Absent the strait's reopening, shortages will become more acute, threatening higher costs for energy, food and numerous other products worldwide. "Defending convoy operations in the Strait of Hormuz is significantly more challenging than in the Red Sea," said retired Rear Admiral Mark Montgomery, who in 1988 was involved in U.S. tanker escorts through the Strait of Hormuz during the Iran-Iraq war. The U.S. mission to protect Red Sea shipping from the Houthis launched in December 2023, with European nations joining in with their own operation a few months later. The danger zone around the Strait of Hormuz is up to five times bigger than the Houthis' attack area around the Bab el-Mandeb Strait that flows into the Red Sea. Sea mines and heavily armed mini-submarines are a threat the U.S. did not encounter in the Red Sea, said Tom Sharpe, a retired Royal Navy commander.

Source: The Telegraph March 25, 2026 06:42 UTC