US Signals No Letup of Naval Blockade as It Aims to Squeeze Iran

The US signaled it would stick with a naval blockade of Iranian ports, as it tries to choke-off Tehran’s oil exports and force it back to the negotiating table.

US President Donald Trump claimed on Tuesday that Iran was in a “state of collapse.” His treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, later said Washington’s “maximum pressure campaign” had caused Iran’s inflation to accelerate and that the country was running out of oil storage. It would soon have to start cutting production, Bessent said.

The blockade lies at the heart of the impasse between the US and Iran, with the Islamic ...