The U.N. Security Council is scheduled to vote Friday on a proposal to secure the Strait of Hormuz after it was significantly watered down in the face of opposition from China and Russia about allowing force to reopen the critical waterway that Iran has largely cut off to global shipping.
The final draft of Bahrain's resolution, obtained Thursday by The Associated Press, authorizes the use of defensive — but not offensive — action to ensure vessels can safely transit the strait. One-fifth of the world's oil typically passes through the waterway where Iran's stranglehold during the war has sent energy prices soaring.
Bahrain’s initial draft resolution would have allowed countries “to use all necessary means” — U.N. language that would include possible military action — “in the Strait of Hormuz, the Gulf and the Gulf of Oman” to secure passage and deter attempts to interfere with navigation.
