US blockade targets Iran’s trade and oil revenue, CENTCOM
Washington claims maritime restrictions have halted Iranian trade while intensifying economic pressure and threatening funding for military operations
WASHINGTON (MNTV) — The United States says its military campaign has effectively cut Iran off from maritime imports and exports, intensifying pressure on the country’s economy and oil revenues amid an expanding conflict that has disrupted regional shipping.
US Central Command chief Adm. Brad Cooper said Washington had prevented Iran from exporting at least $25 billion worth of crude oil in recent months.
In a video statement, Cooper also said US authorities had frozen nearly $350 million in cryptocurrency assets as part of efforts to restrict Tehran’s financial resources.
Cooper said the campaign focused on restricting oil exports, disrupting digital financing and limiting Iran’s ability to pay security personnel. He described these measures as efforts to weaken the Iranian government and its military capabilities.
The sweeping restrictions underscore Washington’s reliance on economic coercion alongside military force.
By seeking to choke off Iran’s oil revenue and access to international trade, the United States is placing additional pressure on an economy already strained by war and sanctions, with potential consequences extending beyond government and military institutions.
Cooper also claimed that some regional groups aligned with Iran were redirecting funds to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which he said was struggling to meet its financial obligations. These assertions were presented by US military officials and were not independently established in the statement.
Washington maintained that commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz remained possible, with Cooper saying approximately 400 merchant vessels had transited the waterway over the previous seven days.
He said US forces had helped Gulf partners transport more than 100 million barrels of crude oil through the strait during that period.
However, figures from the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency showed shipping movements remained around 70 percent below pre-conflict levels.
The agency also recorded 12 attacks on vessels during the week, including 10 in the Strait of Hormuz, illustrating the insecurity confronting commercial shipping despite US assurances.
The US position that the waterway remains open contrasts with the sharp decline in traffic and continuing reports of attacks. The disruption threatens energy supplies and international commerce while increasing the economic costs of a conflict driven by escalating military confrontation.
Iran’s maritime trade restrictions have become a central instrument of Washington’s pressure campaign. The strategy raises broader questions about the consequences of using control over international shipping and financial networks to force a rival state into strategic concessions.
The latest US statements offer Washington’s assessment of the campaign’s effectiveness, but do not independently establish the full scale of its impact on Iran’s economy or the longer-term consequences for regional stability.
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