Bardia Farahmand (Expert in International Affairs)
In the sphere of 21st-century international politics, the concept of “power” has fundamentally shifted from physical control over territory to the control of “flows.”[^1] What we are witnessing under the so-called Trump Doctrine of 2026 is, beyond an aggressive foreign policy, a re-engineering of the world’s security architecture. This strategy is based on the premise that to contain revisionist powers like China and regional actors such as Iran, one must not rely solely on military confrontation but rather rewrite the operating system of global trade and energy.
1. Geopolitics of Chokepoints: The Strategic Link of Hormuz and Malacca
From a structural realist perspective, control over energy flows is the primary instrument of hegemony. CENTCOM’s action on April 13, 2026, to block Iranian ports and impose strict surveillance over the Strait of Hormuz is not merely a tactical move against Tehran. This move must be analyzed in conjunction with recent defense agreements between Washington and Jakarta.
The Strait of Malacca, as China’s most vital artery, represents Beijing’s strategic vulnerability. By strengthening its presence in Indonesia and dominating the Sunda, Lombok, and Makassar Straits, the United States is effectively completing a “maritime encirclement chain.” The temporal symmetry between applying pressure on Iran in West Asia and reinforcing presence in Indonesia in Southeast Asia indicates a systematic approach to placing China in a double bind:
At the source: Cutting or limiting oil flows from the Persian Gulf (centered on Iran).
Along the route: Achieving complete control over the entry points from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific.
2. “Structural Decoupling”[^2] and Energy Security
Recent talks with Pakistan and Washington’s maximalist demands (such as a 20-year halt on uranium enrichment and monitoring Hormuz navigation) signal the US has moved beyond a policy of “behavior modification” toward “eliminating Iranian agency.” From the perspective of international political economy, the ultimate goal is the complete decoupling of Iran’s economy from the global value chain.
Meanwhile, by redirecting Venezuelan oil flows toward its own refineries, the United States is implementing a policy of “insularizing energy security.” This strategy pursues two objectives: 1. Reducing domestic vulnerability to price fluctuations caused by Middle Eastern tensions. 2. Transforming energy into a geopolitical weapon against China, forcing Beijing to accept new rules of the game dictated by Washington in order to meet its needs.
3. The Rise of Australia: The Security Node of the 21st Century
A key point overlooked in traditional analyses is Australia’s emerging role in this global chess game. While Indonesia and Iran are physical chokepoints, Australia is transforming into an unsinkable aircraft carrier and a logistical center of gravity in the Pacific Ocean.
New security pacts (such as the evolved version of the AUKUS pact[^3]) and the deployment of advanced defensive and offensive equipment in northern Australia have turned this country from a peripheral actor into a strategic linchpin. Due to its unique geographical location, Australia provides the United States with strategic depth that is not available in Japan or South Korea due to their proximity to mainland China. In the coming years, Australia will play a decisive role in containing China, not only as a supplier of critical minerals but also as the primary base for controlling the communication lines of the South Pacific.
Conclusion: The End of the Liberal Order or the Beginning of a New Hegemony?
US actions in April 2026 signal the end of the era of “open globalization” and the beginning of the era of “controlled globalization.” In this paradigm, national security takes precedence over economic efficiency, and geography has returned to the diplomatic arena with even greater intensity. Iran, in this context, is the starting point of a large domino effect, whose ultimate goal is to cement absolute US supremacy over the vital resources and routes of this century and decisively contain the rise of the East. The new great game is no longer about the acquisition of territory but about managing access to the global network.