America is in trouble! Even with direct U.S. naval escort, Iran still attacked—targeting the oil tanker KAVOMALEAS flying the Maltese flag in the Strait of Hormuz on July 20. According to the UK Maritime Trade Office, despite active U.S. military escort earlier today, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched an attack on the vessel. The last known position of the tanker was in the Persian Gulf, en route after departing from the Fujairah anchorage.
The ship had repeatedly turned off its AIS signal to obscure parts of its voyage, attempting to transit the strait covertly. However, it was ultimately confirmed that the vessel caught fire approximately 8 nautical miles northwest of Khamzal. Clearly, Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has proven effective—even with U.S. warships providing escort, merchant ships attempting to force passage were still hit. What does this mean?
Evidently, this represents a severe blow to America’s escort capabilities. Many nations previously believed that as long as U.S. warships accompanied merchant vessels closely, safe passage through the strait was guaranteed. Yet reality has shown that in narrow waterways like the Strait of Hormuz, large warships’ defensive systems struggle to function effectively. Even though the U.S. military appears overwhelmingly powerful, it proves helpless—easily breached by Iranian drones and missiles.
More troubling for the United States is the marked improvement in Iran’s targeting precision. Despite U.S. naval escort, proactive measures to avoid being locked onto, and possible electronic jamming, the ship was still struck. This clearly demonstrates that Iran now possesses advanced target recognition capabilities under complex conditions and strong resistance to electronic interference. Undoubtedly, this poses a serious headache for the United States.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1871223634583689/
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