Free Republic

President Trump on Saturday issued a blistering ultimatum to Iran, warning that it has 48 hours to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face US strikes that would “obliterate” its vital energy infrastructure. “If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!” the president fumed on Truth Social. Iran has effectively closed the crucial waterway — responsible for a fifth of the world’s oil exports — since Trump launched...

"The British Isles are declared to be in a state of blockade,” announced Napoleon Bonaparte, and elaborated: “All commerce and all correspondence with the British Isles are forbidden.” It was 1806, and what would be known as the Berlin Decree aimed to strangle the British economy. The bold scheme seemed economically logical and militarily practical, but it ended up a grand flop. Britain’s economy, coastline, and navy all proved too big for the plan, which also underestimated the kingdom’s link to America and access to the high seas. In fact, Napoleon’s blockade backfired. Europe, it turned out, needed British exports...

The Western Alliance was already fraying long before the joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran began earlier this month. But the collective refusal of European leaders to even entertain the idea of assisting the U.S. in keeping the Strait of Hormuz open – and their personal insults against President Donald Trump – may have fractured the relationship beyond repair. As Iranian forces continue to attack shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint through which 20-30 percent of all global crude oil flows, President Trump has called on European nations to form an international coalition to help reopen the strait....

Britain, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Japan have agreed to join appropriate efforts to ensure safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz and said that they would take steps to stabilise energy markets. In a joint statement issued by UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office, leaders of these countries also condemned the attacks by Iran and urged it to halt its actions immediately. They called on Iran to cease its threats immediately, laying of mines, drone and missile attacks and other attempts to block the Strait to commercial shipping. Leaders of these 6 countries said such interference with international...

The United States has intensified operations to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, launching low-altitude airstrikes against Iranian vessels and deploying Apache helicopters to intercept incoming drones. At the center of the campaign is a new addition: the A-10 Thunderbolt II. America’s top general, Dan Caine, confirmed that the heavily armed A-10s—better known as the “Warthog”—have officially entered the conflict and are now flying combat missions along Iran’s southern flank. Built for close combat and designed to destroy ground targets with brutal efficiency, the aircraft are now being used to hunt Iranian fast-attack boats in the narrow, strategically vital waterway. “The...

U.S. and Israeli military operations against Iran since February 2026 and subsequent Iranian military action throughout the Persian Gulf have raised concern about oil and natural gas markets in relation to the Strait of Hormuz (the Strait). Starting on March 4, 2026, Iranian forces have declared the Strait “closed,” threatening and carrying out attacks on ships attempting to transit the Strait. In light of a considerable decrease in shipping traffic, President Donald Trump has raised the prospect of U.S. actions intended to reestablish free transit of the Strait.The Strait, which borders Iran and Oman, is a key waterway, particularly for...

President Trump on Friday slammed NATO allies as "cowards" for not sending troops to help open the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway for the global oil trade that remains effectively closed amid Iran's continued retaliation for Israel's attack on the South Pars natural gas field.

Under the pressure of extreme energy prices, the ideologically driven miscalculations of the EU -- and Germany in particular -- are revealing their fatal, destructive magnitude. Europeans must do everything in their power to make the Strait of Hormuz navigable again. The Hormuz crisis threatens to become a catastrophe for Europeans. No region is as dependent on oil and gas supplies as Europe, while the United States can operate from a comparatively sovereign position of energy self-sufficiency. Precisely for this reason, Europeans should have a vital interest in securing the Strait of Hormuz militarily in order to safeguard their energy...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NNZ2u2WDD0&t=883s SUMMARY >>> 2. Cost asymmetry **************** Mine: ~$1,500 Destroyer: ~$2 billion Ratio: 1 : 1.3 million This makes mines one of the most cost-effective weapons ever created. 3. Geography of the Strait of Hormuz ************ Only a 6-mile-wide shipping corridor actually needs to be mined. Iran doesn’t need to block the whole strait—just the key lanes. 4. Psychological & economic impact ************ Mines act as an “insurance weapon”: One explosion → insurers withdraw coverage Tankers stop entering the region Trade halts without further attacks Critical insight: ************* The goal isn’t to destroy ships—it’s to trigger fear and shut down...

WASHINGTON, March 18 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump's administration is considering deploying thousands of U.S. troops to reinforce its operation in the Middle East, as the U.S. military prepares for possible next steps in its campaign against Iran, said a U.S. official and three people familiar with the matter.The deployments could help provide Trump ‌with additional options as he weighs expanding U.S. operations, with the Iran war well into its third week.Those options include securing safe passage for oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, a ‌mission that would be accomplished primarily through air and naval forces, the sources said....

