The US military escorted 40 commercial vessels carrying 18 million barrels of oil through the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, a wartime high as the US and Iran exchanged another round of strikes. Before the war began just over six months ago, about 20 million barrels of oil a day passed through the strait. US forces used air, sea and space assets to strike Iranian capabilities threatening commercial shipping, repel waves of drone attacks and neutralize anti-ship cruise missiles during the escort, two US officials familiar with the operations told CNN. The operation included attacks on nearly 60 military targets near the waterway, including air defenses, radar, maritime assets, mine-laying capabilities and communications sites. The campaign is part of the Trump administration’s broader effort to pressure Iran by targeting facilities around the strait, escorting merchant ships and maintaining a naval blockade of Iranian ports. The blockade has prevented Iran from exporting oil since July, according to a US official. The US expects to continue strikes because Iran has shown an ability to rebuild damaged capabilities, while officials describe the repeated attacks as a way to steadily reduce Tehran’s ability to threaten shipping and use the strait as leverage. President Donald Trump said the latest strikes destroyed Iranian radar and other assets used to track ships, while maintaining that the US controls the waterway. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said oil exports through the strait exceeded 17 million barrels per day on Monday, a wartime record. However, energy companies remain cautious: most or all of Tuesday’s escorted vessels turned off their transponders, tanker charter rates have risen above $500,000 per day in some estimates, and insurance costs remain elevated. Liquefied natural gas carriers appear even more reluctant to transit because of the potential consequences of an attack. The US military hopes to widen a mine-cleared shipping lane by next month to increase traffic, but industry officials and analysts continue to question whether Washington can sustain its claims of total control. The earlier Project Freedom escort effort was abandoned after it caught Saudi Arabia and other Gulf allies off-guard, but regional support has since increased as Houthi rebels have attacked Saudi Arabia.