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Iran and the Strait
(New York Times) Editorial - Iran's threat to shut the Strait of Hormuz if the U.S. and Europe press ahead with new sanctions is unacceptable. The Obama administration is right to signal that Washington will not back off if Tehran ever attempts to carry it out. A show of American naval force kept the strait open to oil tankers during the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s. Whether or not Tehran is bluffing (or trying to drive up oil prices), Washington will not back down and Europe should not. Iran's latest threat to block global oil shipping is a clear sign of its growing economic desperation. Its latest threat should leave no doubt about Tehran's recklessness and its contempt for international law. More than five years after the UN Security Council ordered it to stop, Iran is still enriching uranium and mastering other technologies that would allow it to build a nuclear weapon. This is not a government any country should want to see acquire nuclear weapons.