Trump Bets Economic Pain Will Force Iran to Reopen Strait

“An intensifying U.S. naval blockade of Iran is aimed at inflicting such severe economic pain that Tehran will be compelled to submit quickly to Washington’s demands to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and abandon its nuclear ambitions,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“With crude exports from Iranian ports effectively stopped up, the country will be deprived of a large chunk of its oil revenue. It could also be forced to start shutting down oil wells within weeks as it runs out of storage space, a costly and damaging prospect that could impair production for years to come.”