A naval blockade is not merely a coercive tactic to prevent vessels from entering or leaving a country’s ports. It is an act of war.

History points out that this distinction matters. Yet it is precisely this line that the U.S. under President Donald Trump chose to blur through its naval blockades of Cuba and Iran.

By straining the bounds of international law, those actions revived a historically dangerous logic: that economic strangulation can be used as a substitute for open conflict without triggering similar consequences.

© The Japan Times