The Western European NATO allies of the United States appear to be celebrating what they mistakenly believe is the discomfort the Americans and Israelis are now encountering in the Iran war. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has unctuously announced that this war is not a NATO responsibility since NATO is a defensive alliance. He has at least had the decency to recognise that “The United States and Israel are doing the world’s dirty work for it.” President Trump has made it clear that he does not need the assistance of any other country in clearing the Hormuz Strait, but he considers...

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps spokesperson Ali Mohammad Naini has been killed in ‌strikes ⁠launched by the US and Israel, ⁠Iranian state TV reported ⁠on Friday. Naini, also the agency’s deputy of public relations, was assassinated just days after Israeli forces eliminated the clerical regime’s de-facto leader, Ali Larijani, and its anti-protest enforcer Gholamreza Soleimani. Hours before his death, Naini insisted that Tehran was still able to build missiles despite the US forces’ bombardment from Operation Epic Fury. “These people expect the war to continue until the enemy is completely exhausted,” he said. “This war must end when the shadow...

Tehran says it can destabilize global energy security — and that it’s a direct consequence of the Zionist regime’s actions.

The U.S. and its allies have intensified the battle to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, sending low-flying attack jets over the sea lanes to blast Iranian naval vessels and Apache helicopters to shoot down Iran’s deadly drones, American military officials said. The stepped-up operation is part of a multistage Pentagon plan to reduce the danger from Iranian armed boats, mines and cruise missiles, which have halted ship traffic through the waterway since early March. If the danger can be reduced, the U.S. could send U.S. warships through the strait and eventually escort vessels in and out of the Persian Gulf....

Two weeks into Operation Epic Fury, the dominant narrative has settled into a comfortable groove: The United States and Israel stumbled into a war without a plan. Iran is retaliating across the region. Oil prices are surging, and the world is facing another Middle Eastern quagmire. US senators have called it a blunder. Cable news has tallied the crises. Commentators have warned of a long war. The chorus is loud and, in some respects, understandable. War is ugly, and this one has imposed real costs on millions of people across the Middle East, including the city I live in. But...

An Israeli strike on Iran’s South Pars gas field was coordinated with the Trump administration in advance, according to three Israeli officials, despite President Trump’s initial assertion in a social media post that the United States “knew nothing about” it. “The United States knew nothing about this particular attack,” Mr. Trump wrote in the social media post late Wednesday, saying that Israel had “violently lashed out.” A day later, Mr. Trump appeared to have changed course. Speaking to reporters Thursday at the White House, Mr. Trump implied that he had spoken about the strike ahead of time with Prime Minister...

Acting on direction from the White House, the Pentagon and the Navy are devising a plan to escort merchant ships and tankers through the narrow passage. In the past, mines have been a primary weapon to restrict transit through the waterway, but during the current conflict, Iran is choosing projectiles to control the waterway.Still the U.S. is striking Iran’s mine layers Caine said. “We’ve made it a priority to target Iran’s minelaying enterprise, their mine layers, the naval bases and depots, in addition to the missiles that could influence the straits,” Caine said. “And [U.S. Central Command] continues to attack...

The Israeli killing of Ali Larijani marks another blow to the Islamic Republic’s capacity for coordination, weakening an already fragmented system and raising the risk of miscalculation under pressure. Iran confirmed on Tuesday that Larijani—Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council and one of the regime’s central security coordinators— was killed in a morning strike on Tehran. The strike inevitably recalls the killing of Qassem Soleimani in 2020: another precise removal of a figure who linked diplomacy, intelligence and military power. Soleimani’s death did more than eliminate a commander. It weakened the regime’s ability to calibrate risk. Radical in purpose,...

LONDON, March 19 (Reuters) - Leading ⁠nations ⁠in Europe ⁠said in a joint statement ​with Japan on Thursday they would ‌take steps to stabilise ‌energy markets and were ⁠ready ⁠to join "appropriate efforts" to ensure safe passage ​through the Strait of Hormuz. The statement from Britain, France, Germany, Italy, the ​Netherlands and Japan, condemned attacks by ⁠Iran and ⁠called on it ⁠to ​halt its actions immediately. It also said ​they would ⁠work with certain energy producing nations to increase output and stabilise markets. "We express our readiness ⁠to contribute to appropriate efforts to ensure safe ⁠passage through the Strait," the...

ransomnote: Below are several of John A Konrad V's detailed posts. There are another 14 posts in this thread series at the link which I did not copy.Here's the source of the x.com thread posts below:DataRepublican (small r) repostedJohn Ʌ Konrad V@johnkonradLet's unpack this..What if the White House has no intention of reopening the Strait of Hormuz?What if this war is really about ships & tariffs?I had a long discussion with senior DOE official yesterday on background. I can’t share any details but it’s clear everyone’s Strait of Hormuz calculus is wrong.We need to go back to the drawing boards.That's...