INTERNACIONAL
Por qué los británicos tenían miedo de ganar la Segunda Guerra Mundial
En los anales de los relatos sobre momentos cruciales, existen dos creencias persistentes: la primera, que el Reino Unido luchó con valentía “en solitario” tras la caída de Francia; la segunda, que el Nuevo Mundo finalmente acudió en auxilio del Viejo.
El primer ministro británico Winston Churchill es el principal autor de este relato. En sus memorias, afirmó que no fue hasta Pearl Harbor cuando reconoció que Gran Bretaña sobreviviría al embate nazi. Con la participación final de Estados Unidos, “habíamos ganado la guerra”, escribió Churchill. “El Imperio viviría”. Combatir junto a los estadounidenses, escribió, representó “la mayor alegría”.
Alan Allport desmonta hábilmente ambos mitos en “Advance Britannia”, el segundo volumen de su historia precisa y directa sobre el papel de Londres en la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Como muestra, la participación de Washington no resultó un beneficio absoluto. Churchill había deseado la ayuda de Franklin D. Roosevelt en Europa, no en el Pacífico. Desde su encuentro a bordo del U.S.S. Augusta en el verano de 1941, el presidente estadounidense había instado a Churchill a abandonar la “retrógrada política colonial” británica. En comparación con el conservador Churchill, escribe Allport, Roosevelt era “un Robespierre consumado, un revolucionario mundial”.
La “pequeña isla” de Churchill, como solía llamarla el primer ministro, nunca luchó realmente sola: para financiar la guerra, explotó con dureza su imperio global de más de 13 millones de millas cuadradas y 491 millones de personas. La altanería británica, junto con la presión económica que provocó, dejó a las colonias vulnerables y significó que combatir en Asia Oriental probablemente pondría en peligro las posiciones de Londres en Birmania, India y otros lugares. Tras Pearl Harbor, las fuerzas japonesas atacaron rápidamente las colonias asiáticas de Gran Bretaña, incluida la estratégica isla de Singapur.
Singapur había funcionado durante mucho tiempo como un refugio de comodidades para expatriados, mientras los locales sufrían los abusos de la vida imperial. La socialité inglesa Diana Cooper, que llegó a Singapur en 1941, temía que la colonia hubiese caído “en un coma eufórico”. La economía de los Establecimientos del Estrecho de Malaca, de los que Singapur formaba parte, se sostenía con lo que Allport denomina “narco-colonialismo” británico, un activo comercio de tubos de hojalata rellenos de pasta de opio negra. Al inicio de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, Malasia contaba con 300.000 adictos.
Allport, historiador en la Universidad de Syracuse, incluye tanto las perspectivas de las víctimas del colonialismo británico como las de sus perpetradores. Cuando estalló la guerra en el Pacífico, unos 85.000 soldados británicos allí se rindieron rápidamente, y quienes huyeron hacia el sur por la península malaya destruyeron bombas de combustible y otras propiedades, ignorando a los habitantes locales que habían prometido defender. “Ese es el fin del Imperio británico”, se dice que comentó un joven Lee Kuan Yew, futuro primer ministro de Singapur. Los malayos, por su parte, ofrecieron poca resistencia al ver a los soldados japoneses llevar a los civiles blancos a campos de internamiento.
Churchill había prometido que ningún dominio británico sería “superado por una raza amarilla”. Pero el racismo arraigado en el imperio lo cegó ante la vulnerabilidad de sus posesiones asiáticas. Aun así, escribe Allport, “el problema de centrarse únicamente en los pecados personales de Churchill no es que sea injusto con él: es que hacerlo exime al resto del pueblo británico”. Una política imperialista racista impregnaba todos los ámbitos de la vida británica. Soldados escoceses hostigaban a militares negros por bailar con mujeres blancas; un oficial británico de alto rango despreciaba a los soldados japoneses como “ejemplares subhumanos”.
Las intenciones de Roosevelt tampoco eran completamente puras. Según Allport, la retórica del líder estadounidense sobre la autodeterminación, aunque sincera, también ocultaba sus ambiciones de dominar el orden mundial de posguerra. Una Washington cada vez más asertiva había llegado a resentir “los últimos movimientos molestos de una política exterior británica independiente”, escribe Allport.
