Posted on 06/28/2008 4:26:34 PM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach
TEHRAN (Reuters) - The Revolutionary Guards said Iran would impose controls on shipping in the vital Gulf oil route if Iran was attacked and warned regional states of reprisals if they took part, a newspaper reported on Saturday.
Fear of an escalation in the standoff between the West and Iran, the world's fourth largest oil producer, have been one factor propping up sky-high oil prices. Crude hit a record level on international markets near $143 a barrel on Friday.
Speculation about a possible attack on Iran because of its disputed nuclear ambitions has risen since a report this month said Israel had practiced such a strike, prompting increasingly tough talk of retaliation, if pushed, from Tehran.
"Naturally every country under attack by an enemy uses all its capacity and opportunities to confront the enemy," Guards commander-in-chief Mohammad Ali Jafari told Jam-e Jam newspaper in some of the toughest language Iran has used so far.
Analysts say Iran may not match the firepower of U.S. forces but could still cause havoc in the region using unconventional tactics, such as deploying small craft to attack ships, or using allies in the area to strike at U.S. or Israeli interests.
"Regarding the main route for exiting energy, Iran will definitely act to impose control on the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz," Jafari said of the Gulf waterway through which about two-fifths of all globally traded oil passes.
Iranian officials have in the past sent mixed signals about whether Iran would use oil as a weapon. But such threats, when made, have sent jitters through the crude market for fear of disrupting supplies from big OPEC producers in the Gulf.
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
The entire Iranian “navy” would be fish condos in short order.
i’m sure the u.s. military has already planned for this.
Who in the WH has said we will attack Iran?
They sure do a great imitation of Baghdad Bob thought!
This is their best threat...amusing!
The question to be asked, what is Iran WITHOUT oil?
Nothing.
Shore based anti-ship missiles could be a real problem. They are mobile, easy to conceal, could be dispersed in populated areas and would be hard to counter if salvoed in large numbers accompanied by numerous standoff jammers.
If the price of oil gets much higher, nobody will care if the close the Gulf.
And their air force might last 20 minutes...
They'd probably salvo several (maybe a dozen) missiles from a dozen different directions and light off a dozen or more jammers, probably from the roofs of apartment buildings and hotels. (Especially hotels hosting foreign journalists.) We deploy countermeasures, they wait 30 minutes and salvo again...
The sabre rattling continues. And a majority of Iranian folks (most of them are stuck between a rock and a hard place) probably continue to cringe and wonder when the end for them will take place. And the Russians will get payed for their part in building the Iranian nuclear industry up.
My solution is elegant simplicity itself.
If Iran blocks the access to the gulf, let the other muslim gulf producers deal with them!
End of problem.
Cost to the US?
Zero.
In the meantime, satellites backtrack the missiles to the launch points. Their imported anti-ship missiles are a threat, but they only have so many. Also, many of the launch points are known. The ChiComs did sell some AShM capable patrol boats to Iran, but those are monitored rather closely.
These kinds of statements from Iran are cited as a major reason for the military spending spree among various Gulf states for the past two years. I do like your idea. Iran’s neighbours would also be free of any PC restrictions.
Dr Ron Paul said on Iran-
“I mean, they have nothing. They don’t have an army or navy or air force.”
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