Bessent says Strait of Hormuz would be 'worthless piece of water' as oil pipelines bypass it
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent speaks to the media before joining a plenary session on sovereign debt as world leaders in finance join with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent for the 2026 G20 Financial meetings in Asheville, North Carolina, Sept. 1, in this Getty Images photo. AFP-Yonhap
WASHINGTON — U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday that the Strait of Hormuz will be "like a worthless piece of water" in two years as oil will be shipped through land-based pipelines, bypassing the crucial waterway.
Bessent made the remarks during a fireside chat with FOX Business Network host Larry Kudlow at the Group of 20 finance ministers' meetings in Asheville, North Carolina, as Washington and Tehran have exchanged strikes, heightening tensions in the strait.
"We can see the Iranians are trying to use the Strait of Hormuz as a choke point. It's not a choke point for the U.S., but it is a choke point for many other countries," the secretary said.
"That will be bypassed in two years. In two years, the Strait of Hormuz will be like a worthless piece of water. Oil will be going on pipelines across the land," he added.
During the Middle East war, Iran has effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial shipping route for oil, natural gas, fertilizer and other commodities. Disruptions to shipping in the strait have kept energy prices high, piling pressure on Washington ahead of the U.S. midterm elections in November.
Gulf countries and those that rely on the strait for energy imports have sought to reduce their reliance on the waterway as Iran strives to assert control over the strait, a pivotal source of leverage in the monthslong war with the United States.
Meanwhile, U.S. Central Command said that its forces struck Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targets in Iran following recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and against U.S. troops in the Middle East.
In a social media post, Trump said that the strikes were "large and powerful" and in retaliation for Tehran's "failed" attempt at adding sea mines to the strait, which he claimed currently has no mines.
"If the failed Nation of Iran retaliates for this very justified attack, they will be hit again at a much harder and higher level, but it will not be the biggest attack of them all, that is waiting in the wings and, when it is over, there will be very little left of the Islamic Republic of Iran," Trump wrote on Truth Social.