A Tough US Question: Navy Escorts in Hormuz?

One big unknown in the Iran war is whether the US will begin escorting ships through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital chokepoint for the world's oil supply. Soon after the conflict began, President Trump said the US Navy would do so if it becomes necessary, notes Axios. With Iran again vowing to keep the straight effectively closed to non-Iranian traffic, the US is preparing for that "high-risk" eventuality, per the Hill. Coverage:

• Not ready: Energy Secretary Chris Wright tells CNBC that the Navy is "simply not ready" to begin escorts. "It'll happen relatively soon, but it can't happen now," he said, adding that the end of the month is a possibility. "All of our military assets right now are focused on destroying Iran's offensive capabilities."

• Not ready, II: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent tells Sky News that the escorts would begin "as soon as it is militarily possible ... perhaps with an international coalition." He did not put a more specific timeline on it.
• Mines: The New York Times reports that it could take weeks to sweep the strait for mines and clear any found before any such escorts could begin. Bessent, however, noted in his interview that Iran is allowing some ships through, "so we know they have not mined" it. Still, Iran is thought to have thousands of mines at the ready.
• The risk: The danger, however, goes further. "The challenge is going to be dealing with the proximity of the drone launchers and the missile launchers that are going to be along the Iranian coast," Bryan Clark, an expert in naval operations with the Hudson Institute, tells the Hill.
• The basics: ABC News has a primer on the strait itself, which is 21 miles across at its narrowest point. "But the transitway for vessels is even narrower because ships have to sail through two-mile-wide designated lanes for commercial ships as they sail inbound or outbound." The Navy provided such escorts back in the late 1980s, in relation to the Iran-Iraq war.