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Strait of Hormuz crisis shows limits of US, say Chinese. ‘India most vulnerable’

Chinese online discourse situates the crisis within a broader geopolitical context, particularly the hesitancy of US allies to support Washington.

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has intensified anxieties across global energy markets, over supply chain disruptions and risks to maritime trade. On the Chinese internet, the crisis has generated sustained attention, with discussions highlighting the structural vulnerability of this critical chokepoint. 

Commentators described the situation as the most severe disruption since the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988), while the Weibo hashtag “no ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz” has been all over Chinese social media handles.

A Global Times article suggests that while a prolonged, total closure of the Strait remains unlikely, elevated tensions are expected to persist, injecting volatility into global energy flows and economic activity. 

Wang Xu, an expert on the Middle East at Beijing Foreign Studies University, argues that a sustained blockade would impose high economic and political costs on Iran, thereby constraining its long-term feasibility. This logic, he notes, helps explain why the Strait has historically never been fully and permanently closed. 

Chinese online discourse also situates the crisis within a broader geopolitical context, particularly the hesitancy of US allies to support Washington. Widely circulated Weibo posts point to the risks already incurred by allied naval forces in escort missions against Houthi attacks in Yemen, suggesting that further commitments in the Strait would entail disproportionate costs. 

Some commentators interpret this reluctance as indicative of a shifting international order, characterised by a more cautious and interest-driven approach among US partners. A viral Weibo post claimed: “The era of America’s absolute authority is over. These so-called allies are vocal before a war, but when trouble comes, they retreat faster than anyone else.” 

At the same time, a prominent strand of commentary portrays China as comparatively........

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