines in the strait.
He also reiterated President Donald Trump’s statement this week that the United States has total control of the Strait, a critical waterway used to ship 20 percent of the world’s natural oil and liquefied gas.
"No one sails from the Strait of Hormuz to anywhere in the world without the permission of the United States Navy," Hegesth said.
Caine provided operational details on engagements in the strait, sharing that 34 ships had been turned around from the Strait of Hormuz by the U.S. Navy so far.
He also noted that one vessel, a large container ship named Touska, ignored several warnings over a six-hour period from the United States to turn around on Sunday as its crew attempted to breach the blockade line.
Caine said the United States then turned to “escalation options,” including five warning shots, after exhausting all other standard measures.
The U.S. naval destroyer successfully disabled its engine through precise shots, Caine said, and the Touska went “dead in the water.” That promptly led the Touska crew to comply with U.S. directions and orders.
U.S. Central Command, which oversees the Middle East, then directed 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.
The developments come after the last round of talks fell through.