The US Decimated Iran’s Navy. How Does It Still Control the Strait of Hormuz?

Share this link on Facebook

Share this page on X (Twitter)

Share this link on LinkedIn

Share this page on Reddit

Email a link to this page

Iran does not need to secure the Strait of Hormuz. It only needs to make sure that no one else can, either.

Operation Epic Fury has led to the near-total destruction of Iran’s conventional navy. Dozens of its ships now lie at the bottom of the Persian Gulf, and those that remain are largely hidden in secluded bases along the coastline, with minimal ability to challenge the US Navy in any open confrontation.

Despite the sorry condition of its naval forces, however, Iran still maintains selective control of the Strait of Hormuz—resulting in 80 to 90 percent of the traffic being halted. How? Not through naval dominance, but rather through asymmetric disruption, which Iran uses to make travel through the Strait too dangerous to risk.

Iran Doesn’t Need to Close the Strait to Cut Off Shipping

Iran’s strategy is not to implement a total blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. Instead, it raises the risks and costs of passage, encouraging most to simply stay away. Through a combination of cheap weapons, geography, and cultivated uncertainty, Iran is able to achieve sufficient disruption to functionally close the strait.

Iran is aided in its efforts by the structure of the shipping business. Most seaborne commerce—particularly in........

© The National Interest