IEA head Fatih Birol highlights severe economic risks from the Iran conflict and Strait of Hormuz closure.
The International Energy Agency chief Fatih Birol warned that the global economy faces a major threat due to the ongoing crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, as stated in his address to Australia's National Press Club on March 23, 2026.
Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz in response to attacks, causing energy prices to soar and disrupting global oil supplies, according to reports from the source.
Context of the Conflict
The closure stems from the US-Israel war against Iran, with Iran threatening to destroy key infrastructure if provoked further, as per statements attributed to Iranian officials.
US President Donald Trump issued a 48-hour deadline for Iran to reopen the strait, set to expire on March 23, 2026, and threatened military action if not complied with.
The Israeli military announced strikes on Tehran on March 23, 2026, targeting Iranian infrastructure, with explosions reported in the capital by local media.
Birol compared the current situation to the oil crises of the 1970s and the economic fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine, describing it as a combination of multiple energy shocks.
He emphasized that no country would be immune to the effects and called for global efforts to reopen the strait as the primary solution to mitigate the crisis.
