Chris Wright falsely claimed the Navy escorted a tanker through Hormuz, and Iran used the deleted post to accuse the U.S. of market manipulation

Energy Secretary Chris Wright falsely claimed that the U.S. Navy escorted an oil tanker through the Strait of Hormuz. The post was quickly deleted and later used by Iran to accuse the U.S. of market manipulation. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed during a briefing that the Navy had not escorted any vessels “at this time,” though she added it remains an option President Trump “will absolutely utilize if and when necessary.”

Before Leavitt’s briefing, a U.S. official had already told reporters that Wright’s post was simply “not true.” According to Politico, a Department of Energy spokesperson later said the post was deleted after it was “determined to be incorrectly captioned by Department of Energy staff.” The spokesperson did not answer questions about who wrote the caption or how the mistake happened.

The deleted post had stated that the Navy “successfully escorted an oil tanker through the Strait of Hormuz to ensure oil remains flowing to global markets.” It was accompanied by a video of Wright speaking in Colorado on Monday, in which he referenced a tanker passing through the Strait but did not mention any naval escort. The immediate impact was clear: crude prices dropped below $80 a barrel, then jumped back up after the post was deleted.

The false post created real consequences, and Iran wasted no time turning it into a political accusation

Oil prices had already been falling after President Trump said on Monday that the U.S.-Israel war with Iran is “very complete.” They dropped further after Wright’s false announcement. This followed a spike to nearly $120 late Sunday, after Iran began striking oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and Iraq and Kuwait started shutting in oil production.

Trump has also been considering major moves regarding the Strait of Hormuz that have raised alarm among observers. Iran has continued to threaten vessels passing through the strait, and U.S. intelligence has assessed it is taking steps to place mines in the waterway. One vessel, the Marshall Islands-flagged bulk carrier Star Maria, did pass through the Strait of Hormuz from west to east on Tuesday, according to commodities research firm Kpler.

The U.S. had announced plans to escort tankers through the Strait last week, though officials had not provided specific details or a timeline. Administration officials, including Wright, had indicated that military assets were busy targeting Iran’s offensive capabilities at the time. President Trump has previously stated it would be an honor to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, though the country he claims to be helping most has raised eyebrows.

Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Dan Caine said in a Tuesday morning briefing that military officials had not yet finalized any escort plans. “If tasked to escort, we’ll look at the range of options to set the military conditions to be able to do that, and then, like we always do with every potential mission, come to the secretary and the president with both, what are the resources required, what is the command and control required, and what are the risks, and how do we mitigate those risks?” Caine explained.

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, used Wright’s deleted post to accuse the U.S. of market manipulation. Araghchi wrote on X, “U.S. officials are posting fake news to manipulate markets. It won’t protect them from inflationary tsunami they’ve imposed on Americans.”