U.S Navy Plans To Seize More Iranian Oil Tankers To Put Pressure On Tehran

The U.S government is reportedly planning to seize more Iranian oil tankers to put pressure on Tehran’s main source of revenue, per a report of the Wall Street Journal.

However, the move is fraught with logistical and geopolitical risks.

The U.S. is worried about Tehran’s potential retaliation, with fears including mining of the Hormuz Strait, closure of the Strait by Iran, damage to U.S ships in the region and impact on global oil markets.

“Blocking the strait isn’t in anyone’s interest, including Iran’s,” said Bader Al-Saif, an academic at Kuwait University. “But if they feel that they’re cornered, they’ll do it. And they have the logistics to do it.”

In the past few months, the U.S Navy has captured many ships which were a part of Iran’s shadow fleet.

Additionally, senior U.S Navy officials said that over 20 ships transporting Iranian oil have been identified as potential seizure targets.

However, capturing them requires diverting U.S naval vessels to escort the captured ships and allocating space for storing all the seized oil.

A White House Official said that President Trump prefers diplomacy but has several options at his disposal if the talks fail.

Tensions between Iran and the U.S. remain high after a U.S. F-35 fighter jet shot down an Iranian Shahed-139 drone, which flew towards the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea.

No American personnel were injured during the incident, and no equipment was damaged.

Source: Maritime Shipping News