As President Donald Trump’s war in Iran continues — and the administration continues to feed us confusing, contradictory “news” about peace talks that may or may not be happening, ceasefires that never seem strong enough to withstand a gentle breeze, and whether or not the Strait of Hormuz is open — our commander in chief is set to hold a national security meeting in the White House Situation Room with top national security officials to discuss the ongoing stalemate in the Middle East.
Meanwhile, Trump is claiming the U.S. has control over the Strait, which, as usual, stands in conflict with what Iranian officials are saying as well as what’s actually happening on the ground, or in the water, as it were.
So, let’s get into it.
Three U.S. officials reportedly told Axios that Trump is expected to hold a Situation Room meeting on Monday, and that the meeting will largely revolve around the ongoing conflict in Iran, and what the next steps are to finally possibly bring it to an end. Currently, it all appears to come down to what happens next with the Strait of Hormuz, which, lest we forget, was free and clear for nations to travel through before the unprovoked bombing of Iran began.
According to the Guardian, last Thursday, Trump made another one of his bold, highly questionable claims, declaring that the U.S. has “total control over the Strait of Hormuz,” which, as usual, doesn’t exactly seem to be the reality.
From the Guardian:
Trump’s comments on Thursday came after US special forces boarded a stateless oil tanker in the Indian Ocean, which the Pentagon claimed was carrying Iranian crude oil.
The military operation took place hours after Iran’s seizure of the two container ships, with the two sides continuing to impose competing blockades on the strait, keeping global oil prices at about $100 (£74) a barrel.
While US forces have proved capable of stopping ships coming out of Iranian ports, they have still not demonstrated the capacity to open the strait to vessels coming from ports in allied Gulf states.
The impact of the dual blockades has been compounded by the presence of sea mines in the strait.
So, about those mines…
According to PBS News, Trump says the U.S. Navy is clearing Iranian mines from the Strait, a process experts say will likely take several months, and even longer to convince commercial freighters and their insurers that the waterway, where 20% of the world’s oil typically passes, is safe to conduct business as usual.
“You don’t even have to have lain mines; you just have to make people believe that you’ve laid mines,” said Emma Salisbury, a scholar at the Foreign Policy Research Institute’s National Security Program and fellow at the Royal Navy Strategic Studies Centre. “And even if the U.S. sweeps the strait and says everything’s clear, all the Iranians have to do is say, ‘Well, actually, you haven’t found them all yet.’ There’s only so much the U.S. can do to give that confidence back to commercial shipping.”
As we reported last week, some Trump officials have expressed fears that Trump’s reckless mouth and social media posts might be a hindrance to productive peace negotiations and that he’s only helping to prolong this war. Unfortunately, the concerns of these officials haven’t dissuaded Trump from repeatedly claiming Iran “has no cards” in the conflict and insisting that his administration is holding the whole deck, which, if true, would not explain why the war he said would end after a couple of weeks is still raging on after two months, and why there’s still no clear end in sight.
It’s probably a pretty safe bet that Trump hasn’t convened a Situation Room meeting to discuss Iran having “no cards,” after all.
SEE ALSO:
Donald Trump And Laura Loomer Dragged Candace Owens. Black Folks Shouldn’t Feel Sorry For Her
Trump Issues ‘Shoot And Kill’ Order For Boats Placing Mines In Strait Of Hormuz
Trump Convenes Situation Room Meeting To Discuss Stalemate In Iran, As Strait Of Hormuz Conflict Continues
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