The U.S. military is considering putting armed personnel on merchant ships traveling through the Strait of Hormuz in what would be an unheard-of move aimed at stopping Iran from seizing and harassing civilian vessels, four U.S. officials told The Associated Press on Thursday.
The U.S. did not take this step even during the so-called “Tanker War,” which culminated in a one-day naval battle between the U.S. Navy and Iran in 1988 that was the Navy’s largest since World War II.
Although officials offered few details about the plan, it comes as thousands of Marines and sailors on both the USS Bataan and the USS Carter Hall, an amphibious assault ship, are on their way to the Persian Gulf.
These Marines and sailors could provide the backbone of any armed security mission in the strait, through which 20 percent of all the world’s crude oil passes.
Iran’s UN mission did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the AP on the US proposal.
Four U.S. officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the proposal, acknowledged its broad details. The officials stressed that no final decision had been made and that discussions were continuing between US military officials and America’s Gulf Arab allies in the region.
Officials said Marines and Navy sailors would provide security only when requested by participating ships.
Bataan and Carter Hall left Norfolk, Virginia, on July 10 on a mission the Pentagon described as “in response to Iran’s recent attempts to threaten the free movement of commerce in the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding waters.” The Bataan passed through the Strait of Gibraltar in the Mediterranean Sea last week on its way to the Middle East.
The US has already sent A-10 Thunderbolt II fighter jets, F-16 and F-35 fighter jets, and the destroyer USS Thomas Hudner to the region because of Iran’s actions at sea.
The deployment has caught the attention of Iran, with its top diplomat telling neighboring nations that the region does not need “foreigners” providing security. On Wednesday, Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guards began a surprise military exercise on disputed islands in the Persian Gulf, involving scores of small speed boats, paratroopers and missile units.
The renewed military action comes as Iran enriches uranium closer than ever to weapons-grade levels since the collapse of a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
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2023-08-03 19:52:32
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