I'm John Batchler. I welcome my colleague and mentor Gregory Copley, the editor and publisher of Defense and Foreign Affairs.

An important announcement, Defense and Foreign Affairs is moving to the new generation.

Gregory will remain editor emeritus. When is that to happen, Gregory? Good day to you.

Good day, John, and it's happening today, actually. So I don't know whether that means more work or less work for me, but I'll continue writing

until I run over by the proverbial bus.

And the new issue will be online only, which gives us access globally and easily, and not paper

copy.

So Gregory's moved defense and foreign affairs into the hands who's going to bring

it up to the digital age. Even AI can reference it incorrectly, eventually. However, we move now to a

concern that will certainly be part of the conversation for years to come, which is the Strait of Hormuz

and what is to be done. The summary is this, Gregory. The Strait of Hormuz and what is to be done.

The summary is this, Gregory, the Strait of Hormuz is closed, especially in terms of ensuring safe passage through it.

The U.S. Navy wants to give up its part of the enclosing, that is, an embargo on Iran,

into or out of Iran for gain and for customers.

The Iranians claim that they want it closed because they don't want anybody rewarding the U.S. and Israel for their unprovoked attacks on Iran.

That is the Strait of Hormuz.

The story is much larger than that, but most recently we've had news that the president

wants this ceasefire to be extended and the Strait of Hormuz reopened.

However, Iran wants not only that, it wants the cash.

It says that the U.S. is improperly kept from it in assets around the world.

It also wants concessions that they won't be attacked again by other Israel or the United States.

And it also wants protection for Hezbollah, its armed wing in Lebanon.

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