At one of the world's most consequential chokepoints, the United States military has staked a public claim to dominance. A US Central Command spokesman told Al Jazeera in mid-September that American forces have kept the Strait of Hormuz beyond Iranian reach since May, citing 900 million barrels of oil transited as proof. In a region where energy flows and geopolitical leverage are inseparable, the assertion is as much a message to allies and adversaries as it is a military report — a reminder that control of a waterway can be its own form of power.