Simon Henderson is the Baker Senior Fellow and director of the Bernstein Program on Gulf and Energy Policy at The Washington Institute, specializing in energy matters and the conservative Arab states of the Persian Gulf.
Articles & Testimony
The Persian Gulf is more crucial in oil terms, but if hostilities expand to the Red Sea, Iran could gain extra leverage against its adversaries on energy and trade matters.
The Turkish incursion into northern Syria is dominating the news, but an incident in the Red Sea on Friday morning could turn out to be of equal geostrategic significance. The Iranian tanker Sabiti, carrying 1 million barrels of oil destined for Syria, apparently was attacked by two explosive projectiles. The National Iranian Oil Company said the damage had been caused “likely by missiles.” The ship promptly turned around and headed back towards Iran. Based on current information, the notion that this was an attack manufactured by Iran to make it look like an injured party remains possible...
