Iran Threatens Closure of Straits of Hormuz

The Supreme Commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, Major General Yahya Rahim Safavi, described on Wednesday the Strait of Hormuz on Iran’s southern shores as “the economic lifeline” of the West and said it could be used to put pressure on Iran’s enemies, state television reported.

About two-fifths of the world's oil supplies pass through the 50-kilometre-wide entrance to the Persian Gulf.

Safavi was speaking to reporters during the sixth day of weeklong naval exercises in the Persian Gulf and Sea of Oman, dubbed “Great Prophet”. The general said that the area was of “immense military and geo-strategic importance” and that it linked the seaways of three continents – Africa, Asia, and Europe.

“Many industrial countries are dependent on the energy from this region. Japan gets 70 percent of its oil from this region, likewise 70 percent of certain European countries’ energy comes from this region”, he said, adding that every day the equivalent of 20 million barrels of oil travelled through the Strait of Hormuz.

“The Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf are … the corner stone of [Iran’s] defence. The Strait of Hormuz counts as a point of economic control and pressure in the transfer of energy for aggressive powers from beyond the continent that want to endanger the security of the region”, General Safavi said.

Iran wants to use terror and other means at its disposal to close the Straits? They don't have to actually close the Straits of Hormuz to cause economic harm. The threat is more than sufficient to send oil prices higher. The mullahs are counting on this. I bet they're banking on it.

And they figure that if someone calls their bluff, launching a couple of shkvals towards a couple of tankers would get people's attention (and they had done the tanker war before).

The mullahs don't have to rely on any of those new weapons the mullahs have been touting either (and those weapons are more than likely either Russian in origin, or derivatives of Russian designs). They could rely on old fashioned underwater mines to accomplish the same task. Dump a bunch into the straits, and let the craziness ensue.

So what is the long range goal of such a strategy? Well, it will initially force oil prices far higher than they are currently. Insurance rates for shipping in the Persian Gulf will increase, and those costs will be passed on in the form of higher prices. Shipments may be delayed, further affecting the price.

And if the Iranians do succeed in carrying out their threats, it is possible that some civilian shipping will come under fire.

This open hostility needs to be dealt with, especially with the context of Iran's nascent nuclear program.