Posted on 05/05/2026 10:43:09 AM PDT by RandFan
The ceasefire in the Gulf is four weeks old and showing its age. The US and Iran's determination to keep the pressure on each other has put it in serious jeopardy. This is a dangerous moment.
The ceasefire opened up a chance for diplomacy that looked for a short time as if it might make progress. Americans and Iranians faced each other across a conference table in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, but came away empty-handed.
The Pakistanis are trying to revive the process, without much success so far. Both America and Iran want to have a deal. But they have different deals in mind and are sticking to their red lines. Until one or the other, or preferably both, decide to offer concessions, renewed full-scale hostilities remain an incident away.
More than ever there is a strong risk of misperception and miscalculation of intentions and consequences. Both are classic ways in which crises slip out of control and wars escalate.
America's decision to escort two ships through the Strait of Hormuz was always going to produce a reaction from Iran. This week's urgent question is whether it ends there or whether more action and reaction power a slide back into all-out war.
Control of the Strait of Hormuz has become the central issue in the crisis. It was open to navigation, without restriction or the payment of tolls, until 28 February -when the US and Israel attacked Iran. Now Iran has demonstrated how closing it can mean everything from an offensive weapon to a revenue raiser and an insurance policy. This week, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has told MPs that there will be no return to the old status quo.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.co.uk ...
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There you go go again BBC, the crisis is over Iran refusing to give up their ambitions on nuclear weapons, you would think the no nukes types would want this.
i’m not going to ante up to read the rest. what is posted seems to neglect mentioning Operation Economic Fury as part of a multi-pronged strategy. economic collapse is bound to raise the stakes immeasurably for the powers-that-be — while the U S military reopens the Strait.multi-track strategy always with the threat of further military punishment.
Trump is going to keep Roto-Rootering the Strait of Hormuz, to within an inch of its geographic life, until friendly or neutral MVs and Tankers are uneventfully sailing through in their dozens, daily.
Who cares what the Beeb thinks — about anything? Even the UK? Professional dissemblers.
Senator Rand should know that Trump loves sinking small boats and the US military is very good at it.
Israel can whack Iran’s oil industry and revenue by means proven by Ukraine to work well [Russian LNG tanker sinking, refinery attacks by drone] for which the leading nations of the West and their leftist leaders didn’t yell “war crime” or “genocide”.
https://worldisraelnews.com/israels-silent-guardians-the-idfs-advanced-submarine-fleet/
Putin could order thousands of Russian tanks to drive towards Kiev.
None would get there under their own power.
It’s easier to take out a speedboat than a tank.
I”ve had it with British sanctimonious BS.
‘Oil is literally falling from the sky’: Russian town fears environmental disaster after Ukrainian drone strikes on refinery
https://www.cnn.com/2026/04/30/europe/russia-tuapse-oil-refinery-strikes-pollution-intl-cmd
“Since the beginning of 2025, 21 out of 38 major Russian facilities that process crude oil into fuels such as gasoline and diesel have been hit.”
“Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly stressed that weakening Russia’s oil sector is a key tool for forcing Moscow to negotiate. ‘The most effective sanctions are those that work the fastest – fires at Russia’s refineries, terminals, and fuel depots.’”
https://postpravda.info/en/stories/frontline-stories/russian-oil-refineries-map/
What “war?”
I see us taking great opportunities to take down Iran’s military. I sure don’t see Iran doing much back.
It was not a 'war. It's iranian's getting their iranian terrorist asses thoroughly kicked.
“sliding back into all-out war?” This simpleton hasn’t begun to see all-out war. If he had, he would know it because Iranian government would have ceased to exist by now. But this is a current twist I’ve seen elsewhere in the media to try to deter Trump from returning to military action.
Time is certainly on the side of the USA. In this most lop-sided war, probably in the history of man-kind, why is one concerned the USA might have to turn up the heat, if necessary, to end it. The USA controls it all over there.
WORD!!
2026 Iran is a geographic location.
It is completely controlled by the IRGC Terror Organization.
Duh.
Regime change.
lol - “all out war” would require both sides to still have a military. They talk with a presumption that things are “equal”, as though we’re in some sort of dead-lock or stalemate.
How dishonest to report things this way, they know that is a complete misrepresentation of the facts.
Just the fact that you are a Brit that follows BBC tells us all we need to know...
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