WASHINGTON (AP) —The US military has 16 warships in the Middle East. But military officials have offered few details about how a blockade of Iranian ports would actually work.
Aside from the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, the U.S. Navy has 11 destroyers, three amphibious assault ships, and a littoral combat ship, all in the waters of the Middle East, a defense official said.
A second defense official says no U.S. warships are in the Persian Gulf — the body of water that forms most of Iran’s coastline.
Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military operations.
Trump said the blockade had taken effect Monday.
The second defense official pointed to a notice to mariners as a more accurate representation of the military’s plans. It says access to Iranian ports is being restricted, but how these measures “will be applied in practice ... are in development.”