WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. Central Command said that more than 20 vessels remain in the Iranian port of Chah Bahar under the U.S. blockade on Iran.
'Prior to the U.S. blockade on Iran, 5 ships were moored or anchored in the Iranian port of Chah Bahar on an average day. Today, more than 20 vessels remain in Chah Bahar as U.S. forces cut off economic trade going into and coming out of Iran during the ongoing blockade,' CENTCOM said on X Tuesday.
As American forces continue to operate and enforce the blockade across the Middle East, a total of 39 vessels have been redirected to ensure compliance, it said.
In a separate post, CENTCOM said that on Tuesday, U.S. Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit boarded M/V Blue Star III, a commercial ship suspected of attempting to transit to Iran in violation of the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports, in the Arabian Sea. U.S. forces released the vessel after conducting a search and confirming the ship's voyage would not include an Iranian port call, it added.
The U.S. is enforcing a strict naval blockade of Iranian ports, directed by President Trump, to halt maritime trade and pressure Tehran to yield to its conditions leading to a deaal to end the Middle East war. Led by CENTCOM, the blockade uses warships and aircraft to intercept vessels in the Gulf of Oman and Arabian Sea, forcing dozens to change course.
The United States imposed a naval blockade on Iran on April 13, following the failure of the Islamabad Talks.
The U.S. action, to force Iran back to the negotiating table by halting oil exports and economic trade, has severely reduced Iranian shipping, and has impacted Iran's economic crisis and increased oil prices.
Brent crude traded above $114 per barrel Wednesday, increasing by more than 3 percent, while the US-traded WTI rose above $103 with an increase of 3.57 percent, gaining for the third straight session.
Meanwhile, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said that the United Arab Emirates' decision to leave OPEC will ultimately result in a fall in oil prices, as other oil producing countries will increase output.
'Today we hear that one of the countries, the United Arab Emirates, is leaving OPEC. What does this mean? It means that the country can produce as much oil as its production capacities allow and release it onto the market,' Reuters quoted Siluanov as saying on Wednesday.
The United Arab Emirates on Tuesday announced that it is exiting OPEC and the larger OPEC+ group in May, marking the end of nearly six decades of membership and signaling a significant change in the global energy landscape.
The UAE believes this move will provide it with more freedom to increase oil production and cater to the growing global energy demand, especially after making substantial investments to raise its output capacity. The gulf nation's energy minister Suhail al-Mazrouei noted that stepping away from OPEC would eliminate production quotas, allowing the country to follow its long-term production goals.
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