United States Naval Forces Central Command announced the arrival of over 3,000 sailors and Marines to the Middle East in response to a series of incidents where civilian ships were allegedly seized by Iranian forces.
“The U.S. military has deployed thousands of troops and additional naval assets to the Middle East to ‘deter’ Iranian forces, after Washington accused Tehran of harassing commercial vessels and other ‘destabilizing’ actions.
The U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet announced the decision on Monday, noting that more than 3,000 marines and sailors had arrived in the Red Sea aboard an amphibious assault ship and a dock landing vessel the day before.
‘These units add significant operational flexibility and capability as we work alongside international partners to deter destabilizing activity and de-escalate regional tensions caused by Iran’s harassment and seizures of merchant vessels earlier this year’, 5th Fleet spokesman Commander Tim Hawkins told The Hill in a statement.
The amphibious assault ship sent in the latest deployment, the USS Bataan, also carried additional air assets, the Navy added. Though it did not specify the systems on board, the military said that the ship can carry more than two dozen rotary-wing and fixed-wing aircraft, including the Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft and AV-8B Harrier attack jets, in addition to a number of landing craft. The smaller USS Carter Hall, a docking ship, will act as a support vessel for operations involving landings or amphibious attacks.
According to U.S. Central Command, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the move in July ‘in response to recent attempts by Iran to seize commercial ships’ in the region. Though Washington has repeatedly accused the Islamic Republic of such seizures since 2019, the allegations have become louder in recent months, with the Pentagon announcing several new deployments in that time.
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| The Official Seal of Islamic Republic of Iran Navy. |
In mid-July, the U.S. Defense Department said it would send F-35 and F-16 fighter jets to the Middle East alongside a guided-missile destroyer to ‘defend U.S. interests and safeguard freedom of navigation’, citing Iran’s ‘destabilizing’ activities in the Strait of Hormuz. This followed another naval deployment earlier this year, while Washington is now reportedly considering whether to station armed personnel aboard commercial ships to prevent Iranian seizures.
Just one day before the USS Bataan arrived in the Red Sea, Iranian state media reported that the country’s Navy had been outfitted with new weapons, including reconnaissance and combat drones, electronic warfare equipment, truck-mounted missile launchers, and hundreds of cruise and ballistic missiles. Commenting on the new capabilities, Navy Commander Alireza Tangsiri said the systems would improve accuracy and enable longer-range strikes.
Iran has repeatedly condemned the U.S. for ‘warmongering’ and escalating tensions with its regular military activity around the Persian Gulf. Following another encounter with a commercial ship accused of smuggling last month, Iranian Rear Admiral Ramazan Zirrahi claimed U.S. warplanes tried to help the ship escape, but were unsuccessful”. -RT
Once again, the Pentagon is parroting the same “defense of freedom of navigation” slogan it used to justify its illegal deployments in Chinese-claimed waters in the South China Sea.
The fact that United States troops, aircrafts, and warships are getting drawn away from the Ukrainian Front is of much greater importance than Tehran’s purported seizure of foreign oil tankers.