Australia orders emergency fuel from US for first time in decades

Australia has ordered emergency fuel reserves from the US for the first time in decades, local media reported on Friday.

Canberra is looking to Washington as Asian nations that usually supply refined fuels to Australia are coming up short, according to Sky News Australia.

Earlier this week, six oil cargo ships heading to Australia from Malaysia, Singapore and South Korea were canceled.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Energy Minister Chris Bowen said China will replace the six tankers alongside "alternative sources."

According to Lurion De Mello, from Macquarie University's Transforming Energy Markets Research Center, three other ships were en route to Australia from the US.

Separately, Malaysia is exploring the potential of nuclear power as a strategic response to the global energy crisis, according to the Malay Mail.

In the Philippines, transport groups staged a strike on Thursday and Friday to pressure the government for relief amid continued hikes in fuel costs, according to the Philippine News Agency.

Regional escalation has continued since the US and Israel launched a joint offensive on Iran on Feb. 28, killing more than 1,340 people, including then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Tehran has retaliated with waves of drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, Jordan, Iraq, and Gulf countries hosting US military assets, inflicting casualties and infrastructure damage while disrupting global markets and aviation.

The Strait of Hormuz has been effectively disrupted since early March. Around 20 million barrels of oil normally pass through the waterway daily, and the disruption has driven up shipping costs and pushed global energy prices higher.