US President Donald Trump on 12 June claimed that American military forces had been conducting covert operations in and around the Strait of Hormuz for several months, moving ships and oil cargoes through the strategic waterway while targeting Iranian maritime assets — all ahead of a proposed nuclear agreement with Tehran. The disclosure, made at the White House, adds a significant military dimension to what had been presented primarily as a diplomatic process.

What Trump Said

Speaking to reporters, Trump asserted that the operations had been deliberately kept out of public view. 'The Straits have been open for a number of months already, and you just didn't know about it,' he said, adding that US forces had moved 'many, many ships' and 'hundreds of millions of barrels of oil' through the passage without opposition.

Trump went further, claiming that American forces had conducted repeated strikes on Iranian naval assets over the past month. 'Over the last month, we've been taking out ships,' he said. 'Some nights, 25 ships, some nights, 15.' He added that radar systems were also targeted: 'We bombed their radar and everything so they couldn't see what was going on.'

The Proposed Iran Deal

Trump linked the military operations directly to ongoing negotiations with Iran, suggesting the maritime restrictions would be formally lifted once a deal is signed. 'The Strait will open as soon as we have it signed,' he said, adding the agreement could come 'Saturday or Monday.' When asked whether the US would immediately remove the blockade after a deal, Trump replied: 'Yes that's true it's part of the deal.'

He also described the proposed understanding as a landmark diplomatic achievement. 'We have a deal that Iran will never have a nuclear weapon,' Trump said, framing it as a major breakthrough in long-running efforts to curb Tehran's nuclear ambitions.

Why the Strait of Hormuz Matters

The Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea, serving as the primary export corridor for crude oil and liquefied natural gas from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Iraq, and Qatar. Any disruption to traffic through the strait has historically triggered sharp moves in global energy markets.

Trump argued that the covert operations explained why oil prices had remained relatively stable despite fears of a major supply disruption. 'That's why oil, even before this, the market couldn't understand why it was so free,' he said.

Implications and What Comes Next

The claims, if verified, would represent one of the most significant undisclosed US military engagements in the Gulf in recent years. No independent confirmation of the scale or nature of the described operations was available at the time of publication. Iran has not publicly responded to Trump's specific assertions.

This comes amid a broader pattern of US-Iran brinkmanship over the strait — a route through which an estimated 20% of global oil trade passes. Should the proposed agreement materialise and be formally signed, it would mark a dramatic reversal from years of maximum-pressure diplomacy and could reshape energy market expectations significantly.