Just finished perusing Covid and Coffee and have to wonder if this is why Melania came out and spoke - to sidetrack what is really happening in Iran.

“We’ve now started the process of clearing (mines) out (of) the Strait of Hormuz as a favor to Countries all over the World,” the President said. Clearing them slowly. Now consider his very next sentence: “Very interestingly, however, empty Oil carrying ships from many Nations are all heading to the United States of America to LOAD UP with Oil.” In other words, the US benefits from the mines. It couldn’t be clearer.

But it’s terrible for the fair-weather allies in Europe.

🚀 In an April 8th article, JustSecurity reported, “The head of the International Energy Agency has described the blockade as more consequential than the disruptions of 1973, 1979, and 2022 combined. The disruptions have cascaded well beyond energy markets: fertilizer shipments are blocked, food insecurity concerns are mounting, and aluminum and helium markets have been severely affected.” In Europe and Asia, that is.

Meanwhile, Europe’s leadership and its best policy minds have held a series of emergency meetings to discuss how best to respond to the continent’s crisis, and whether or not to send their own ships to aid the reopening effort (not). But the emergency deliberations swiftly ran aground when delegates fiercely debated over whether lunch should be gluten-free, and which of 24 languages the bratwurst order should be placed in.

In a joint meeting with Vice President JD Vance in Budapest (who was heading to Iranian peace negotiations in Pakistan), Hungarian president Viktor Orban called it potentially the most serious energy crisis in history:

It’s not a very good time to lose track of the mines and also refuse to help find them. Spain is reportedly “wooing” China (which has no spare oil). In Germany this week, gas at the pump was running around $10/gallon, or $250 to fill a 25-gallon tank. So. Carry on, amigos.