The United States on course for the same fate over Homuz as that of Britain in the Suez Canal.

Britain was once the most dominant power in the world especially in the 19th century all the way through to the mid 90s, boasting of a number of colonies around the world. One of these many colonies was Egypt. 

In this light of supremacy, other than just colonising the Egyptians, Britain went ahead and siezed control of the Suez Canal. 

The Suez Canal was the vital artery of the British Empire, cutting travel times to India in half by bypassing the Cape of Good Hope. 

Controlling this waterway was the backbone of British imperial strategy, ensuring swift military deployments, rapid trade and the security of Middle Eastern oil required for the Royal Navy.(The Royal Navy is the naval force of the United Kingdom).

Britain attained control of the Suez Canal through two primary steps:  purchasing a controlling share in the canal company in 1875 from Egypt's debt-ridden ruler (Khedive Ismail Pasha) and subsequently invading and occupying Egypt in 1882 to secure its investment and imperial trade routes. [1, 2, 3]

Here is the chronological breakdown of how it happened:

• Financial Crisis (1875): Egypt's Khedive Ismail Pasha faced severe financial ruin and was forced to sell his 44% stake in the Suez Canal Company. British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli seized the opportunity, securing a £4 million loan (equivalent to about £399 million today) to purchase the shares. [1, 2, 3]
• Military Occupation (1882): Egyptian nationalists, led by the Urabi Revolt, protested against heavy European intervention in their country's finances. Under the pretext of protecting the canal and European interests, Britain sent troops to occupy Egypt, taking total administrative and physical control of the canal. [1, 2, 3,]
• Formalizing Control: Britain declared Egypt a protectorate during World War I. Even after granting Egypt nominal independence in 1922, the British maintained a permanent military presence along the canal route until eventually withdrawing.

The UK lost its grip on the Suez Canal during the 1956 Suez Crisis. 

When Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the canal, Britain, France, and Israel launched a secret, coordinated invasion to retake it. 

However, intense political and financial pressure from the United States forced the UK into a humiliating withdrawal, definitively ending its reign as a global superpower. [1, 2, 3,]

The breakdown of this imperial stronghold unfolded in a few key stages:

• The Nationalization: Built primarily by French and Egyptian labor, the canal was a major economic artery for the British Empire. In July 1956, Nasser nationalized it to fund the construction of the Aswan High Dam. [1, 2, 3,]
• The Secret Invasion: Furious, the UK colluded with France and Israel. Israel attacked the Sinai Peninsula first, allowing Britain and France to intervene as "peacekeepers" who then bombed and invaded the canal zone. [1, 2, 3,]
• U.S. & Global Backlash: The invasion caused massive global outrage. The United States, led by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, strongly opposed the operation. Fearing a broader Cold War conflict and protecting its own Middle Eastern interests, Washington threatened to devastate the British economy by blocking International Monetary Fund (IMF) loans and selling off British pounds. [1, 2, 3]
• The Final Blow: Facing economic ruin, the UK was forced to order a ceasefire and withdraw. The botched crisis destroyed Britain's international standing and led to the resignation of Prime Minister Anthony Eden. [1, 2, 3,]

This military and diplomatic defeat marked the death knell for the British Empire, accelerating the rapid independence of its remaining colonies. [1, 2]

For more information on on this topic, please visit: https://www.iwm.org.uk/history/cold-war/end-of-empire/suez-crisis 

Currently, the Hormuz crisis is testing the limits of the broader, U.S-led global economic and security system. 

The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow, vital waterway located between Iran to the north and Oman and the United Arab Emirates to the south. It connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea, making it the only sea passage for ships to enter and exit the Persian Gulf. [1, 2, 3]

It is globally significant for a few key reasons:

• Global Energy Chokepoint: The strait of Hormuz is one of the world's most critical shipping routes, with roughly 20% of the world's petroleum and liquefied natural gas (LNG) passing through it daily. [1, 2]
• Strategic Location: At its narrowest point, the corridor is only 21 miles (33 km) wide. Because the navigable shipping channels are so narrow, passing vessels are confined to just a few miles wide, placing them in close proximity to Iranian territorial waters and military bases. [1, 2]
• Geopolitical Flashpoint: The strait frequently serves as a strategic bargaining chip and a major flashpoint in international conflicts. As a result of recent escalations and ongoing conflict involving the U.S, Israel, and Iran, the strait has been a volatile zone, causing massive disruptions to global shipping and global energy prices. [1, 2, 3,]

After forty days of intense fighting between the U.S and Israel on one hand against Iran during their       "Epic Fury" operation, a ceasefire was agreed upon between The United States and Iran. 

