Iran’s naval chief said last week that he will send a flotilla of Iranian warships to the Gulf of Mexico, in what one analyst said should be a welcome development for the U.S. Navy.
“Yet while this might seem like a threat to the U.S. and our interests, I see it as an opportunity. Even if Iran reaches the gulf, which is very much questionable, the U.S. will be the one to benefit.
“For a start, Iran’s navy has little potency as a ‘blue-water’ or oceanic military force. While both the Iranian navy and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps navy could pose a challenge to U.S. vessels operating in the tightly packed and shallow waters of the Persian Gulf, Iran cannot bring a warfighting capability to the Atlantic, let alone the Gulf of Mexico. The logistical, mechanical, and supply problems would simply be too great for the Iranians to handle.”
The analyst further states that a visit to the Gulf by the Iranians would give the U.S. Navy an intelligence coup, permitting monitoring and observation of Iranian navy crews in action in waters far from their own shores, which will undoubtedly provide better warfighting intelligence for American warships. [source]
Information in this article helps satisfy Priority Intelligence Requirement 2: What is the current situation report and risk of war in each of the four flashpoints?
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