Iran War: Trump Claims Time on US Side, Iran Disputes Leadership Divisions

Fifty days into the conflict in Iran, The Economist reports a loss of 550 million barrels of Gulf crude, amounting to nearly 2% of last year's worldwide production. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has resulted in a suspension of 7 million tonnes of LNG each month. Following the assassination of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Trump suggested a rift among Iranian leaders; however, analysts like Mehrat Kamrava and Trita Parsi contend that the leadership is actually unified. Iranian officials have publicly denied any divisions. The US Navy is absent from the Strait, while Iran has reactivated the VLCC NASHA for oil storage. The USS George H.W. Bush has joined the USS Abraham Lincoln and USS Gerald R. Ford. Israel's Defense Minister announced a willingness to continue the war. Bloomberg noted that 7,645 buildings in Iran have been damaged, with estimated losses of $270 billion. The IMF forecasts inflation to exceed 70%. China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi has made 30 calls regarding the conflict, and President Xi Jinping has advocated for reopening the Strait. Japan plans to import 1 million barrels of crude from Mexico. The US State Department acknowledged that neither the US nor Israel were preparing for a potential attack on February 28.