State Department Warns Americans To 'Exercise Caution'
State Department Warns Americans To ‘Exercise Increased Caution’ Due To Iran War
The war in Iran is having a global impact beyond the Middle East and the United States, as gas prices are dramatically increasing everywhere. As a result of the Iran war and the potential of growing anti-American sentiment, the State Department issued a warning on Sunday telling Americans to exercise increased caution as they travel internationally.
“The Department of State advises Americans worldwide, and especially in the Middle East, to exercise increased caution,” the alert reads. “Americans abroad should follow the guidance in security alerts issued by the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate. Periodic airspace closures may cause travel disruptions. U.S. diplomatic facilities, including outside the Middle East, have been targeted. Groups supportive of Iran may target other U.S. interests overseas or locations associated with the United States and/or Americans throughout the world.”
While Trump said the war in Iran would be over within a matter of four to five weeks, we’re over a month into the conflict with no end in sight. Even if the war were to end this week, oil prices would still be at record highs. According to the New York Times, Fatih Birol, the leader of the International Energy Agency, told the Australian press that global leaders aren’t properly assessing how severe the impact of the Iran war has been on oil prices.
“It will take some time to come back to the normal days we had before the war was started,” Birol said. He added that the war in Iran has caused oil exports to drop by 10%, which roughly equals 11 million barrels a day. That’s a more dramatic disruption than both the oil shocks of 1973 and 1979 combined, and is far more severe than the disruption caused by the start of the Russia-Ukraine war four years ago.
The reasons for the oil disruption are complex. First, the ongoing strikes on Iran have effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, through which much of the world’s oil is transported. The other major cause for the price increases has been Iran’s retaliatory strikes on liquefied natural gas (LNG) processing facilities in Qatar. The strikes reduced Qatar’s ability to export LNG by 17%, with Saad al-Kaabi, Qatar’s energy minister, saying it may take five years to restore production output fully.
The disruption of transportation routes, as well as the destruction of several oil facilities, has resulted in the price of oil barrels continually increasing.
The increase in gas prices isn’t just an American problem, either, as AP reports that people in countries all over the world are struggling to make ends meet as fuel prices dramatically increase. “Everything is going up,” Felicia Iwasa, of Lagos, Nigeria, told AP. “The economy is not easy for us.” In the Philippines, the drastic increase in diesel prices has impacted “jeepney” drivers. Jeepneys have become an iconic part of Filipino culture, but rising gas prices have several drivers considering switching professions if things don’t improve soon. Sandy Roño, 34, told AP that he couldn’t make his rent last month and missed a payment on his jeepney. “I’ll stop driving and look for another job,” Roño told AP.
So yeah, folks, the U.S. government hasn’t just made domestic life harder but has also caused financial strife on a global scale that doesn’t appear to be abating any time soon. All over an unnecessary war about weapons of mass destruction that don’t exist. So if you happen to be traveling abroad, keep your head on a swivel. While it’s not your fault (unless, you know, you voted for all this), it’s understandable if other cultures are feeling some type of way about Americans at the moment.
SEE ALSO:
Trump Sends ICE To US Airports To Help TSA And Target Immigrants, Of Course
Is ICE A Terrorist Organization? Intelligence Expert Malcolm Nance Explains
