HORMUZ: THE MOMENT AMERICA MAY BE LOSING THE WORLD IT BUILT
Washington can win the battle for the Strait — and still lose the geopolitical war
There is a dangerous illusion at the heart of American foreign policy today:
that military superiority automatically translates into strategic control.
It does not.
The United States can deploy aircraft carriers. It can impose sanctions. It can destroy infrastructure. It can threaten governments, companies and financial institutions. It can weaponize access to the dollar-based financial system.
But none of these capabilities guarantees political obedience.
And the crisis surrounding the Strait of Hormuz may be exposing precisely that weakness.
Washington may be capable of reopening Hormuz.
It may be capable of imposing enormous costs on Iran.
It may even achieve a tactical military victory.
But there is a much bigger question:
What happens if the rest of the world responds by accelerating the construction of a system that is less dependent on American power?
That is the strategic danger Washington should be discussing.
Instead, it appears increasingly obsessed with demonstrating that it can still impose its will.
That is not the same thing as winning.
HORMUZ IS NOT JUST A STRAIT
Hormuz is one of the most strategically important waterways on Earth.
Before the conflict, roughly 20% of the world’s oil supply moved through the Strait.
That makes Hormuz much more than a Middle Eastern security problem.
It is an energy problem.
A trade problem.
An inflation problem.
A transportation problem.
A financial problem.
And ultimately, a global power problem.
Any disruption affects far more than Iran and the United States.
China needs energy.
India needs energy.
Europe needs energy.
The Gulf states need stable export routes.