The Strait of Hormuz and the Politics of Armed Interdependence: Energy, Geopolitics, and Power in the Escalation among the United States, Israel, and Iran

Júlia Saraiva

The recent military escalation involving the United States, Israel, and Iran around the Strait of Hormuz has once again placed one of the most critical energy chokepoints of the global system at the center of international politics. While public debate often highlights the most visible aspects of the crisis—attacks on vessels, drones, and naval operations—the strategic importance of the strait goes far beyond its immediate military dimension.

Located between Iran and Oman, the Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean and serves as the main export route for oil and natural gas to international markets. It is estimated that around 20% of the world’s traded oil passes through this maritime corridor daily, making it one of the most significant chokepoints in the global economy.

In this context, any threat to navigation flows through Hormuz has the potential to produce systemic effects on energy markets, supply chains, and global economic stability. The current crisis, therefore, cannot be understood merely as another episode in the geopolitical rivalry between Iran, the United States, and Israel. Rather, it represents a broader dispute involving energy security, control over strategic flows, and the balance of power in the international system.

Although the strategic relevance of Hormuz increased significantly throughout the 20th century with the expansion of the global oil economy, its geopolitical importance became particularly evident during the energy crises of the 1970s. The 1973 oil shock demonstrated how the energy dependence of industrialized economies could be leveraged as a tool of political pressure.

The centrality of the strait became even more evident during the Iran-Iraq War (1980–1988). During this conflict, both countries began targeting oil tankers transporting crude through the Persian Gulf in a phase known as the “Tanker War.” Between 1984 and 1988, hundreds of commercial vessels were hit, prompting external powers—particularly the United States—to intervene in order to protect maritime traffic in the region.

This episode marked a crucial moment in the militarization of the Gulf’s energy routes. The U.S. naval operation known as Earnest Will escorted Kuwaiti tankers and demonstrated Washington’s willingness to use military power to ensure the security of global energy routes.

Since then, the Strait of Hormuz has remained central to international energy security strategy. Recurring crises involving Iran—especially those related to its nuclear program and economic sanctions—have frequently included threats to close the strait as a form of geopolitical deterrence.

The recent escalation in the Gulf can be analyzed through the lens of classical strategic theory. As argued by Carl von Clausewitz, war is the continuation of politics by other means. This formulation emphasizes that armed conflicts are not isolated phenomena, but instruments used by states to achieve political and strategic objectives.

In Iran’s case, whose conventional military capabilities remain inferior to those of the United States and Israel, the adopted strategy does not necessarily seek victory in direct confrontation. Instead, Tehran aims to exploit structural vulnerabilities of the international system—particularly those related to global energy supply.

By demonstrating the ability to threaten navigation flows in Hormuz through naval mines, drones, or attacks on commercial vessels, Iran significantly expands the strategic scope of the conflict. The objective is not necessarily to permanently block the passage, but to increase the economic and political costs of military escalation for the international community.

The strategic importance of Hormuz also reveals a fundamental paradox of contemporary globalization. The international system has become deeply interdependent, yet this interdependence generates new forms of vulnerability.

This phenomenon was extensively discussed by Joseph S. Nye Jr., whose theory of complex interdependence argues that increasing global economic integration can produce asymmetric relationships in which some actors have greater capacity to exploit systemic vulnerabilities.

In the case of the Strait of Hormuz, global dependence on an extremely narrow maritime route creates a situation in which regional conflicts can generate global economic consequences. The mere threat of disrupting maritime traffic can trigger volatility in energy markets and place pressure on economies highly dependent on energy imports. In this way, energy interdependence becomes a potential instrument of geopolitical coercion.

Disputes involving energy chokepoints have the capacity to produce disproportionate impacts on the international system precisely because they connect regional rivalries to essential global economic flows.

Similarly, conflicts involving strategic infrastructure tend to acquire systemic relevance in a context of increasing fragmentation of the international order. In a scenario marked by great power competition and rising geopolitical tensions, regional crises can quickly take on global dimensions.

The escalation in the Gulf occurs precisely within this context, where regional disputes intersect with structural transformations in international politics.

For the United States, the stability of energy routes in the Persian Gulf has been a central element of its global strategy since the late 20th century. The so-called Carter Doctrine, announced in 1980, established that any attempt to gain hostile control over the Gulf would be considered a direct threat to U.S. strategic interests.

In this sense, the American military presence in the region cannot be understood solely as part of Middle Eastern regional policy. It is directly linked to preserving the stability of global energy routes and maintaining the strategic credibility of the United States as a guarantor of the international order.

However, this strategy also creates a dilemma. The greater the military presence intended to protect the strait, the greater the incentive for Iran to use that very route as an instrument of strategic pressure.

The crisis in the Strait of Hormuz highlights the enduring relevance of geography as a structuring element of contemporary international politics. Despite the increasing digitization of the global economy, the functioning of the international system remains deeply dependent on specific physical infrastructures—many of which are concentrated in highly vulnerable geographic chokepoints.

In this context, the dispute involving the United States, Israel, and Iran reveals a fundamental feature of the contemporary international order: the ability to disrupt strategic flows can become just as important as the capacity to exercise direct military power.

In a deeply interdependent global system, controlling—or simply threatening—geoeconomic chokepoints such as the Strait of Hormuz may become one of the most effective forms of power projection in the 21st century.

“The views expressed here are solely those of the author.”

Júlia Saraiva, holds a degree in International Relations from UniLaSalle-RJ. Her academic research focuses on United States and Middle East policies, with an emphasis on the influence of lobbies, military strategies, and diplomatic relations in the region. She works as a Commercial Assistant at the company Rio de Negócios, is a consultant in business internationalization, and a researcher at the Center for International Relations Studies (CERES).

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References

Clausewitz, Carl von. On War. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1984.

Nye, Joseph S. Soft Power: The Means to Success in World Politics. New York: Public Affairs, 2004.

Nye, Joseph S.; Keohane, Robert O. Power and Interdependence. Boston: Little, Brown, 1977.

Yergin, Daniel. The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money and Power. New York: Free Press, 1991.

BP Statistical Review of World Energy. London: BP, recent editions.