Posted on 05/01/2015 5:20:43 AM PDT by thackney
The Navy on Thursday began deploying warships to protect American commercial vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz against any interference from Iran, which this week seized a cargo ship in the narrow waterway, though which about 20 percent of the world’s oil passes.
Military officials said American warships and aircraft would maintain a presence in and around the strait and stay in contact with some American cargo ships traversing the sea lane, which separates the Persian Gulf from the Arabian Sea. But the officials drew a distinction between the new effort, which they characterized as “accompanying” commercial vessels, and escorting ships, which would involve convoys led by warships.
Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter approved the new policy on Thursday, said the officials, who cast it as a show of force intended to discourage Iran from making any aggressive moves against American shipping in the strait. At least one American ship has passed through the strait under the eye of the Navy, they said.
Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter approved the deployment Thursday. Credit Andrew Burton/Getty Images The military is trying to balance the need to protect shipping against a recognition that taking an overly aggressive posture could upset negotiations on a nuclear deal between Iran and the United States and other powers.
“This is more of a show-of-the-flag presence than any sort of specific threat they’re trying to prevent,” said a Defense Department official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the policy had not been publicly released. “It’s a freedom-of-navigation issue.”
Still, other American officials said there had been growing concerns in recent weeks that Iranian gunboats were harassing cargo ships passing through the strait, part of which includes Iran’s territorial waters. Iranian gunboats, for instance, trailed an American-flagged container ship, the Maersk Kensington, through the strait...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/04/30/us-iran-usa-ship-idUSKBN0NL11320150430
Maersk, the world’s biggest container shipping line, said it had agreed to pay an Iranian company $163,000 after an Iranian court ruling in February which related to a dispute about 10 container boxes transported to Dubai in 2005.
“The Iranian company appealed the case seeking a higher compensation,” Maersk said.
“Only today, 30 April, have we learnt that the appeal court has ruled Maersk Line to pay $3.6 million. As we do not have the details of the ruling, we are not able to comment hereon, nor at this point speculate on our options.”
http://www.arabnews.com/middle-east/news/740201
The Danish company said it had been told by the Iranian Ports and Maritime Organization at a meeting Wednesday that the seizure was linked to the loss of 10 containers it had shipped to Dubai for an Iranian company in January 2005.
“The containers were never collected by the consignee or any other party. After 90 days and in accordance with United Arab Emirates law, the cargo was disposed of by (the) authorities,” it said.
Several Iranian district courts had dismissed a $4.0 million (3.59 million euro) lawsuit by the Iranian company against Maersk over the lost cargo but in February the group had accepted an appeal court’s ruling to pay the firm $163,000.
The group said it had been told at the Wednesday meeting that following another appeal it had been ordered to pay $3.6 million in compensation.
“As we do not have the details of the ruling we are not able to comment,” it said.
The Pentagon said on Wednesday that Iran’s Revolutionary Guards had “harassed” a US-flagged commercial ship last week in the Gulf, raising security concerns over shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz, through which a third of global marine oil traffic passes.
American warships protecting American maritime interests in the middle east. Sounds vaguely familiar. Early 19th century redux? Barbary pirates anyone?
As soon as they get there, obama will order them to do nothing and/or turn around and go back to where they came from.
THe only reason for this is to protect the Ø regime’s negotiating stance with Iran, no matter what they do. If Iran seizes more ships, it would make it politically that much more difficult to close the “deal”. They have to protect Iran from itself - Iran doesn’t want to seize ships, they were just born that way. They don’t mean to be mean... so they need US ships in the way to stop them doing what is merely second nature to them. At least till the June signing.
How many American flagged ships are in international waters? I wouldn’t think there are many.
According to statistics as compiled by the US Maritime Administration, in 1955 there were 1,072 vessels sailing internationally flying the US Flag. Currently, this number stands at 93 vessels while the Jones Act component of the US ocean- going fleet is 98. Some of this drop represents the increased size of the vessels of today. (the 1,072 ships in 1955 combined for approximately 13 million deadweight tons while the current US Flag fleet of 191 ships represent 9 million deadweight tons). Overall, in 1955, the US Flag fleet represented almost 25% of the world’s overall tonnage while the US share today is approaching only a mere 2% of total world tonnage.
http://www.americanmaritime.org/merchant/
To view a breakdown of the modern U.S.-Flag Fleet please see the following MARAD file:
http://www.marad.dot.gov/documents/USFlag-Fleet.xls
Thanks, I thought it was a small percentage, but there are a number of Maersk ships so the risk is greater than I supposed. I wonder what the advantage is to Maersk to have so many US flagged vessels? US government contracts, maybe?
Up next: The Iranians will mine the Strait. Then what?
There will be an undertable order to protect the Iranian ships.
Kinda like closing the barn door after the horses ran off.
Is the war with Iran starting?
If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.
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0bama has harmed our military worst than peanut man ever could.
5.56mm
Will this actus bellus interfere with the negotiations?/guess wrong, and you have to sit in the corner with your head down.
So Obozo has closed the barn door after the horse escaped. What’s he going to do about the horse still out there?
These senseless negotiations will not prevent future violence.
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