JD Vance says US moves up to 15M barrels of oil through Strait of Hormuz despite Iran's blockade

WASHINGTON, DC: Vice President JD Vance pointed out that, despite Iran’s attempts to squeeze shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, the United States keeps oil moving. Tehran hasn’t managed to halt international energy trade. Some days, according to Vance, the US moves up to 15 million barrels of oil; on slower days, it’s more like 7 million.

He insists this steady flow helps head off the energy crisis Iran has tried to trigger. More importantly, he says, oil keeps flowing in spite of the disruption; Iran can’t fully choke off global trade, which means Tehran’s leverage stays limited.

JD Vance says US is keeping oil flowing

Speaking about the situation, Vance said that while Iran was attempting to shut down the Strait of Hormuz, the US was still able to move significant amounts of oil.

“A lot of people aren't covering this,” Vance said, before pointing to days when the US was moving 15 million barrels and others when the figure was closer to 7 million barrels.

The vice president argued that oil shipments keep moving, blocking the energy crisis Iran wants to spark.

“We are actually preventing an energy crisis that the Iranians are trying to create,” Vance said.

The Strait of Hormuz matters; a lot moves through there, and any serious trouble can rattle oil markets and hit consumers hard. Vance made it clear the administration thinks backup routes and new measures are helping keep oil flowing, even with Iran trying to tighten the chokehold.

Other US officials have echoed this. They point out that more oil now passes through the Gulf, both via Hormuz and through expanded pipelines and new export setups.

Vance added that oil prices have stayed lower than during Operation Epic Fury. Still, he emphasized the administration’s push to bring Americans even more relief at the pump.

JD Vance says Iran's leverage is being reduced

The vice president argued that keeping oil flowing undercuts Iran’s ability to use the Strait of Hormuz as a form of economic blackmail.

“It also shows that the Iranians don't have this ability to choke off international trade, which reduces their leverage,” Vance said.

He made these remarks while the Trump administration kept pushing its mix of economic pressure and military readiness as responses to Iran.

Vance put it plainly: the administration’s got plenty of ways to respond. Economic pressure stands out, but he didn’t rule out using force if needed.

“The point here is, we've got a lot of tools in the toolkit,” Vance said. “Sometimes you've got to use the economic tools; that's what the President is focused on right now, sometimes you've got to use the military.”

With these comments, the administration tried to show the world that the US can keep energy supplies steady even if Iran tries to mess with trade.

Vance also pointed out that upgrading infrastructure, think pipelines and alternatives, lets more oil dodge risky bottlenecks. That way, the US and its partners aren’t stuck if things heat up again.