As per two US officials on August 3, the United States is considering the deployment of armed sailors and Marines on commercial ships that travel through the Strait of Hormuz, near Iran. This move comes in response to alleged ship-hijacking attempts by Iran in international waters. To monitor crucial waterways in the region, the Pentagon sent additional F-35 and F-16 fighter jets, along with a warship to West Asia last month, following Iran’s seizure of commercial shipping vessels.
An official, who requested anonymity, stated that the US military has been training some Marines in West Asia to be on board these vessels. However, it will be at the discretion of commercial ships to decide whether they want to request troops for particularly dangerous parts of their journey through the Strait of Hormuz.
In July, the US Navy reported that it had carried out interventions to prevent Iran from seizing two commercial tankers in the Gulf of Oman. Since 2019, there have been several attacks on shipping in strategic Gulf waters, often occurring during periods of tension between the US and Iran. The Strait of Hormuz is a critical route for about a fifth of the world’s crude oil and oil products.
With the 2015 Iran nuclear deal effectively defunct, Iran’s relations with the West have deteriorated over the past year. This has led Washington and its allies to seek ways to de-escalate tensions and explore avenues for potentially reviving some form of nuclear limits.
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