Despite the lopsided losses suffered by Iran in its war with the United States and Israel, Iran was able to hold its own through economic damage inflicted through its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. But this strategy has a short shelf life.

When Iran implemented its blockade of the strait in March, the seaborne trade of one-fifth of the world’s oil ground to a halt, triggering economic chaos around the world. This “energy card” proved to be Iran’s ace in the hole and forced Washington to switch its war aims from the maximalist demands of regime change in the opening days of the conflict to the more reserved nuclear negotiations and desperate attempts to restore the status quo of the strait.