Trump in a Bind: Strait of Hormuz Blockade Could Become a "Weapon That Backfires"
Trump in a Bind: Strait of Hormuz Blockade Could Become a “Weapon That Backfires”
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - The failure of peace negotiations between the United States (US) and Iran has left President Donald Trump facing several unpalatable choices. This is especially true after he announced a blockade of the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz for global oil supplies.
Several analysts say Trump’s decision could become a “weapon that backfires”. Trump is merely stalling for time, and it even seems as though he does not know what else to do.
This was at least stated by a senior researcher at the Middle East Institute, Brian Katulis. He said Trump speaks without preparation and makes threats that bewilder his close aides.
“He might just be buying time to deploy more military assets or because he doesn’t know what else to do,” he said, as reported by AFP on Monday (13/4/2026).
“I wouldn’t call it a strategy; it’s a military-centred approach without a strategy,” he added.
A professor of peace and development at the University of Maryland in the US and researcher at the Brookings Institution think tank, Shibley Telhami, said much the same. The blockade threat, he said, is “confusing and seemingly counterproductive”.
“Iran no longer trusts Trump,” Telhami said.
“It’s hard to overstate the impact of this on America’s remaining global credibility.”
Meanwhile, a researcher at Israel’s National Institute for Security Studies, Danny Citrinowicz, said a naval blockade would indeed increase risks to US forces. And such prolonged military involvement might not be well-received by Americans, who say they are “worried and stressed about the conflict that began at the end of February”.
“There is little reason to believe that a blockade would force Iran to capitulate. On the contrary, Iran’s proven resilience so far suggests otherwise,” Citrinowicz wrote on X.
“The geographical scale and Iran’s military capabilities mean that sustaining such operations would require substantial and prolonged allocation of American resources,” he added.
A prior CBS News poll published on Sunday revealed far greater concern, stress, and anger among US citizens than feelings of security and confidence. This was when those surveyed were asked about their feelings regarding the US-Iran war.
More than 80% of respondents said the US should seek to reopen the strait and increase global access to oil, which would lower petrol prices and ensure that the Iranian people are “free”. Fewer than 10% said they believed those goals had been achieved.
“I don’t see how, after more than 40 days of this war, we are safer, our allies are safer. I’m not even sure Israel is safer,” said US Democratic Senator Mark Warner on Sunday during the “State of the Union” talk show on CNN International.
“I don’t understand how blockading the strait would pressure Iran to open it. I don’t understand the connection,” he stressed.
Another Democratic Senator, Tim Kaine, sees the US’s next steps as not an easy path. This is considering that Trump himself withdrew the US from the 2015 agreement reached by Tehran on limiting its nuclear programme in exchange for the lifting of sanctions.
“This isn’t an easy negotiation because the last negotiation that led to controlling Iran’s nuclear programme, the US decided to cancel it and leave the agreement,” Kaine said, still as reported by CNN International.