Vance Warns Iran: US Will "Punch Back Harder" Over Strait of Hormuz Attacks

"If they shoot at ships, US will punch back harder": Vance warns Iran over Strait of Hormuz

Wisconsin, July 9

Speaking on Iran's nuclear programme and recent tensions in the region, Vance said, "Their nuclear program was destroyed, their conventional military was destroyed."

"The basic deal that we cut was: we'll lift our blockade if you stop shooting at ships. But if you shoot at ships, we are going to punch back, and we're going to punch back harder than ever before. That was the deal!" he said.

Vance alleged that Iran had resumed attacks on shipping despite agreeing to stop such actions.

"They said they would stop shooting at ships, and what happened 24 hours ago? They started shooting at ships again! Now, they were good, they were well-behaved for about a week, but then they started shooting at ships," he said.

"So the deal is very simple: if they shoot at ships, we're going to knock the hell out of them, and it's that simple, and that's the basic way it's going to work," Vance added.

Vance said US President Donald Trump has multiple options available, but did not disclose details of any possible future action.

"The President maintains a lot of options. I'm obviously not going to tell you exactly what's going to happen tonight," he said.

Vance said Washington's priority was ensuring that the Strait of Hormuz remains open for global energy supplies.

"The President has said to them very simply: the Strait of Hormuz is going to be open. That means oil and gas are going to flow to the American people," he said.

"That's why we see gas prices starting to come down, that's why we see the oil price so low, is because the President said that crucial artery through which we ship a lot of the world's energy, that artery has got to remain open," he added.

Warning Iran against attempts to block the strategic waterway, Vance said, "If they try to close it down, there's going to be a response from the American military. It's that simple! That's the deal!"

"They can either follow it, or they can have exactly what happened to them last night -- it's just going to keep on happening until they open up that lane and stop shooting at ships," he added.

Meanwhile, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said its forces had started conducting additional strikes against Iran to further degrade Tehran's ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

In a post on X, CENTCOM said, "At the direction of the Commander in Chief, U.S. Central Command forces have started conducting additional strikes against Iran to further degrade their ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz."

"The United States is holding Iran accountable for recent unjustified aggression against commercial shipping and civilian crews freely navigating a vital international waterway," it added.

Following the announcement of fresh US strikes, Iran's southern port city of Chabahar witnessed power cuts, according to CNN, citing Iranian state media.

Iran's state-run Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported that around 10 explosions were heard in Chabahar and nearby Konarak.

Explosions were also reported in the Iranian city of Bushehr, home to Iran's Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, as well as on Abu Musa Island and near Tahrouyi village in Sirik, according to Al Jazeera.

The latest strikes followed a US military operation on July 7, when CENTCOM said it had carried out offensive strikes against Iran, hitting more than 80 targets with precision munitions in response to alleged Iranian attacks on commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

CENTCOM said the strikes targeted Iranian air defence systems, command-and-control networks, coastal radar sites, anti-ship missile capabilities and more than 60 small boats operated by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in and around the Strait of Hormuz.

Washington had alleged that Iran targeted three commercial vessels passing through the strategic waterway -- the Marshall Islands-flagged M/T Al Rekayyat, Saudi Arabia-flagged M/T Wedyan and Liberia-flagged M/T Cyprus Prosperity.

Calling the alleged attacks a violation of the ceasefire agreement, CENTCOM said, "The unwarranted aggression by Iranian forces is a clear and dangerous violation of the ceasefire and undermines freedom of navigation."

"CENTCOM forces remain postured and prepared to hold Iran accountable when the agreement is not adhered to or obeyed," it added.

— ANI