00:00It's been a total standstill for days in the Strait of Hormuz, a global choke point
00:05that a fifth of the world's oil must pass through.
00:08Iran, somewhere beyond these waves, has blocked the strait after more than a week of US and
00:13Israeli strikes.
00:15Iran has threatened ships trying to break the blockade, and started laying mines.
00:20US promises of a naval escort haven't yet materialized, and so ships like these sit
00:26at anchor, the crews unsure when or if they'll get through.
00:30With the world facing an oil crunch and soaring prices, the International Energy Agency, or
00:36IEA, has come out with an unprecedented response.
00:39I can now announce that IEA countries have unanimously decided to launch the largest ever release
00:49of emergency oil stocks in our agency's history.
00:56400 million barrels, more than twice what it released after Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
01:03Iran's leadership, though, says moves like this won't stop an oil shock.
01:07And it's vowed not to let even a liter of oil from the region reach the US or Israel in
01:12particular.
01:14You will not be able to keep oil and energy prices artificially low through economic life
01:19support.
01:20As we have already warned, if the war spreads across the region, expect oil to reach 200
01:25US dollars per barrel.
01:27Oil prices follow the level of security in the region, and the source of that insecurity
01:31is you.
01:33For his part, US President Donald Trump says he has already won the war, that oil prices
01:38will come down, and that the US will soon wrap up its objectives in Iran.
01:42But oil prices are already coming back down, and it's going to come down, but we're not
01:47leaving until that job is finished, and it's going to be very fast.
01:51Israel, though, has not used phrases like very fast, leaving the question of when peace
01:55will come open-ended.
01:58This operation will continue without any time limit, as long as necessary, until we achieve
02:04all the objectives and win the campaign.
02:06And on the ground in the Middle East, the war seems far from won by anyone.
02:22Iran says the US was behind the strike, and on Thursday, the New York Times reported that
02:40an initial inquiry by the Defense Department has found the US military was responsible.
02:46Iran's president has outlined three conditions for peace, recognition of what he calls Iran's
02:51legitimate rights, reparations, and stronger guarantees against a repeat of foreign attacks.
02:57But there are signs it's ready to keep going, if the US and Israel are.
03:01There's been at least one major cyberattack linked to Tehran.
03:05Meanwhile, strikes on oil infrastructure, like these fuel tankers in Iraqi waters, show this
03:10war isn't giving any signs of slowing down, as the world's energy supply hangs in the balance.
03:16Ryan Wu and John Van Trieste for Taiwan Plus.
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