Trump is winning the Iran war— stay the course

By 

Post Editorial Board

Published Aug. 23, 2026, 6:20 p.m. ET1.1K Comments

See more of our coverage in your search results.Add The New York Post on Google

Even before Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent sets out new US moves to pressure Iran’s economy, things are looking increasing grim for Tehran; President Donald Trump is clearly winning and mainly needs to hold firm as the enemy tries to wriggle out.

Crucially, oil is now flowing through the Strait of Hormuz, meaning Tehran’s gambit of closing it has failed.

And the neighbors that Iran has been attacking have had enough: Its largest trading partner, the United Arab Emirates, last week cut off all transactions including financial ones.

Dubai for decades has been key to Tehran’s evasion of sanctions as well as over a third of its imports.

Iranian inflation was already running over 90% amid mass unemployment and other crises, leaving the regime increasingly unable to pay its regular army.

Friday’s news was huge: US escorts now have oil flowing steadily through the Strait, with 200 ships a week (and rising) now transiting safely, up nearly 400% from just two weeks earlier.

That’s still below pre-war levels, but good enough (along with other shifts in production and export routes around the world) to keep oil prices manageable — albeit up painfully from January’s level.

Iran’s leaders are now doing another round of bad-cop/good-cop, with one set frothing at the mouth with threats while others insist they want peace and offer to renew negotiations — an “offer” that, if Washington bites, will quickly turn into demands for preemptive US concessions before they’ll even pretend to talk meaningfully.