Una y otra vez, Washington chocó con Londres sobre la política en Asia y el Mediterráneo. Los esfuerzos estadounidenses por fortalecer a las fuerzas nacionalistas chinas de Chiang Kai-shek, por ejemplo, tenían en parte la motivación de controlar el comercio en la región. Hacia los últimos años de la guerra, observa Allport, la llamada relación especial se había transformado en una de “patrón y cliente”.
Allport escribe con fluidez y logra mantener una narrativa atractiva sin recurrir a la sentimentalidad. Cuestiona una y otra vez el saber convencional, a veces en exceso. En el primer volumen de la serie, “Britain at Bay”, Allport resulta tan combativo que parece que discute cualquier tema en la mesa familiar solo para provocar. Este segundo volumen resulta más equilibrado y menos abrupto, aunque más tradicional.
En un libro sobre un conflicto global, el enfoque limitado de Allport en el papel británico tiene desventajas. Hacia el final de la guerra, los responsables políticos estadounidenses habían marginado cada vez más a los comandantes británicos. Incluso una decisión tan relevante como la de lanzar la bomba atómica sobre Japón, reconoce Allport, “queda fuera del alcance de esta historia”, aunque señala que el primer programa estatal de armas nucleares del mundo fue iniciado por científicos británicos.
La llegada de tropas y liderazgo estadounidenses, de la potencia estadounidense, finalmente confirmó los mayores temores de Churchill sobre la vulnerabilidad de su imperio. El título de Allport, “Advance Britannia”, una exhortación tomada de un discurso del primer ministro celebrando el fin de la guerra en Europa, suena irónico.
“Nuestro imperio oriental ha sido liquidado, nuestros recursos han sido desperdiciados”, comentó Churchill después. “Nuestra influencia entre las naciones es ahora menor que en cualquier otro periodo que recuerde”. La historia precisa de Allport explica por qué ocurrió: al tratar a tantas personas en tierras extranjeras con indiferencia en vez de generosidad, como vasallos en vez de socios, los británicos habían asegurado su propio declive antes de que comenzaran los combates.
Fuente: The New York Times
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Vietnam’s trade ministry is urging businesses to encourage employees to work from home to curb fuel consumption as the country grapples with supply disruptions and sharp price increases triggered by the U.S.-Israeli war involving Iran.
In a statement on Tuesday, the government said Vietnam has been among the nations hardest hit by the turmoil due to its heavy reliance on energy imports from the Middle East. Citing a report from the Ministry of Industry and Trade, it called on companies to «encourage work-from-home when possible to reduce the need for travel and transportation.»
Fuel prices have surged since the end of last month, with gasoline up 32%, diesel rising 56% and kerosene climbing 80%, according to data from Petrolimex, the country’s top fuel trader. Long lines of cars and motorbikes were seen at petrol stations in Hanoi on Tuesday.
The ministry also urged businesses and individuals not to hoard or speculate on fuel.
People queue to buy petrol at a petrol station after Vietnam’s trade ministry called on local businesses to encourage their employees to work from home to save fuel amid disruptions in supply and price surges triggered by the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Hanoi, Vietnam, March 10, 2026. (REUTERS/Khanh Vu)
GAS PRICES COULD JUMP AS MIDDLE EAST TENSIONS THREATEN GLOBAL OIL SUPPLY
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Monday held calls with leaders of Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to secure additional fuel and crude oil supplies. The government has also removed import tariffs on fuels through the end of April in a bid to ease pressure on the market.
President Donald Trump’s strikes on Iran have made for volatile crude markets, with prices surging to $120 a barrel in the U.S. over the weekend before dipping back to just over $80 on Monday night as Trump spoke to a Republican retreat in Florida.
Prices have stabilized after Trump assured investors the Strait of Hormuz will be safe for oil tankers in the Middle East, a notorious choke point for the largely dismantled Iranian regime.
President Donald Trump addresses reporters aboard Air Force One last week as War Secretary Pete Hegseth looks on. (SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images)
TRUMP IS REALIGNING WORLD ENERGY MARKETS AND THE IRAN STRIKES ARE ACTUALLY HELPING
The situation in the region remains tenuous as Iran has announced Mojtaba Khamenei as the next supreme leader, a decision that Trump told Fox News that he «was not happy» about.
«I don’t believe he can live in peace,» Trump said from Air Force One.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said Tuesday they would not let any oil out of the Middle East until U.S. and Israeli attacks cease, a threat that had prompted Trump to threaten to hit Iran «20 times harder» if it blocked exports.
