Agence France Presse reported that the commander of the US navy’s Fifth Fleet warned on Monday that the United States will not allow Iran to shut the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil supply route in the Gulf.

“They will not close it… They will not be allowed to close it,” Vice-Admiral Kevin J. Cosgriff said at a press conference in Bahrain, where the Fifth Fleet is based.

His remarks followed comments by the chief of Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards who issued a new warning last week against any attack against the country over its controversial nuclear drive.

“It is natural that when a country is attacked it uses all of its capabilities against the enemy, and definitely our control of the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz would be one of our actions,” Jafari said.

Also in an interview with Al-Jazeera TV, Vice-Admiral Kevin J. Cosgriff said: We are ready to use all our military capabilities; the remarks of IRGC commander are not positive remarks, Iran has a certain military power, and the world community has its specific military capability too.