A Pointless War: How Iran Hawks Finally Got Their Way
In February 2026, the U.S. and Israel launched a war against Iran, leading to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and severe global economic disruptions. The conflict, driven by long-standing hawkish U.S. foreign policy, has caused spikes in oil prices and shortages in critical industries worldwide. President Donald Trump now seeks to reverse the war's consequences, including reopening the strait, despite having initiated the conflict amid shifting and contradictory objectives.
- ▪On February 28, 2026, Iran announced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz following attacks by the U.S. and Israel.
- ▪Global oil prices nearly doubled in the war's initial weeks, and shortages affected semiconductor, pharmaceutical, and fertilizer industries.
- ▪Iran began demanding multimillion-dollar ransoms for ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
- ▪The Trump administration launched the war despite Iran having agreed to negotiations and without a clear or consistent set of war aims.
- ▪Robert Malley, former Iran envoy, criticized U.S. policy for making war inevitable by dismissing diplomacy and containment.
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War A Pointless War: How Iran Hawks Finally Got Their Way President Donald Trump and his predecessors spent decades putting the U.S. on a path toward war against Iran. Matthew Petti | From the June 2026 issue Share on FacebookShare on XShare on RedditShare by emailPrint friendly versionCopy page URL Add Reason to Google Media Contact & Reprint Requests (Illustration: Tracy Glantz/TNS/Agence Quebec Presse/Agence Quebec Presse/ILIA YEFIMOVICH/POOL/SIPA/Newscom/Somartin/Joe Sohm/Dreamstime) The Strait of Hormuz is straight out of a storybook. Named for an ancient Persian god, the 24-mile-wide waterway flows between jagged cliffs, inlets that look like a desert version of Scandinavian fjords, and multicolored salt formations.
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