 The Fight for the Strait of Hormuz Is Under Way After weeks of drift and wishful thinking, the United States appears to have begun the effort to reopen one of the world’s most critical shipping lanes.
“The possibility of the outright end of the ceasefire is very real, in which case the region will need to brace for further rounds of missile and drone attacks from Iran,” Aaron MacLean writes. (Illustration by The Free Press)
Winston Churchill may never actually have said that “Americans can always be trusted to do the right thing, once all other possibilities have been exhausted.” But the aphorism has stuck in public memory for a reason. Its logic appears to apply perfectly to the Donald Trump administration’s attitude toward Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz, where at last the United States appears to be in the beginning stages of forcing things open. Intense Iranian retaliation on Monday, including strikes on the United Arab Emirates and attacks targeting the U.S. Navy and shipping in the strait, suggests that this effort may come at the cost of ending the tenuous ceasefire in place since April 7. But it will be worth it—the current stalemate was economically untenable in the long run. This article is featured in International. Sign up here to get an update every time a new piece is published. On Sunday, President Trump announced that the United States will “guide” the ships of other countries trapped in the Persian Gulf out via the strait. He dubbed the exercise “Project Freedom”—not an “operation,” mind you, but a “project”—language designed to avoid trouble with Congress and the War Power Resolution’s 60-day clock...
Become a paid subscriber Get access to our comments section, special columns like TGIF and Things Worth Remembering, tickets in advance to our live events, and more. UPGRADE TODAY |
