US issues its threat to Iran not to close the Strait of Hormuz

First, Iran threatened to shut down the Strait of Hormuz if the West goes ahead with sanctions against it. Now, the U.S. Is making its own threat about what it will do if Iran closes the Strait.

The U.S. military has issued a warning that it will not tolerate any attempt by Iran to close the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has threatened to close the narrow sea lane through which world's oil supply is carried. The Telegraph reports that a spokeswoman for the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet, based in Bahrain warned,

"The free flow of goods and services through the Strait of Hormuz is vital to regional and global prosperity. Anyone who threatens to disrupt freedom of navigation in an international strait is clearly outside the community of nations; any disruption will not be tolerated."

This unusually blunt U.S. statement was in response to threats by Iran to shut the waterway if the West pressed ahead with sanctions on the country's oil industry. This threat was made by Iran's vice-president, Mohammed Reza Rahimi who delivered it on state media.

"If sanctions are adopted against Iranian oil, not a drop of oil will pass through the Strait of Hormuz. [Our] enemies will only abandon their plots when we give them a strong lesson."

Tehran Times reports that Iranian officials are calling the U.S.'s bluff and predicting that it will never attack, no matter what is threatened. Mojtaba Amani, director of Iran's interests Section in Cairo explains, "The U.S. is fearful of attacking Iran because it fears that the Strait of Hormuz will be closed in the event of an attack. The countries which are waiting in ambush to find an opportunity to launch a military campaign against Iran are well aware that in the event of an attack, closing the Strait of Hormuz is among the most likely possibilities. So they have to mull such a decision over and over again." Meanwhile, Press TV reports that Iran's Commander of the Navy, Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari, says it will not be difficult for his naval forces to block the strategic Strait if need be. He points out that the Iranian Navy is currently conducting naval drills in the Strait of Hormuz and the Sea of Oman.

“Iran has comprehensive control over the strategic water way.”

But Sayyari adds,

"Iran maintains its interest in establishing sustainable security and stability in the region.”

The Strait of Hormuz is the narrow shipping channel leading in and out of the Persian Gulf between Iran and Oman. The daily flow through it is about 15 million barrels of oil, accounting for 90 percent of the oil that is exported from oil-rich Persian Gulf countries, and nearly 40 percent of the entire world's oil supply.