Vance Says US Has Begun Lifting Iran Blockade as Shipping Traffic Picks Up in Hormuz Strait

An Iranian tugboat is in the foreground as cargo ships sit at anchor in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran, on May 4, 2026. Amirhosein Khorgooi/ISNA via AP

Vice President JD Vance on June 18 said that the U.S. military has begun lifting its naval blockade of Iran, allowing more than a dozen ships to reach Iranian ports as part of a war-ending agreement signed between Washington and Tehran.

Speaking during a White House briefing, Vance said U.S. Central Command had allowed “north of a dozen ships” to pass and that more than 12.5 million barrels of oil moved through the Strait of Hormuz overnight, describing the developments as early evidence that both sides were implementing the agreement.