The U.S. Stick Won't Work on Iran; Needs to Offer Carrots
The article argues that the U.S. strategy of using punitive sanctions and airstrikes against Iran regarding the Strait of Hormuz is ineffective. It suggests that regional powers like Qatar and Oman should lead diplomatic efforts to offer economic incentives to Iran to ensure maritime security.
Why it matters
This analysis challenges current U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East, proposing a shift from military coercion to regional diplomacy to stabilize global oil transit routes.
X Facebook Bluesky Email Share By Andreas Krieg , King’s College London
(The Conversation) – Iranian attacks on Gulf vessels trying to transit via Omani sovereign waters have once again pulled the region into a tit-for-tat spiral of escalation.
The US responded by cancelling the waiver permitting Iranian oil exports. Two nights of punitive airstrikes by the US air force against targets across southern Iran followed. Iran answered with ballistic missile and drone attacks on US installations in Bahrain and Kuwait.
The reluctance of both Iran and the Trump administration to return to full-scale war has not changed. But the boundaries of acceptable violence under this ceasefire are unacceptable for the Gulf states, who want to return to business as usual.
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