Posted on 03/30/2006 8:39:52 PM PST by Flavius
LONDON, March 30 (IranMania) - Thousands of Iranian troops will on Friday start a week-long military maneuver in the Persian Gulf to ready armed forces for warding off "threats", a senior commander announced on state television, AFP reported.
The commander of the navy of Revolutionary Guards Corps, Rear Admiral Mostafa Safari, did not specify the nature of the threat although the maneuver comes amid increasing tensions with the West over Tehran's nuclear programme.
"The Revolutionary Guards Corps navy and air force in collaboration with (Iran's regular) army, navy, (the volunteer militia) Basij, and the Iranian police will start a maneuver from 31 March until 6 April in the Persian Gulf and Sea of Oman," he said.
Iran has two armed forces in which both have their own ground, naval and air force all under the command of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
He added: "We hope ... We will gain the necessary and needed readiness to decisively reply to any kind of threats."
"More than 17,000 soldiers and sailors will be used, along with 1,500 different kind of vessels, in addition to the different sorts of jet fighter planes, choppers and different missiles," he added, but did not say whether Iran will use its ballistic missiles, AFP noted.
Iran has medium-range Shahab-3 missiles with the capability of 2,000 kilometers (1,280 miles), able of hitting arch-enemy Israel and US bases across the Middle East.
"The exercise will cover an area stretching from the northern tip of the Persian Gulf all the way to the port city of Chah-Bahar in the Sea of Oman extending 40 kilometers (25 miles) into the sea," he said.
In addition, the spokesman of the maneuvers, Rear Admiral Mohammad Ebrahim Dehghan told state television that the strait of Hormouz will be one of the focal points of the exercise, AFP added.
"Some 80% of the Persian Gulf's oil is shipped out of this strait over which Iran has dominant and accurate control," he said.
"If the enemy wants to make the area insecure, he should be rest assured that he will also suffer from the insecurity, since we know the location of their vessels," he added.
The country is currently under mounting international pressure over its disputed nuclear energy drive, alleged by Israel and the West to be cover for weapons development. Tehran denies the charges, AFP stated.
Top diplomats from the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany will meet in Berlin on Thursday to map out a long-term strategy on how to contend with Iran's refusal to halt uranium enrichment, which could be used to build a nuclear bomb.
In Israel, Tehran's arch foe, however, several officials have openly hinted at the possibility of pre-emptive strikes against Iran, seen as a threat to the existence of the Jewish state.
On Wednesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned that any attempt at using force or coercion to resolve the standoff over Iran's nuclear program would be counter-productive.
"Any ideas about a coercive, forceful solution to the issue are highly counter-productive and cannot be supported," Lavrov told reporters in Moscow.
Iran's Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammad Najjar said nearly two months ago that Tehran will give an "extremely quick and destructive response" to any attack against its nuclear facilities, according to AFP.
However, Iran, OPEC's second biggest oil producer, has been sending mixed messages over whether it would use its oil exports as a weapon in the case of action from the UN Security Council.
Our entire Marine Corps (while very good) isn't large enough to seize enough land to secure the straits. We may have to use your second method (blowing wrecks to bits). I hope I'm wrong.
Either way, Iran gets to take one shot, and then that country will be destroyed - and they haven't a big enough shot to play in our league.
I have read here on FR that the USS Reagan is in the Gulf (who knows....). If true .... what a great choice. I'm sure the crew will do a great job and uphold the name (and the Iranians' fear of Reagan) well.
Ping...
Like you said LE, support our CIC despite other problems....this is why it's important.
If it goes nuclear I agree. If it goes unconventional or conventional I don't know. I hope you are correct.
If Iran goes nuclear then there is likely to be a war that will make a closing if the straits seem insignificant. It will nuke Israel at the first opportunity, then Israel will resort to the "Samson option", leaving every major Muslim population center on Earth a smoking crater. No, I don't think we can permit this scenario to happen - we must stop them first, the UN and the straits be damned.
