PHOTO- Former US defense secretary Leon Panetta said closing the strait was a ‘red line’ for the US. Photograph: Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP
Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on Thursday went after the Trump administration over the fallout from the conflict against Iran, specifically tensions over the Strait of Hormuz.
“Mr. Secretary, you heard the new supreme leader’s warning that the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed. The U.S. Energy secretary said this morning here on CNN that the U.S. Navy is not yet ready to escort commercial vessels through the strait. He said U.S. military resources are focused elsewhere in this war right now. What do you make of that?” CNN’s Wolf Blitzer asked Panetta on “The Situation Room.”
“I think that basically is a failure of planning for what would be an obvious consequence of a war in the Middle East. Not to have these ships prepared to escort tankers through the Straits of Hormuz is a serious failure, and it’s going to take time,” Panetta responded.
“And the fact is that the statement from the leader of Iran this morning reflects the fact that they think that they are, in many ways, winning this war by closing the Straits of Hormuz and creating a huge disruption in oil that makes it then politically difficult for the administration to be able to react,” he added.
Shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz has been held up for close to two weeks during the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran. Trump said Wednesday that the strait was in “great shape,” but Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, on Thursday asserted that the waterway would remain closed.
On Thursday, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said the U.S. Navy was not prepared to escort oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, but predicted escorts could start by the end of March.
“It will happen relatively soon, but it can’t happen now. We’re simply not ready,” Wright said during an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”
When reached for comment, White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said, “President Trump is fully prepared to provide U.S. Navy escorts through the Strait of Hormuz if he deems it necessary.”
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