US President Donald Trump has repeatedly insisted that the US has total control of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway through which oil flows from countries like Saudi Arabia and Iraq to the rest of the world.
Expert Analysis
However, experts say the reality is far more complicated, with ships fearing for their safety amid attacks on vessels in the strait and the ever-looming threat of US-Iran strikes resuming. The US naval blockade of Iran is still in effect, barring ships from going to or from any Iranian port either inside or outside the strait.
The Strait of Hormuz normally carries 20% of the world’s oil, and an even higher proportion of the natural gas that some nations are critically reliant on. Iran, lying right on the strait, has the advantage of proximity and a “psychological and political upper hand,” according to Carl Schuster, former director of the US Pacific Command’s Joint Intelligence Center.
The US still has a clear military and economic advantage, with heavy sanctions on Iranian oil as well as Iranian assets frozen overseas. However, the US’ military forces in the region “are basically stretched pretty thin, and they’ve been there for quite some time,” said CNN military analyst and retired Air Force Col. Cedric Leighton.
Original reporting: El Paso News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
