JD Vance, the US vice president, said in an interview with Newsmax that despite the efforts of the Islamic Republic to close the Strait of Hormuz, the United States has managed to remove between 7 and 15 million barrels of oil per day from this route.

Vance said Washington is trying to prevent an energy crisis that, according to him, the Islamic Republic is seeking to create. He added that one of the most powerful tools of the United States is “forcing Tehran to pay the cost of efforts to choke oil and gas trade.” The vice president emphasized that the Islamic Republic does not have the ability to cut off international trade routes, which reduces Tehran’s leverage.

The US vice president said Washington has various tools at its disposal to confront the Islamic Republic, which, according to him, include some that are “decisive” and others that are economic.

Vance also emphasized that the primary and fundamental goal of the US presence in the Middle East is to prevent the Islamic Republic from obtaining a nuclear weapon.