{"id":352988,"date":"2026-06-18T22:56:41","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T17:26:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/?p=352988"},"modified":"2026-06-18T22:56:41","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T17:26:41","slug":"vance-defends-iran-deal-says-u-s-only-powerful-ally-israel-has-left-national","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ebiztoday.news\/index.php\/2026\/06\/18\/vance-defends-iran-deal-says-u-s-only-powerful-ally-israel-has-left-national\/","title":{"rendered":"Vance defends Iran deal, says U.S. \u2018only powerful ally\u2019 Israel has left – National"},"content":{"rendered":"

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U.S. Vice President JD Vance said Thursday that the U.S. Navy has allowed greater than a dozen ships through to Iranian ports, lifting a blockade as a part of an agreement to finish the war.<\/p>\n

Vance made the announcement at a White House press briefing, where he said more oil is now flowing through the Strait of Hormuz. The Republican vice chairman said greater than 12.5 million barrels went through the shipping channel Wednesday night.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo we\u2019re also honoring our end of the early a part of the agreement on the military side,\u201d Vance said, citing it as a right away good thing about the deal as he downplayed criticism that the agreement tilts in favor of Iran.<\/p>\n

And in a unprecedented rebuke, he warned U.S. critics in Israel against \u201cattacking the one powerful ally\u201d it has left. He lashed out at members of the Israeli government, warning them that \u201cDonald J. Trump is the one head of state in the complete world who’s sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this moment in time.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Vance said he plans to travel to Switzerland for talks on the Iran deal but he doesn\u2019t know when that may occur. He had been expected to steer talks on implementing the agreement with Iran aimed toward diluting its stockpile of highly enriched uranium and restarting oil traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n

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On Tuesday, two oil tankers left Iran and crossed the U.S. military blockade without being stopped. A merchant shipping tracking website said the ships were carrying a combined total of three.8 million barrels of Iranian crude oil.<\/p>\n

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Meanwhile, Iranian state media said that shipping has \u201cnormalized\u201d at Iran\u2019s southern ports but added that the Strait of Hormuz stays supervised and under the control of the Iranian military and transiting through the vital waterway still requires coordination.<\/p>\n

Major shipowners have begun moving vessels through the Strait of Hormuz because the agreement was signed, based on maritime data company Lloyd\u2019s List Intelligence \u2014 though they didn’t give data on what number of ships have passed through the strait as of Thursday.<\/p>\n

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In a media briefing, Richard Meade, editor in chief of Lloyd\u2019s List, said for the primary time in 110 days, ships owned by major corporations are transiting the strait after effectively being marooned there since February.<\/p>\n

Tankers controlled by major ship owners Grimaldi Group, Cosco, Knutsen and NYK have passed through the strait. And two Iran-flagged, National Iranian Tanker Company-owned, sanctioned crude oil tankers have entered the strait, based on Lloyd\u2019s List.<\/p>\n

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