US SIGNALS READINESS TO ESCORT TANKERS THROUGH HORMUZ AS TRAFFIC THINS BUT NO MISSION LAUNCHED
Strikes on the Iranian leadership, the IRGC, and Iranian naval vessels and oil infrastructure have roiled the markets. ( Sasan / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images)
Despite the defiant rhetoric from both sides, investors placed strong bets Tuesday that Trump would call off his war soon, before the unprecedented disruption it has caused to energy supplies causes a global economic meltdown.
«I’m hearing they want to talk badly,» Trump said, as the Department of War has claimed 50 Iranian naval vessels have been sunk and Trump is suggesting the war objections are weeks ahead of schedule, if not nearly «complete.»
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«It’s possible,» Trump added of engaging the new Iranian leadership, descendants of the deceased leaders, but said it «depends on what terms, possible, only possible.»
«You know, we sort of don’t have to speak anymore, you know, if you really think about it, but it’s possible,» he said.
Fox News’ Trey Yingst and Reuters contributed to this report.
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INTERNACIONAL
Iran war, 11 days in: US controls skies, oil surges and the region braces for what’s next
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One week into the war with Iran, U.S. officials say American and Israeli forces are moving toward «complete control» of Iranian airspace — clearing the way for deeper strikes, a broader target list and a conflict that appears to be expanding rather than winding down.
In briefings this week, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine described what they called near-uncontested airspace over key corridors, a shift that allows sustained bombing operations deep inside Iran.
«We are winning with an overwhelming and unrelenting focus on our objectives,» Hegseth said in a press briefing Tuesday morning.
AFTER THE STRIKES, HOW WOULD THE US SECURE IRAN’S ENRICHED URANIUM?
Caine said U.S. forces have now struck more than 5,000 targets in the first 10 days of operations, including dozens of deeply buried missile launchers hit with 2,000-pound penetrating bombs.
The message from Washington is one of overwhelming military advantage.
But the broader picture, rising oil prices, expanding drone warfare, strikes on energy and civilian infrastructure, and regional spillover touching NATO territory, suggests a conflict that is growing in scope even as U.S. officials project confidence in its trajectory.
Leadership hardens in Tehran
Amid the intensifying conflict, Iran’s Assembly of Experts has selected Mojtaba Khamenei — son of the recently deceased Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — as the country’s new supreme leader, consolidating authority within the clerical establishment and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps at a pivotal moment.
The succession, only the second since the 1979 revolution, signals continuity rather than recalibration in Iran’s posture. Mojtaba Khamenei had long been viewed as a potential successor and is closely aligned with hard-line factions inside Iran’s security apparatus.
President Donald Trump criticized the selection, saying the leadership change would not alter U.S. objectives and suggesting it reflects the same entrenched power structure Washington has sought to weaken. The administration has made clear that military operations will continue regardless of who occupies the supreme leader’s office.
Rather than opening a diplomatic off-ramp, the transition appears to reinforce the likelihood of a prolonged confrontation.
‘Uncontested airspace’
Hegseth said Tuesday that the U.S. and Israel had achieved «total air dominance» over Iran and were «winning decisively with brutal efficiency.»
«That doesn’t mean they won’t be able to project,» Hegseth said. «It doesn’t mean our air defenders still don’t have to defend. They do. But that is strong evidence of degradation.»
«Most of their higher-end surface-to-air missile systems are not factors at this point in time,» Caine said.
«Fighters are moving deeper with relative impunity,» he added, noting there is «always some risk.»
One week into the war with Iran, U.S. officials say American and Israeli forces are moving toward «complete control» of Iranian airspace. ( Sasan / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images)
Adm. Brad Cooper, head of the U.S. military’s Central Command, also reported that Iranian ballistic missile launches had dropped by roughly 90% from the opening days of the conflict, while drone attacks had fallen by more than 80%, attributing the decline to sustained strikes on launchers and infrastructure.
Still, officials have cautioned that air superiority does not mean every threat can be stopped. Iranian missiles and drones continue to be launched, and some have required interception across the region.
A shift in munitions and message
Hegseth said the campaign is transitioning from expensive standoff weapons like Tomahawk cruise missiles to 500-, 1,000- and 2,000-pound precision gravity bombs — a shift he said reflects confidence that Iranian surface-to-air missile systems have been suppressed in key areas.
