Why Trump Is Eyeing Iran’s Kharg Island Oil Export Hub

Iran’s oil exports are almost completely dependent on a small outpost in the Persian Gulf: Kharg Island.

Lying 15 miles (24 kilometers) off the Iranian mainland, the island is the loading point for around 90% of the country’s crude shipments. Exports have only dipped slightly since the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran, as the Islamic Republic has continued to send its own vessels through the Strait of Hormuz while effectively closing the waterway to all but approved ships from elsewhere.