CENTCOM commander says Iran is cut off from maritime trade as about 400 merchant ships transit the Strait of Hormuz in a week

US Central Command commander Adm. Brad Cooper said Friday that Iran had been completely cut off from maritime imports and exports, describing a US campaign to restrict Tehran’s oil revenue and military funding. In a video message, he said US efforts were aimed at curbing Iranian oil exports, disrupting digital financing and weakening the ability of Iran’s security forces to pay their personnel.

Cooper said US forces had prevented Iran from exporting at least $25 billion worth of crude oil in recent months. He added that CENTCOM had supported US interagency partners in freezing nearly $350 million in digital cryptocurrency assets.

He also said regional groups aligned with Iran had begun withholding payments from their fighters to redirect the money to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Cooper described the IRGC as struggling to pay its personnel and showing signs of increasing desperation amid mounting economic pain.

Despite the restrictions he described, Cooper said commercial shipping continued through the Strait of Hormuz. He accused Iran of attacking commercial vessels and said US forces were working with regional allies and shipping partners to reinforce maritime security.

Cooper asserted that the United States and its regional partners, not Iran, controlled the strait, which he said remained “fully open for business.” He said about 400 merchant ships had transited the waterway in the previous seven days, alongside millions of barrels of crude oil transported with US assistance.