I agree that we must stop Iran, the only remaining good option that I see is the "Bull Simons" option. The students be damned ... use the Kurds.
The USS Reagan IS in the gulf. The newest, most advanced, most powerful warship known to mankind.
The USS Washington will be by her side any day, if not already.
The US Navy has recently stopped publishing the status/location of super-carriers.
Let the Persians throw some shizznit at the fan.
The USN will make 'Shock-and-awe' look like kindergartners with bubble-pipes. If that is what the persians want, of course.
Violently.
By seizing the ground overlooking the straits on the Iranian side, and killing all the Pasdaran they send to take it back.
If the President and the Congress decide that we'll own the northern side of the Straits of Hormuz, then we will. Iran hasn't the military power to keep us from moving through the straits at will, and as long as we control the sea approaches to the straits, they never will.
Take the best operating ground away from them, and then use the Marines to run spoiling operations against them over the rest of it. Kill their best people, do whatever you need to do in the straits, then leave. Then if they try to close the straits again, nuke their side of them until the rocks are all shiny and sparkly and glow in the dark.
I don't know about that part.....I think the Shiites think they're 2-0 against Mr. Peanut (the embassy, and Desert One) and 1-0 against Mr. Reagan (Beirut). I don't think they lose much sleep thinking about what Ronnie might have done to them. Though, come to think of it, through Iraq and Israel as proxies, he may have done a lot we'll be a long time finding out about.
I think we can count on the solid support of all the Arab states on the southern shore of the Gulf, if we have to go to the mat with Iran. The Iranian mullahs let their ambitions be known 20 years ago, when they fomented fatal rioting in Mecca itself, to embarrass the Saudis.
Great posts on this thread. If the Iranians go full bore, expect Chemical WMD and Biological WMD suicidal runs or missile launches. Could they make the straits unuseable with chem and bio WMD missles ? Might also resort to nuclear blackmail. Set off one nuke and warn that any supertankers that enter the straits will cause another nuke to go off. We should expect that Russians and Chinese are present at least in a advisory capacity.
Also, Russians have an Anthrax for which their is no vaccine for, at least as of 2 years ago.
Anthrax?! Get a grip. Bio-weapons, especially anthrax, are basically unusable against naval vessels.
The deck-apes would be using that russian anthrax on their steaks. And it would make them very angry.
Supertanker crews.
no problem - just allow all your BIP for 30 years and you got it.
on your side here ... it will take no time to win the war.
It's not worth a discussion.
It's getting interesting once your in.
I think your thoughts are based on logic and a clear vision.
Now think 3 thoughts further - what situation are we in after we defeated let's say their entire army and have put
350 000 GIs and coalition forces in that country ?
So to say after 2 weeks ;-).
Can we sustain that ? If we want to - no problemo.
What's the aims of that operation ? Bring peace and justice to Iran ? Will they accept that from the US ? - Not clear for me.
What's our position towards other oponents like china or russia afterwards ? Can we still project enough power to keep them from 'reforming' other countries by any means (not necessarily all out warfare ?)
- hard to say but this action will have a really hughe price tag. No question the scenario you decribed would outnumber that, so it had to be the worst case. I just hate to be driven to decisions by an enemy rather then following an own strategy.
I think there's much more to be considered.
My feeling is
- don't shoot until you see the white of the eye.
- Have a plan C.
- Maybe just follow a combined strategy like in the cure of cancer... isolate their economy, finance the internal oposition and give them the ability to broadcast etc...
My countries government just signaled it would be willing to sacifice our business with them... that's not nothing for us but a hell of a lot for them. They couldn't keep their oil dwelling facilities up for longer then half a year without german engineers from Thyssen.
oops have sell these stocks.
Wow, a MASSIVE maneuver!!!
Looks like they're going to send out all three destroyers. /sarc
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/iran/navy.htm
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