Overseen by Pakistan as the chief mediator, the ceasefire led to the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the U.S and Iran, which would hopefully be a stepping stone towards a final agreement.

However, hopes for a final agreement have already been shattered by Trump's ego, coupled with the Iranians' more hardened stance on the other hand. 

One of the contentious issues in this MOU is Article 5. That is: that Iran will use its best efforts to facilitate safe, toll-free commercial passage for 60 days, clear military and technical obstacles within 30 days, and hold discussions with Oman over the waterway's future management. [1, 2]

This clause has become the primary catalyst for the collapse of the US-Iran ceasefire. The two nations hold completely different interpretations of the article:

• United States Interpretation: The article is viewed as a multilateral guarantee for free, safe navigation and international coordination through the Strait. This therefore prompted the United States to try and make an alternative corridor in the strait of Hormus, other than that officially designated by Iran!
• Iran Interpretation: Tehran interprets the clause as recognizing its sovereign, exclusive authority and control to administer the Strait under Iranian arrangements.

With Trump determined to protect the Superpower status of the United States and the Iranians determined to resist U.S bullying as well, the world seems to be headed towards a very difficult time! 

Even after the signing of the MOU where it was agreed that Iran completely re open the stait of Hormus for free shipping, the Iranians are determined to maintain their control over the strategic water way.

Until now, Iran has firmly ensured that only ships that comply with the IRGC's strict guidelines for navigation of the strait, are allowed through the water way. Those that fail to comply are met with drones and missiles. 

This has upset U.S president Donald Trump who vows that he will never let Iran control the strategic waterway.

Important to note is that before the so-called Epic Fury, this water way was free for all! And now, the Iranians have asserted full control over it and vow never to restore the status quo of the strait. 

The Iranians also keep reaffirming that shipping companies will have no choice but to pay a service fee to them to be ensured of safe passage through the strait. 

Just like the Egyptians intended to use charges from the Suez to pay for the construction of the canal, the Iranians claim that this fee will help them rebuild their embattled country. 

Besides, having control over the strait gives them the much needed trump card over the arrogant Trump administration. 

Matter of fact, the Iranians are now able to bring the world economy to its knees thereby prompting U.S allies to pressure the U.S into ceasing hostilities against Iran. 

This of course cannot be accepted by President Trump who obviously does not want to carry the guilt of getting the world into economic depression. 

U.S secretary of State Marco Rubio, called the Iranians' ambitions of charging ships in the strait of Hormus "a fantansy that Iranians should abandon".

In a show of force, the Iranians attacked and damaged a ship that refused to comply with the IRGC's newly set guidelines, which prompted President Trump to order fresh strikes on Iran. 

The Iranians retaliated by hitting U.S military installations in the Middle East thereby jeopardising the newly singned MOU.

To say it plainly, without official announcement, the war between the U.S seems to have resumed. 

This time round, the United States focus seems to be centered on degrading Iran's capabilities to disrupt shipping in the strait of Hormus.

A battle for the control of the strait is underway with the U.S now becoming more destructive in its attacks.

Focusing more on Iran's coastal cities, the U.S army is not only hitting Iran's military installations but it is also deliberately destroying civilian infrastructure, from striking Telecom companies to powerstations to railway lines, all in the name of degrading Iran's abilities to control the Strait.

Arrogant as they are, the Americans are of course refusing to adapt to the new order of things. They seem determined to end Iran's control over the strategic waterway and bring to end the Iranians' use of the strait as a form of leverage.

