The New York Times reported that despite the U.S. Army’s efforts to protect oil tankers against attacks by the Islamic Republic, the passage of oil through the Strait of Hormuz remains significantly lower than before the war.

According to TankerTrackers data, in the seven days leading up to Thursday, Shahrivar 12, an average of 6.7 million barrels of oil passed through the strait per day, which is nearly 60% less than in the months before the war began on Esfand 9.

The New York Times wrote that in the months of Khordad, Tir, and Mordad, the Islamic Republic targeted at least 23 ships, and the continuation of the attacks has caused many private shipping companies to not return to the Persian Gulf.

Eugene Gholz, a professor of political science at the University of Notre Dame, described the situation in the Strait of Hormuz as a “deadly stalemate” and said: “Iran can’t close it completely and the U.S. can’t open it completely.”

As written by the New York Times, the Islamic Republic has used disruption to shipping and the limiting of oil supply as leverage against the United States, and wants to receive payment from the ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz; an issue that the United States opposes.