Mark Sleboda: US Navy Just Fled From Iran – Trump’s Blockade Backfires in Humiliating Defeat

Mark Sleboda asserts that the US Navy's 'blockade' of Iranian shipping is largely a 'sham' and ineffective. The US Navy maintains a significant distance from the Iranian coastline due to fear of Iran's anti-ship capabilities. Iranian tankers exploit this by hugging their own coast, then entering Pakistani and Indian territorial waters, where the US is unwilling to conduct interdictions due to diplomatic repercussions. This strategy allows dozens of Iranian tankers to evade US interception for every few caught far out in the Indian Ocean.

The US Navy has 16 ships in the theater, but Iranian tankers skirt the Iranian coast and then enter Pakistani or Indian territorial waters for innocent passage. The US has only stopped four ships, while 34 unintercepted tankers were reported by the Financial Times and Lloyds.

The US military is critically low on key munitions, including air defense interceptors and standoff cruise missiles. This depletion, a result of supporting Ukraine, fighting Houthis, and previous strikes on Iran, means the US cannot sustain a long-range attrition war. This vulnerability could prevent the US from effectively responding to major geopolitical threats from powers like China or Russia for years.

CNN, New York Times, Washington Post, and Financial Times reported on critically low inventory levels of Tomahawks and air-launched cruise missiles. Production rates are so low it will take five to six years to rebuild stockpiles, leaving the US unable to deal with major powers like Russia and China, potentially allowing China to take Taiwan without US intervention.

Iran holds 'escalatory dominance' over the US in the current conflict. It has clearly outlined its escalating responses to further US aggression, including closing the Bab el-Mandeb Straits (through Houthi allies), severing undersea internet cables vital for global finance, and targeting major Saudi and UAE oil infrastructure. These actions would inflict devastating blows to the global economy, potentially leading to a global depression.

Iran has threatened to close the Bab el-Mandeb Straits, sever internet cables in the Strait of Hormuz and Red Sea (impacting UAE as a global financial center), and take out the Yanbu pipeline and a major UAE port/refinery.

Mark Sleboda repeatedly characterizes Donald Trump as 'unhinged,' 'mentally deranged,' and a 'madman,' arguing that his narcissism and megalomania are not just character flaws but mental problems. This state leads to irrational decision-making, as evidenced by the Pentagon reportedly telling Trump to stay out of the situation room and unconfirmed reports of him attempting to use nuclear weapons.

The Washington Post reported that Pentagon brass told Trump to 'stay out of the situation room' during a search and rescue operation for an F-15 weapons officer, citing his mental and emotional instability. Unconfirmed reports also circulated that Trump asked to use nuclear weapons and was refused access by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs.

The US-Israeli 'unprovoked war of aggression' against Iran has inadvertently led to Iran's emergence as a 'fourth great power' in the global order. Iran's ability to withstand US regime change efforts and its leverage over critical maritime chokepoints (Strait of Hormuz, Bab el-Mandeb) grant it significant influence and 'bragging rights' on the global stage.

Major Western publications like the New York Times have reported that the biggest outcome of the war has been Iran's emergence as a 'fourth, if distant, great power' due to its potential control and leverage over the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb straits.