World should act

2026-03-23 - 22:00

THE war of aggression initiated by the United States and Israel against Iran is expanding with the passage of every day with serious consequences for almost all countries of the globe but regrettably the influential capitals are not showing the level of interest they should to help end hostilities. As invaders have miserably failed to achieve their original objectives, in desperation, they are opening new fronts, targeting residential areas with immunity, carrying out false flag operations in their bid to drag Gulf countries into war, hitting nuclear facilities and are now threatening to blow up Iran’s energy infrastructure. Iran is responding with intensive missile attacks on Israel and the US bases in the region with chilling warnings it will completely block the Strait of Hormuz and target oil and gas installations as well as IT and desalination facilities in Gulf countries if its energy infrastructure was destroyed. In this backdrop, credit goes to Turkiye for its aggressive diplomatic efforts aimed at de-escalation as highlighted by the telephonic call by its Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan to his Iranian and Egyptian counterparts as well as with US and EU officials. These efforts need to be complemented by China, Russia and European countries as the emerging scenario could spell havoc not only to the world economy but also lead to the loss of more lives. The Jewish state has a vested interest in prolonging the conflict but the United States apparently wants some sort of face saving to end the aimless war and this should be provided through dialogue and discussions. Iran too has shown flexibility by selectively closing Hormuz. In a statement, Iran’s central command authority, the Khatam al-Anbiya, pointed out that ‘the Strait of Hormuz is only closed to enemies and harmful traffic; it has not yet been completely closed and is under our intelligent control’. Iran’s representative to the UN maritime agency also stated that his country is ready to cooperate with the International Maritime Organization to improve maritime safety and protect seafarers in the Gulf. However, the 48-hour ultimatum of President Trump to Iran for reopening of Hormuz is fraught with serious implications as Tehran has vowed not to bow down against such threats, adding it has the capability to completely close the passage in case the US and Israel attacked its power infrastructure. The situation calls for a prompt diplomatic solution of the deepening crisis before it becomes too late.