{
  "id": 789949,
  "title": "US can keep naval blockade on Iranian ports \"indefinitely,\" Pentagon chief says",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/13/us-can-keep-naval-blockade-on-iranian-ports-indefinitely-pentagon-789949",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-13T17:57:03.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/world/20260814/us-can-keep-naval-blockade-on-iranian-ports-indefinitely-pentagon-chief-says"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stated on Thursday that the U.S. military possesses sufficient resources to maintain a naval blockade of Iran indefinitely. He further explained that ships can be rotated in and out of the region as necessary. Hegseth's remarks indicate that he is advising U.S. President Donald Trump that the U.S. military can continue exerting economic pressure on Iran for as long as necessary to aid the ongoing negotiations aimed at resolving the conflict, which began in February. Hegseth told reporters that the United States Navy has the capability to maintain such a blockade indefinitely, rotating ships as needed and continuing to do so. He made these comments in Panama following a speech to the crew aboard the USS Gridley, a guided-missile destroyer, which had previously been deployed to the Middle East. On Wednesday, President Trump had asserted that the U.S. has total control over the Strait of Hormuz. He stated on his Truth Social platform that the U.S. has dubbed its naval blockade as \"A WALL OF STEEL,\" and emphasized that Iran has no means to counter this blockade. The conflict had begun after the start of the current negotiations.",
  "summary": "PANAMA CITY — The U.S. military has enough assets to maintain a naval blockade of Iran indefinitely, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Thursday, adding ships could be rotated in and out of the region as needed. Hegseth's comments suggest he is advising U.S. President Donald Trump that the U.S. military can keep applying economic pressure on Iran for as long as needed to help so-far failed…",
  "key_points": [
    "U.S. can maintain naval blockade on Iran indefinitely, says Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth",
    "Navy ships can rotate in and out of the region as needed",
    "Blockade aims to aid ongoing negotiations to resolve conflict"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}