# Blockade Brinkmanship: Richard Fontaine

An episode of [NatSec Matters](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1711240452), 29 Apr 2026, 58 min.

Audio: https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/6ef5eecd-b84d-413c-9ce6-9db304c42390/Episode_141_-_Richard_Fontaine_mixdown.mp3?dest-id=4161986

Michael welcomes Richard Fontaine, CEO of the Center for a New American Security, to evaluate the sustainability of the US economic blockade in the Strait of Hormuz and the realistic prospects for a nuclear breakthrough with Iran. Richard provides a reality check on the administration's declarations of victory, explaining why a meaningful nuclear agreement remains weeks, if not months, away. He explores the likelihood of a blockade-for-blockade swap and the potential for a narrow, three-to-four page framework to replace the sprawling agreements of the past. Finally, Richard assesses how Beijing could be evaluating US positioning and maritime pressure in the region.

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