There we go again. The peace memo between the US and Iran saw its value crash on a flare-up of mutual hostility in West Asia. Iran struck US military facilities in Kuwait and Bahrain as payback for America’s strikes on Iranian targets, announced as a punitive response to commercial vessels being menaced by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz.
There we go again. The peace memo between the US and Iran saw its value crash on a flare-up of mutual hostility in West Asia. Iran struck US military facilities in Kuwait and Bahrain as payback for America’s strikes on Iranian targets, announced as a punitive response to commercial vessels being menaced by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz.
Spotting a line crossed, US President Donald Trump declared the interim deal he signed on 17 June “over,” while throwing in a bunch of pejoratives for the regime in Tehran.
Meanwhile, Iran vowed decisive action to protect its interests. “The era of bullying and extortion is over. It leads nowhere. We don’t fold,” its top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said.
With the Hormuz chokepoint in a haze again, oil shot up 6% to nearly $79 a barrel. India’s BSE Sensex share index tumbled 2.2% on Wednesday. Tehran wants full control over Hormuz, but the US interpretation of the memo doesn’t allow it.
Perhaps crude prices would’ve gone higher had it not been for Trump’s domestic constraints. No matter how we analyse US politics, the overall cost of a return to war seems to be steepening for the White House as time ticks on. It argues for a flip back to peace.