Hegseth calls war in Iran a 'gift to the world'

To Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, the U.S.-Iran war is a "gift to the world."

Hegseth's comment came during a news conference at the Pentagon on April 24. While speaking to reporters, Hegseth said the U.S. blockade of Iranian shipping on the Strait of Hormuz is "ironclad" and will continue "as long as it takes" to accomplish America's "bold and dangerous" mission of ending Iran's threat to global security.

“We are in control. Nothing in, nothing out,” Hegseth said regarding the blockade of Iranian ports. He added that Iran is acting like “a gang of pirates” to seize ships from other countries.

Earlier this week, Iran seized two container ships on the Strait of Hormuz, which Hegseth said happened with small speedboats armed with AK-47s.

Hegseth’s remarks also come as U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner are set to depart for Islamabad, Pakistan, on April 25 to resume talks with Iranian officials for a deal.

Hegseth suggests European, Asian nations are 'free-riding'

Also during the news conference, Hegseth said European and Asian nations are "free-riding" for not assisting the United States in policing the Strait of Hormuz.

"We're not counting on Europe, but they need the Strait of Hormuz much more than we do and might want to start doing less talking, and having less fancy conferences in Europe and get in a boat,” Hegseth said. 

Hegseth is referring to recent multinational planning conferences led by the United Kingdom and France, which sought ways to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. His comments have also echoed those of Trump, who, back in March, told European countries to “Go get your own oil!”

“You’ll have to start learning how to fight for yourself, the U.S.A. won’t be there to help you anymore, just like you weren’t there for us,” Trump said in a March 31 Truth Social post.

How effective has the blockade been?

So far, the blockade, which went into effect April 13, has turned back 34 ships, Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said.

During Friday's new conference at the Pentagon, Caine described how U.S. forces seized an Iranian-flagged vessel that ignored orders over the weekend. He said the noncompliance led to American troops firing precision rounds at the ship's engine room, effectively disabling it. U.S. Marines then boarded the ship via helicopter.

“The ship and its crew remain safe in U.S. custody today,” Caine continued, adding that the blockade is growing stronger as more military assets move into the Persian Gulf region.

Despite the blockade, ship-tracking data shows Iran has still been able to move some of its sanctioned oil, PBS News reports.

Lloyd's List Intelligence, a maritime intelligence firm that provides real-time vessel tracking, said "a steady flow of shadow fleet traffic" has passed in and out of the Persian Gulf, including 11 tankers with Iranian cargo that have exited the Gulf of Oman outside the Strait of Hormuz since April 13, according to the outlet.

USA TODAY’s Bart Jansen and Francesca Chambers contributed to this report.

Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected] and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.