Conflict on the High Seas Is Historically a Casus Belli for U.S.
An interesting article, spurred by the recent incident in the Straits of Hormuz, talking about how the United States has often gone to war as a direct result of threats to or attacks on our sea power, whether it be military or commercial vessels.
These run the gamut from the (probably accidental) explosion of the USS Maine to the disastrous assault on our fleet with Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor in December of 1941. The recent event in the Straits of Hormuz did not escalate due to the discipline of our naval officers - but it could have sparked a war with Iran.
Mead makes an interesting point, and while the Hormuz incident differs both in kind and scope than some of our past travails on the high seas, it nevertheless represents a direct threat to U.S. sea power. And that's something that we have defended vigorously in our history as a nation.
Link via Neptunus Lex, who you should put on your blogroll for great commentary on the military and foreign affairs with a naval bent.
10 comments:
Just the thought of war with Iran gives me the creeping willies.
::shudder::
Some Like their moral standard unstressed," and ... so forth?
There is nothing like parenthood to bring new perceptions...which clearly not all share.
Death comes even to Archbishops.
Back to surgery, Friends,
Me
So I've heard that the most threatening part of the 'Hormuz Incident', the radio transmission paraphrased as 'We are coming at you. You will be blown up in moments', could easily have been sent by some joker on shore. Apparently the frequency used for such communications is well respected in Western waters but abused by chumps with ham radios in the middle east.
If so, then this has been blown out of proportion by the Navy. And if they had, indeed, attacked Iranian vessels over such a prank, then there would be more than egg on their faces: likely many lives lost in yet another stupid conflict.
What price, then, our pointless pride?
Foonyor: The transmission was certainly threatening, but have you seen the video? Those boats were extremely close, and I'm surprised they let them get as close as they did. The physical threat coupled with that transmission (prank or otherwise) created a highly volatile situation, and I give credit to the commanding officer(s) that nothing happened.
Remember the USS Cole? I hardly think "pointless pride" was the only thing at risk in this scenario.
Whether the transmission was threatening or not isn't the question: who made the transmission? If it wasn't one of the five Iranian speedboats, then they can't possibly be held accountable.
And what is the 'physical threat'? If all 8 vessels (US and Iranian) were operating in international waters, then surely the Iranian boats have the right to drive around? I don't know what the relevant laws of the sea are, but I'd be surprised if the US ships have more rights just because they're enormous and full of missiles.
This whole situation strikes me as jingoist and suspicious, much like the aforementioned Maine.
Nothing happened, and that really is the bottom line. It's not like our current regime needs any extra motivation to attack Iran, they've wanted to for years. The whole thing doesn't make a lot of sense from the Iranian standpoint. If they want to bait us into conflict, OK, our boys will decimate their puny Navy and level their country. Have they not been paying attention to what this regime is willing to do? Figure it the hell out, Iran. The Middle East is just one big disaster, and it's really depressing.
Foon: If the transmission was a prank, then it's a damn good thing nothing happened. From the perspective of a commander trying to protect his ship and his crew, hearing that coupled with the seemingly unprovoked, close drive-bys of those small boats creates a crisis situation in which he has only split seconds to act. Finding fault with the administration in terms of spinning the incident is one thing; I don't think it's fair to blame the Navy for acting with restraint.
Thug: I agree to some degree. The administration has and presumably will continue to do the unpopular thing. I don't think they "need" an excuse to attack Iran, but an incident like this might have given some legitimacy to any sort of preemptive strike they might very well be planning. Disturbing to think about.
One problem is that there is some question of exactly who is calling the shots in Iran. There appears to be a lot of interests and a lot of players. If the Hormuz incident was an example of a rogue commander simply testing American defenses, such a minor thing could blow up into a full-scale war, despite its not having been an official policy decision.
It's a gigantic shit sandwich any way you slice it.
I agree. In regards to Iranian leadership, it tends to be brazenly disingenuous in terms of its intent, both diplomatically and domestically. I don't trust their officials as far as I can throw them. They have been misleading in regards to their nuclear programs, which is my biggest problem with them. This situation could have been a lot worse, so the fact that neither side engaged is definitely a good thing.
This may be hitting the chat a little late for anyone to read it (been out of town for two days over the weekend - F/Sat - and two more days this week - S/M - in church/church mtgs/a daylong mtg at DEC) but I am astonished that you, Foon, would el pronto a) "expect" deceit without evidence, and that you, thugrhe, would make a claim that the current [Administration?] is searching for a reason to attack Iran. The first amounts to something so akin to false witness that it is bewildering, given the source; and the second seems based on possible false witness made TRUTH writ LARGE simply because it is a so often repeated...again, without evidence. In fact, the evidence is that there has been enormous self-restraint imposed by the United States in the face of Iranian presidential and republican Guard "tweaking" of the American Devil cheek.
Big ships have a) responsibilities to be wary of smaller vessels and b) right-of-way because it takes them so long to stop/turn about.
That's adequate brain surgery for this afternoon.
Never too late for good comments, Doc! And as always, you come through.
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