Strait of Hormuz

Reopening the Strait Is Now Job One in the Iran War

The regime has concluded that the ability to control the route is its ticket to survival and rejuvenation.

What would Thomas Jefferson do?  

America’s third president understood that jihadis don’t make good deals

Trump Strikes at China’s Iranian Oil Trade, but It’s Not Enough

The bombs may have stopped falling on Iran — for now — but that doesn’t mean the regime isn’t still under attack, including its illicit oil trade with China. The U.S. Treasury Department on Friday...

Tick-tock, Tehran — the regime’s escape routes are closing fast

The clock is ticking in Washington and Tehran. With midterm elections approaching, pressure is building on President Donald Trump — from the left and the isolationist right — to wind down...

Strait of Hormuz should not reopen on Tehran’s terms

Washington should define success not as traffic resumed, but as Tehran stripped of the practical ability to use the strait as a recurring instrument of leverage.

Think we’re losing the war in Iran? Consider where things really stand

From nuclear setbacks to proxy collapse, the Islamic Republic faces its most severe strategic crisis in 47 years

Houthis portray steadfast support for Iran, reportedly consider Red Sea toll

After mostly sitting out the campaign that was launched by the United States and Israel against Iran on February 28, Houthi leader Abdulmalik al Houthi reiterated the Yemeni terrorist group’s...

The Fog of Ceasefire

Taiwan to secure energy soft spots

The war in Iran indicates that the fight over controlling global energy flows is far from over. A close partner of Tehran, Beijing is no doubt factoring lessons from the conflict into its designs to...

Sharaa’s Gulf Tour Is All About the Economy

Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa visited three Gulf states — Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates — over two days beginning on April 21. The Syrian presidency described the trip in broad...

Iran’s economy after the March war: how bad can it get?

Iran’s economy is heading into a period of sharp deterioration following the March war, with mounting pressure from inflation, currency depreciation and damage to key industries raising the risk of a broader crisis.

Evaluating the Economic Damage to Iran From Operation Epic Fury: An Initial Estimate

With the conflict still unfolding, FDD estimates economic damage to Iran at approximately 40 percent of its pre-war GDP — a first accounting that speaks to the breadth and depth of Iran’s losses. Specifically,...

No March on Tehran: The Military Logic of the Iran War

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Iran’s economic damage from Operation Epic Fury

U.S. Forces Interdict Vessel in Indian Ocean Transporting Oil From Iran

Vessel Interdicted: The U.S. Department of Defense announced on April 23 that “overnight, U.S. forces carried out a maritime interdiction and right-of-visit boarding of the sanctioned...

Finish the job: Why a half war with Iran is the most dangerous outcome

Iran's regime is already shifting tactics, and an unfinished war gives Tehran exactly what it needs: time

Turkey Is the Weak Link in Trump’s Economic War on Iran

The nation’s regulatory and commercial environment remains a critical conduit for Tehran.

Why Trump’s Iran cease-fire is an increasingly risky bet

President Donald Trump has indefinitely extended the cease-fire with Iran, even though the core issues that triggered the war remain unresolved. That doesn’t change one basic fact: The Islamic Republic has...

Iran attacks vessels in Hormuz, avoids concrete stance on ceasefire extension

After Donald Trump announced an extension of the US ceasefire with Iran on April 21, Tehran refused to take an official position on the state of the ceasefire, denied it had agreed to any extension, and...

Iran’s Support for Russia and Lessons Learned from Ukraine