Last week.. The president announced an international coalition of countries who have agreed to support escorts for ships through the Strait of Hormuz.

The following is a transcript of a report from “Full Measure with Sharyl Attkisson.”
Watch the video by clicking the link at the end of the page.

At least 17 ships, including ten oil tankers, have been attacked in or near the Strait of Hormuz since the start of operation epic fury on feb 28.

The narrow waterway is just over 20 miles wide. Iran, using small boats and especially drones to target tankers.

Duncan Wood: About one-fifth of the world’s oil passes through the Strait of Hormuz every day. And that’s roughly equivalent to all of the oil is consumed in the United States, even though the United States doesn’t actually get its oil from there. So it is having a huge impact upon oil markets right now.

Duncan Wood is an expert on international energy and trade and a fellow at the non-partisan Wilson Center in Washington.

Scott: A lot of people are going to say, “Well, if we’re not getting our oil from there, why are we so impacted?”

Duncan Wood: Right. So it’s not a question of supply. It’s a question of markets becoming tighter. And of course, because these are private companies that are producing the oil here in the United States, they can sell that oil wherever they like around the world. And of course, demand is rising in places that traditionally got their oil from the Middle East. And so we’re seeing that there is obviously increasing demand and certain parts of the world are willing to pay a lot more to get their hands on oil at this point in time.

Since the outbreak of the Iran conflict, international oil and energy markets have been in a state of high-altitude turbulence.

The impact has been swift. In the United States, despite being a net energy exporter, retail gas prices on average up more than 90 cents. Asia, which relies on the middle east for nearly 60 percent of its crude imports. Now the epicenter of an energy scramble as nations enact emergency measures just to keep the lights on.

Duncan Wood: The price shock that we’re experiencing right now is relatively moderate here in the US, but there is a risk, of course, that things could get a lot worse if we don’t see a rapid resolution.

President Trump promising last week, both a resolution, and reduction in gas prices soon.

Trump: And as soon as that war is over, which will be soon, your prices are going to drop like a rock, you watch.

But maybe.. not so fast. american oil executives delivered a bleak message to Trump officials in recent days: the energy crisis the iran war has unleashed is likely to get worse, if the flow of oil through the strait remains strained,

In an effort to boost oil supplies, Trump calling on the new government in Venezuela, installed after the US captured president Maduro, to work with US oil companies to increase production quickly.

Scott (09:22): Is there a benefit to the United States that comes from having maybe a little bit better relations with Venezuela so that when everything is going on as it is now in Iran, we can kind of not worry so much about the brunt?

Duncan Wood:I think so, I think that the more production there is outside of a region like the Middle East, the more stable global markets are going to be, and certainly the United States willingness to tolerate instability in the Middle East is much higher if they can get their oil from elsewhere.

Scott: So if we’re seeing what’s happening in Iran and Venezuela, there are some people who want to connect some dots and say, “This is part of a larger overall strategy to weaken China.” Accurate or a step too far?

Duncan Wood: I can’t say whether or not there is an actual strategy, but certainly both of these actions do weaken China, this is not just about taking out the leadership of the Iranian regime, it’s having long-term consequences for strategic competition between the United States and China and between the United States and Russia as well.

Scott : You mentioned China. They import more than 10 million barrels a day. And until recently, Iran and Venezuela were two of their key suppliers. Obviously, the game has changed a bit. What does this all mean for China?

Duncan Wood: China is deeply worried. Their overall energy costs are going to rise, their energy insecurity is going to rise, and that’s going to mean that there are higher costs for manufacturing, and we’re already seeing that beginning to play out even before the actions by the United States in Iran. The Chinese government recently announced growth targets of less than 5% for the first time in many, many years

The impact of the strait may be straining international relations: president trump says his much anticipated trip to china this month will be postponed by several weeks as he focuses his attention on operation epic fury.

For Full Measure, I’m Scott Thuman.

Watch the video here.