U.S. Reasserts Decisive Naval Power in Strait of Hormuz
The United States has imposed a full naval blockade of Iranian ports and launched minesweeping missions in the Strait of Hormuz, reviving the decisive tactics of the 1988 Operation Praying Mantis.
In March 1987, Iran attacked Gulf shipping during the Tanker War, prompting Kuwait to request U.S. protection; President Ronald Reagan ordered the tankers reflagged under Operation Earnest Will.
Two-week war games held before the first convoy pitted a Green team, which advocated a robust, military‑centric response, against a Blue team that favored a restrained, proportional approach, according to DeVore, a former Army lieutenant colonel.
The Green team’s plan projected about 50 U.S. casualties, while the Blue team’s scenario expected roughly 1,500 American deaths, DeVore told the foundation.
When an Iranian mine nearly sank the USS Samuel B. Roberts in April 1988, the Reagan administration adopted the Green team’s decisive concept, striking Iranian oil platforms, a frigate, a gunboat and several speedboats, inflicting 56 Iranian deaths while suffering only two Marine injuries.
Today, the United States applies overwhelming force to reopen the Strait, through which 20 % of global oil and LNG transits, aiming to starve the regime of the revenue that funds its military and nuclear ambitions.
Critics warn that such escalation could raise civilian costs, but DeVore argues that decades of alternating appeasement and limited strikes have already prolonged the conflict and increased American casualties.
Operation Epic Fury, a joint U.S.–Israeli campaign, demonstrated that rapid, overwhelming strikes on leadership, missile, naval and industrial targets can cripple Iran’s conventional capabilities within weeks.
The current blockade and minesweeping extend that logic to the economic sphere, targeting Iran’s oil exports to choke the regime’s financial lifeline and accelerate its collapse.
DeVore emphasizes that ignoring the lessons of Praying Mantis—particularly the danger of proportional responses—poses a serious risk, noting that the Trump administration is applying the same decisive principles.
History shows that rejecting proportionality and embracing swift, overwhelming force limits American casualties, secures energy lanes and weakens the theocratic grip on the region.
