The Pentagon is poised to offer security forces to commercial vessels transiting the Persian Gulf region to deter Iranian forces from attacking the ships.
The US military would put armed sailors and marines on commercial vessels that are considered vulnerable to attack by Iranian forces, particularly those ships sailing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Roughly a fifth of the world’s oil passes through that heavily trafficked but increasingly dangerous choke point south of the Persian Gulf, off the coast of Iran near the United Arab Emirates and Oman.
The scale and scope of the new effort could mean hundreds of military personnel already deployed to the region would be offered to ship operators whose vessels are considered high risk. Before offering the extra security to those ship operators, military officials will consider the country to which the ship is flagged, the nationality of the owner, the composition of the crew and the nature of the cargo.
The additional security, which has been under discussion with the shipping industry for some time, is voluntary.
Iranian ships have targeted certain commercial vessels, particularly oil tankers, for attack or seizure. That and other concerns about Iran’s actions in the region have prompted the US to pour more military forces into the area, including an announcement in July of plans to send F-35 jet fighters and a naval destroyer, which will join F-16 fighters and A-10 attack planes already positioned there.
Read the article by Gordon Lubold and Vivian Salama in The Australian (from The Wall Street Journal).