All this happening amid Trump's announcement that the U.S intends to capture the strait of Homus from the Iranians and occupying it forever!

However, not bearing to lose their most useful card in the ongoing  war, the Iranians are holding onto the strait with gritted teeth. 

After the resumption of hostilities between the U.S and Iran, Iran has declared the strait completely closed again!

The recent heavy U.S strikes on Iran's military and civil infrastructure seem not to be yielding any results. 

Ships are still being targeted by Iran and according to ship tracking data, between 13th and 14th of July, only nine ships managed to make it through the strait. That is very low traffic as compared to over 100 ships that used to cross the strait before the joint U.S-Israel agression on Iran back in February. 

This means that inspite of the U.S military prowess across the Middle East, boasting of hundreds of fighter jets, warships and aircraft carriers, Iran, an average power is effectively holding onto the the strategic waterway.!

Thus, as the situation currently stands, it looks like President Trump is failing both on the military and diplomatic frontlines. 

Before Trump went off the diplomatic course and opted for a violent approach on Iran, the Iranians were a bit flexible. Read more: https://amwaldah.blogspot.com/2026/05/trumps-confusing-policy-on-iran-what.html

 However, Trump's arrogance of habitually abandoning the negotiation table to strike Iran has innoculated Iranians rather than weakened them. They seem oblivious to U.S power and it seems too, that any little respect they may have had for the United States is all but gone.  Read more: https://amwaldah.blogspot.com/2026/06/trumps-endless-assaults-on-iran-have.html

With U.S.A's traditional allies refusing to outrightly join its latest round of aggression in the Middle East, the U.S seems to be failing to win a war without the help of its NATO allies!

Since the beginning of their assault on Iran way back in February, the United States has been facing embarrassment after embarrassment at the hands of the Iranians' fierce retaliation. 

Iran's tit for tat strategy has seen the U.S suffer an unprecedented loss of valuable assets across the Gulf region and military personnel even when it has no boots on the ground in Iran, yet.

Worst of all, the U.S which has hitherto proclaimed itself as the world's leading provider of global security is humiliatingly failing to protect global shipping. Infact, some of its allies are beginning to view its strategies over Iran as more disruptive than order maintaining. Yet for decades, the U.S has proclaimed itself as the supreme enforcer of law and order around the globe.

U.S NATO allies seem to have secretly and unanimously agreed to stay on the sidelines and watch the U.S fall rather than fall along with it.

By abandoning Iran's nuclear crisis and shifting all its attention and power to fighting for the control of the strait of Hormus, the U.S is now acting like a blind man walking on his own. Losing direction and walking around in circles! Applying the same strategies that have already failed to yield desired results. Re imposition of sanctions, abandoning peace talks in favour of military strikes on Iran,        re imposition of a naval blockade on Iran! Repeating the cycle and expecting different results! 

Read more on President Trump's zig zag strategy on Iran here:   https://amwaldah.blogspot.com/2026/05/trumps-confusing-policy-on-iran-what.html 

By openly declaring their intentions to take over the strait of Hormus, a mission that currently seems impossible, it looks as if the U.S is putting a rope around the neck of its military standing on the global stage and the rope seems to be getting longer with each passing day!

Every humiliation it faces in the ongoing war with Iran happens before the eyes of those who thought the U.S was some kind of demi-god. 

The U.S has invested alot in this war and suffered unprecedented losses as well. [1]

Meanwhile, China, which seeks to overtake U.S.A as the global economic superpower, is quietly making trade deals with Europe and Gulf countries. 

Should the U.S fail in its ambitions in Iran and the strait of Hormus in particular, this could mark the beginning of the crumbling of the very mighty U.S empire. 

Alliances that have been built on fear and deceit for eight decades now could begin to splinter as many countries will have realisied that the red comb on the head of the United States is not actually as hot as they thought it was. 

If the Trump administration refuses to back down a little, it could be destined for the same fate as that of Britain over the Suez Canal in 1956!

Related article:

 https://amwaldah.blogspot.com/2026/06/trump-should-get-off-high-horse-accept.html

Please subscribe here for free:

https://amwaldah.blogspot.com/?m=1