The "Cat-and-Mouse Game" in the Red Sea and Persian Gulf: Iran's Oil Tanker Survival Tactics
According to data tracked by Vortexa, a global shipping data analytics firm, as reported by the UK's Financial Times, at least 34 Iran-linked tankers have successfully broken through the U.S. maritime blockade since its implementation. This includes multiple vessels previously involved in transporting Iranian crude oil.
After nearly half a century of Western sanctions, Iran has long developed effective strategies to bypass what it calls the "death blockade":
- Ship Sale/Rebranding: This is the most commonly used method for Iran's tankers. By registering the vessels on offshore islands or neutral countries, changing their names, call signs, and flags, they effectively "disappear" from radar and monitoring systems.
- AIS Signal Jamming: Turning off Automatic Identification System (AIS) signals in critical waterways, then navigating under cover of night, fog, or complex coastlines to evade visual or radar detection by U.S. reconnaissance aircraft and destroyers.
- Third-Party Transshipment (At-Sea Transfer): Conducting offshore transfers using double-hulled tankers, where crude oil is directly pumped from one vessel to another in international waters. Although highly risky, this tactic effectively severs the tracking chain, creating gaps of hundreds of kilometers in the blockade line.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1863176228790348/
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