On Sunday, on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz said the Strait of Hormuz was an international waterway, thus Iran’s claim of ownership “is a violation of international law.”
Waltz said, “Well, you saw real confusion on the Iranian’s part. I think that shows the discord within their ranks after devastating attacks on their leadership. The foreign minister says it’s open, the IRGC says that it’s closed. Regardless, it’s the U.S. Navy and President Trump as the commander in chief that decides what ultimately comes in and comes out, and I think the bigger picture here is that the Iranian regime cannot hold the entire world’s economy hostage. They cannot mete out collective punishment because of a dispute over its nuclear program. It’s something that will not stand. It’s something in the United Nations that record 135 countries joined us and joined our gulf Arab allies in condemning including Iran’s attacks on ports, airport, roads, bridges, hotels, you name it. Even civilian neighborhoods with their drones and with their missiles. So Iran is increasingly isolated diplomatically. It’s struggling economically with its currency and foreign currency reserves tanking and at the end of the day they do not have the cards and they’re coming back to the table for a deal.”
