Control over the Strait of Hormuz is the only real leverage against the US that Iran is unlikely to give up in the near future, Reuters reports, citing US intelligence reports.
Iran is unlikely to open the Strait of Hormuz in the near future, as control over the world's most important oil export route is the only real leverage against the United States. This conclusion is contained in recent reports from US intelligence, Reuters reported on Saturday, April 4, citing sources familiar with the situation.
According to them, Tehran is likely to continue blocking shipping in the strait to maintain high energy prices and thereby exert pressure on US President Donald Trump.
The intelligence reports also state that a war aimed at undermining the military power of the Islamic Republic could have the opposite effect and enhance Iran's influence in the region through its control over the key waterway for oil transportation, Reuters notes.
Experts: Iran's Ability to Influence Markets is "More Powerful than Nuclear Weapons"
Experts estimate that Tehran understands that its ability to influence global energy markets by controlling the strait is "much more powerful than even nuclear weapons," the agency points out. "In an attempt to prevent Iran from developing weapons of mass destruction, the US has given Iran weapons of mass destruction," said Ali Vaez, director of the Iran Project at the International Crisis Group, in an interview with Reuters.
Trump: A Little More Time and We Will Open the Strait of Hormuz
US President Donald Trump reiterated the day before that the US can easily open the Strait of Hormuz, but Washington needs "a little more time" for that. "A little more time and we will easily be able to open the Strait of Hormuz, take the oil, and make a fortune," he wrote on his Truth Social platform on April 3.
At the same time, analysts have repeatedly warned that attempting to use force to open the strait could be costly and draw the US into a prolonged ground war, Reuters reminds.
Since the beginning of the US and Israeli war against Iran, the Strait of Hormuz has effectively been blocked by the Iranian army. Before the war, about 20% of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas shipments passed through this route.
