In mid-March, I wrote that Iran in 2026 is like Japan in 1944. Now, with the Strait of Hormuz still blockaded and ceasefire talks unresolved, the United States in 2026 is beginning to resemble Imperial Japan in June 1942.
The Battle of Midway, fought in June 1942, was a decisive naval clash between the Imperial Japanese Navy and the U.S. Navy around Midway Island. It is often cited as a turning point in the Pacific War. Japan¡¯s naval forces suffered a crushing defeat, losing both the initiative and control of the seas.
Japan¡¯s strategy had been to inflict decisive damage on the U.S. Navy in the Western Pacific ¡ª including at Pearl Harbor ¡ª and then force a ceasefire while maintaining the upper hand in a short, decisive conflict. But the U.S. counterattack proved far greater than anticipated, and by 1942, the tide of the war had turned.
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