He described the U.S. stockpile of such bombs as «nearly unlimited» and warned that Washington’s timeline «is ours and ours alone to control.»
The emphasis on gravity bombs is more than rhetorical. It signals a move toward sustained, high-tempo operations designed not only to hit active threats but to degrade Iran’s ability to regenerate its missile force.
US SIGNALS READINESS TO ESCORT TANKERS THROUGH HORMUZ AS TRAFFIC THINS, BUT NO MISSION HAS BEEN LAUNCHED
Drones redefine the fight
Even as missile launches decline, unmanned systems remain central to the war.
Iran has leaned heavily on drones — including Shahed-style loitering munitions — to strike energy facilities, pressure U.S. bases and disrupt shipping near the Strait of Hormuz. Compared to ballistic missiles, drones are cheaper and easier to deploy in volume, allowing Tehran to sustain pressure despite losses elsewhere.
In response, the United States has deployed a Ukraine-tested counter-drone interceptor system to the region. Ukrainian specialists, drawing on experience defending against Iranian-designed drones used in the Russia-Ukraine war, are assisting in strengthening base protection.
The drone fight underscores a key dynamic: while U.S. forces may dominate the skies, lower-cost unmanned systems can still impose risk and strain air defenses.
Energy at risk
The Strait of Hormuz — through which roughly 20% of the world’s oil and major liquefied natural gas shipments transit — has become one of the most consequential flashpoints of the war.
Drone attacks and Iranian threats sharply have reduced commercial traffic, driving up insurance costs and forcing some vessels to reroute. Oil prices have climbed above $100 per barrel amid fears that disruptions could persist.
Israeli strikes on Iranian oil facilities, and Iran’s retaliatory targeting of regional energy infrastructure, signal that energy assets are now active targets. Reports of strikes affecting water and desalination plants further suggest the war is expanding beyond strictly military sites.
Iran’s Assembly of Experts has selected Mojtaba Khamenei — son of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — as the country’s new supreme leader. (Photo by Reza B / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images)
If instability in Hormuz stretches for weeks, analysts warn, global energy markets could tighten quickly, translating into higher gasoline prices and renewed inflation pressure in the United States.
Trump warned Monday that Iran will be hit «20 times harder» than it already has if it threatens ships in the Strait.
NATO proximity and regional backlash
The war has edged closer to NATO territory. Two Iranian ballistic missiles were intercepted near Turkish airspace, raising the risk of broader alliance involvement.
Iran has also struck Azerbaijan, drawing sharp condemnation from Baku and angering Turkey, Azerbaijan’s closest ally. Notably, Iran has not seen a unified regional bloc mobilize in its defense, highlighting its relative diplomatic isolation even as it escalates militarily.
Industrial mobilization
Despite Hegseth’s assertion that certain offensive munitions are plentiful, sustaining air and missile defense operations is resource-intensive, and inventories of high-end interceptors were already under strain before the conflict began.
Iran has attempted to degrade radar systems tied to platforms such as THAAD and Patriot batteries. (Reuters/U.S. Army/Capt. Adan Cazarez)
Iran has attempted to degrade radar systems tied to platforms such as THAAD and Patriot batteries. While U.S. commanders say launch rates have declined sharply, interceptors are expensive and produced in limited quantities.
Trump convened major defense contractors last week to press for accelerated production of interceptors and related systems. Expanding output could require congressional funding if the campaign continues at its current pace.
The battlefield now extends beyond launch sites and into supply chains.
Rising casualties
The Pentagon has confirmed seven U.S. service members have been killed and eight seriously injured in Iranian strikes.
In Iran, the U.S. claims over 50 top Iranian leaders, including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, have been taken out. Iran claims more than 1,000 people have been killed in the strikes and approximately 175 people, including many schoolchildren, were killed in an attack on a girls’ elementary school in Minab.
No group has claimed responsibility, and investigations are ongoing.
The incident has intensified scrutiny over civilian protection as the conflict widens.
No quick off-ramp
A little more than one week in, the trajectory points toward expansion rather than containment.
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U.S. officials project confidence in air dominance and sustained strike capacity. Iranian leadership has consolidated under a hard-line successor. Energy markets are volatile. Drone warfare continues to test defenses. The conflict has brushed NATO territory and struck civilian infrastructure.
The central question is how far the conflict will spread, and whether military momentum can outpace the economic and geopolitical costs mounting across the region.
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