U.S. Navy has not escorted tanker through Strait of Hormuz

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The United States has not escorted any oil tanker through the Strait of Hormuz, the White House said Tuesday, after the energy secretary’s social media account posted and deleted a claim that it did so.

The shift in narrative caused markets to swing, with oil dropping sharply after Energy Secretary Chris Wright’s initial post.

Oil prices pared back some losses after Wright’s post on X was deleted — just minutes after publication.

“I can confirm that the US Navy has not escorted a tanker or a vessel at this time, though of course that’s an option,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told a briefing.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards also said that no US Navy vessel has “dared” approach the Strait of Hormuz, calling Wright’s claim a “pure falsehood.”

An Energy Department spokesperson told Agence France-Presse that “a video clip was deleted from Secretary Wright’s official X account after it was determined to be incorrectly captioned by Department of Energy staff.”