Reference News Network, March 15 report: According to the U.S. "Congressional Quarterly" website, on March 14, in the context of Iran's continuous attacks on oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, President Trump would face a difficult choice among a series of options if he wanted to reopen this critical waterway.
Deploying the navy for escort operations could be costly and risky; while deploying ground forces to control the Iranian coast would mean an escalation of hostilities and would be politically unpopular.
At a time when global oil prices are surging, both options aim to avoid an oil crisis but could very likely result in new casualties. So far, 13 U.S. military personnel have died in this conflict.
The report suggests that ending the war through negotiations and opening the strait would also bring a series of problems. Doing so would allow the Iranian regime to survive and continue to hold nuclear materials. In that case, according to Trump's own declared goals, it would be hard for the United States to claim victory.
The report stated that Steven Wells, an analyst at the U.S. Maritime Strategy Center, said the U.S. military has several options: seizing the Khark Island, which carries 90% of Iran's oil exports, forcing the Iranian regime to stop blocking the strait; or having the navy conduct escort operations in the strait, provided that mines are first cleared.
According to the report, the U.S. military is dispatching about 2,500 Marines and three warships from the Asia-Pacific region to the area, and it is unclear how these forces will be deployed.
Brian Clark, a senior researcher at the Hudson Institute, believes one possible scenario is for the U.S. military to conduct mine-clearing operations on islands on either side of the strait, thus avoiding landing troops on Iranian territory. (Translated by Zhu Li)
Original source: toutiao.com/article/7617445901639959040/
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