Short of occupying Iran, Trump cannot guarantee safe passage in the Strait of Hormuz. After barely a week, public support for Trump’s Iran war is at the same level it was for the Vietnam War in late 1967 following more than 11,000 American deaths. By walking away, the US president would have given Iran knowledge of his price point, which is soaring energy prices. Good intelligence can keep making a rubble of Iran’s nuclear capacity but that is no sure bet. Long after oil prices have stabilised, the world will recall his administration’s glory in the imagery of “lethality”, as his defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, calls it.

Source: The Irish Times March 10, 2026 20:01 UTC