Strait of Hormuz cleared of Iranian mines: CentCom chief Admiral Cooper

US Central Command commander Admiral Brad Cooper said US forces have cleared Iranian mines from the international shipping lanes after months of painstaking operations involving Navy divers, special operations forces and air assets from across the US military.

The scale of the effort is significant.

According to CentCom, US forces have helped nearly 1,500 commercial vessels transit the strait under coordinated protection, carrying almost 750 million barrels of crude oil to global markets.

At the same time, Washington's blockade of Iranian ports has sharply constrained Tehran's ability to export oil.

CentCom said that since the blockade resumed in mid-July, Iran has exported zero oil from its shores.

On the other hand US forces have turned around about 75 vessels attempting to breach the blockade and disabled three that refused to comply.

The distinction is important: the US is simultaneously enforcing a blockade against Iran while keeping the international shipping lanes open.

The Strait of Hormuz remains one of the world's most strategically important energy chokepoints.

Clearing the mines removes one of the most immediate physical threats to commercial shipping and could help restore confidence among shipowners, insurers and energy traders.

But with the US maintaining overwhelming air and naval superiority in the area, slow-moving drones, speedboats and other threats are likely to be detected and intercepted before reaching commercial shipping.

That could allow a growing number of tankers and cargo ships to transit the waterway, although traffic remains well below normal prewar levels.

For Iran, however, the development means one of its most potent asymmetric tools — making the waterway dangerous and unpredictable without having to defeat the US Navy outright — has become much harder to employ.

For now, the mines are gone from the international lanes, US forces control the airspace and maritime approaches, and non-Iran-linked maritime shipping is being actively protected.

Iran can still pose a threat, but its ability to shut down the Strait of Hormuz appears to be significantly diminished.

This also shows that the IRGC is unable to lay either more mines or attack ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

They may be able to shoot a drone off now and then, but the vast majority of tankers and cargo ships should be able to go through now.

And the US has complete air superiority, so any speedboats or slow drones could probably be intercepted as well.

President Trump publicly claimed full clearance of mines in international waters a few days earlier (on August 25), citing US Navy reports and warning that any new Iranian mine-laying vessels would be destroyed, with Space Force monitoring.

Cooper’s video provides the formal CENTCOM operational confirmation focused specifically on the internationally recognized traffic separation scheme (shipping lanes).

Latest updates from Cooper’s briefing:

Shipping volumes remain well below pre-conflict levels (historically over 20 million barrels per day through the strait), with recent daily commodity vessel counts still modest, but the clearance of the main lanes removes a major persistent hazard.

This development undercuts one of Iran’s key "asymmetric tools" in the strait.

With mines cleared from the primary international routes, and given reported US air and naval superiority in the theatre, large-scale tanker and cargo traffic faces substantially reduced mine risk. 

Residual threats (occasional drones, small boats, or potential uncharted/drifting mines outside the main lanes) remain possible, but interception capabilities are high.

Some allied and industry assessments have noted caution about complete risk elimination, and commercial insurers/operators will make their own judgments. Iran has rejected or downplayed US claims. 

Officials have insisted the strait remains under Iranian/Omani coastal-state influence, dismissed earlier clearance assertions as propaganda aimed at markets, and continued discussions with Oman on a potential temporary corridor and joint demining.

Tehran has conditioned full reopening on broader demands (end to hostilities, lifting of the blockade, etc.) and previously warned against foreign mine-clearance efforts. 

Cooper’s confirmation marks progress in restoring safer commercial access through one of the world’s most vital waterways while maintaining effective pressure on Iranian exports.

It demonstrates sustained US operational capability in a high-threat environment and reduces Iran’s ability to re-mine or freely harass shipping in the cleared lanes without facing immediate interdiction.

Momentum on the shipping side is building, though full normalisation of traffic volumes and risk perceptions will take additional time and depend on sustained security and market responses.