STRAIT OF HORMUZ - The commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM), Adm. Brad Cooper, visited the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday (October 25) and said the waterway's primary transit routes remain clear of Iranian sea mines, CENTCOM said in a statement reported by IANS and Defence Industry Europe. Cooper surveyed the strait from a US Army CH-47 Chinook helicopter and met American service members who had supported the mission to clear its international shipping lanes.

Source: CENTCOM statement via IANS / Defence Industry Europe, Oct 25

'Today, primary transit routes in the Strait of Hormuz remain free and clear of Iranian sea mines thanks to incredible efforts by our people,' Cooper said, according to the CENTCOM statement. 'We continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with our Gulf partners and the shipping industry. This visit underscores our strong commitment to continued freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.' CENTCOM said the mines in the lanes had been laid by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) - that attribution is CENTCOM's, and Iran has not confirmed it in these reports.

Source: CENTCOM statement via Defence Industry Europe, Oct 25

3,000+Commercial vessels CENTCOM says have transited the strait with US support over the past six months
1.5 billion barrelsCrude oil CENTCOM says it helped Gulf partners export since summer - yaani 150 crore barrels
95%+Share of ships CENTCOM says have sailed through the strait safely in recent months - CENTCOM's own figure

CENTCOM said more than 95% of ships navigating the strait in recent months had passed through safely, which it described as demonstrating that the United States and its regional partners control the international waterway. The strait carries roughly a fifth of the world's seaborne oil in normal times, so its safety directly affects crude prices, Gulf exports and the jobs and remittances of the lakhs of Indian and Punjabi workers across the Gulf states.

Source: CENTCOM release via EIN Presswire, Oct 25

The visit came in a week when the strait remained tense for other reasons: Reuters reported on October 23 that ship attacks in the Strait of Hormuz had hit a record high in October, and the waterway has seen repeated tanker incidents this month. Cooper said US forces remain 'intensely focused on keeping commercial traffic flowing' with US interagency partners, the Gulf Cooperation Council and the shipping industry, according to the statement.

Source: CENTCOM statement via IANS, Oct 25 / Reuters, Oct 23