U.S.-Iran tensions have been heating up quickly amid continued Houthi-U.S. skirmishes in Yemen and the Red Sea. The Houthis, who are viewed by some as an Iranian proxy militia, have a very close friendship with Tehran. In the United States, the escalating conflict is now prompting debates about whether the U.S. should take more direct action against Iran itself, instead of just the Houthi militias.

Straight Arrow News contributor Peter Zeihan outlines three main options for a U.S. response to Iran and the Houthis.

The following is an edited excerpt from Peter’s Jan. 30 “Zeihan on Geopolitics” newsletter:

Three U.S. soldiers were killed in a drone attack carried out by an Iranian militia near the Jordan-Syria border. I expect a timely retaliation by the U.S., but what will that look like?

The Biden administration could choose to target Iranian-backed militias, Iranian military assets, or even Iran’s economy directly. Some of these are a bit more involved, but disrupting oil exports wouldn’t take much more than a fly-by of Iran’s primary export terminal on Kharg Island.

There will likely be global repercussions regardless of which option the U.S. chooses; however, given the United States’ limited reliance on Middle Eastern energy, disrupting that system could prove beneficial for North American interests.