President Donald Trump on April 7 agreed to stop bombing Iran on the condition that the country relinquishes its grip over the Strait of Hormuz, a critical oil shipping lane that affects the global oil economy.
The strait is a 100-mile-long waterway that connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. Some 20% of the world’s oil and natural gas supply passes through the narrow channel. Since the launch of the war on Feb. 28, Iran has responded to strikes by effectively blocking traffic through the strait.
Iran’s move to turn the strait into a strategic pressure point in its fight against the U.S. and Israel has become perhaps the key issue of the war. Gas prices have spiked. The impact of the strait’s closure on financial markets has caused the global economy to wobble, and the president turned apoplectic as his popularity sank amid Iran’s closure of the waterway.
“Open the F—— Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell,” the president wrote in an 8 a.m. social media post on Easter Sunday, threatening to blow up Iranian civilian infrastructure if the strait were not opened by April 7.
Around the time Trump announced the ceasefire, the average price of a gallon of gas across the U.S. had risen to $4.16 per gallon, up from $2.82 at the start of the year. Financial markets were thousands of points below where they were before the war though they responded positively to the announcement.
Leaders on both sides are signaling any lasting peace will depend on access to the strait.
“Subject to the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING of the Strait of Hormuz, I agree to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks,” Trump wrote in his ceasefire announcement.
Iran in turn has promised to allow shipping traffic to resume “if attacks on Iran are halted.”
“If attacks on Iran are halted, our Powerful Armed Forces will cease their defensive operations,” said Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi in a statement. “For a period of two weeks, safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be possible via coordination with Iran’s Armed Forces and with due consideration of technical limitations.”
Israel also agreed to observe the ceasefire pending access to the strait, a White House official confirmed to USA TODAY.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ceasefire with Iran rides on access to Strait of Hormuz. Why is the waterway so important?
Reporting by Michael Loria, USA TODAY / USA TODAY
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
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