Buying crude oil from Iran or Russia, regardless of the sanctions imposed by the US, is a loss-making deal.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) has released a video showing a merchant ship being prevented from entering an Iranian port. A US Navy ship has also been instructed to divert the ship to another port in the Gulf of Oman. The video has gone viral to show that US forces are strictly enforcing President Donald Trump's announcement of a complete blockade of Iranian ports.
In addition to this video, US Defense Secretary Scott Besant has also announced that the concessions granted by the US President on the purchase of Iranian and Russian oil will not be extended. After the expiry of the period, an additional 25 percent tariff will be imposed on countries purchasing crude oil from these two countries. While both these actions are examples of American arbitrariness, they are also proof of the impotence that has arisen from the failure of the rest of the world to mobilize against it.
It is worth mentioning that British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron had separately announced in the past that countries importing crude oil and natural gas from Arab countries through the Strait of Hormuz were being jointly organized to enable unhindered use of this waterway. Despite this announcement, no effective step has been seen so far towards developing a new global or trade alliance.
One reason for this could be that the countries suffering from the disruption in oil supplies from West Asia are currently looking towards the second round of the Islamabad talks between the US and Iran. It is hoped that this round will be conducive to making a 'deal' possible between the US and Iran. It is a different matter that on the one hand Trump is giving hints that a 'deal' is possible, but on the other hand he is on the path of stopping the supply of crude oil from Arab countries to the rest of the world. Due to this, the rest of the world is constantly being forced to buy oil at expensive prices.
Buying crude oil from Iran or Russia, regardless of the sanctions imposed by the US, is a losing deal even for a powerful country like China; this is a global economic reality. International trade is mainly done through US dollars. Even though the Chinese yuan has now made its mark in global trade, it is almost impossible to ignore the dominance of the dollar.
Through this hegemony, while the US is on the path of manipulating international financial markets according to its wishes, on the other hand, it is also pursuing a strategy of controlling the supply of the main sources of energy - petroleum and uranium - in the global market. By taking control of Venezuela's oil reserves, it has gained control over the entire North (and Central) American oil resources. Now the same strategy of domination is being tried in West Asia as well.
This strategy is causing huge losses to India, and to a certain extent China, but the world's smaller countries are being hit the hardest. Petrol and diesel rationing is in effect in Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh. In the Philippines, there are riots at oil pumps due to the shortage of these oils. Although America has no shortage of petrol and oil for its needs, it is still eager to make this energy source more sustainable for itself than the rest of the world and wants to keep every land under its control that still has reserves of petrol and gas in its womb.
Trump says that by freeing the Strait of Hormuz from Iranian 'blackmail', he wants to secure the business interests of his Arab allies, while also bringing the rest of the world's economy back on track by ensuring a reduction in oil prices. This is pure propaganda; the one who created the economic crisis for the entire world is now dreaming of being crowned the 'Messiah of Prosperity'! The rest of the world needs to unite against such arrogance. Starmer, Macron, Xi Jinping or Narendra Modi should not be limited to mere rhetoric; they should also oppose Trump's arbitrariness and take practical steps to build a common platform against it.
