HI Sutton Image used with permission
The Red Sea forms a physical and geopolitical choke point on much of the world’s trade. At its northern end the Suez Canal constricts the flow of ships, and at the southern end the Bab el-Mandeb Strait does. Millions of barrels of oil and other critically important goods transit the Red Sea every year, much of it destined for North America and Europe. Read More
HI Sutton Image used with permission
Last week, the Iranian-flagged oil tanker Samah entered the Mediterranean Sea via the Suez Canal. After a few miles, the 900-foot-long ship stopped reporting its position and destination. Evidence suggests the ship sailed to Syria, escorted by two Russian Navy ships, including a destroyer. Read More
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Iraq faces “the most acute and immediate” threat from Iranian-backed militias, a top State Department official said last week. Read More
The following is the Sept. 29, 2020 Congressional Research Service In Focus report, Iraq and U.S. Policy Read More
For the first time in ten months, a U.S. aircraft carrier is now operating in the Persian Gulf, U.S. 5th Fleet announced on Friday morning. Read More
Chinese sailors watch a People’s LIberation Army Navy (PLAN) pull into Djibouti. Xinhua Photo
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said China is operating under a “fundamentally false assumption” that the United States is “a declining nation” rather than a country fully committed to preserving a rules-based world. Read More
USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) docks pier side in the port of Duqm, Oman in 2014. US Navy Photo
After seven months, U.S. aircraft carriers have resumed making port calls in Oman, U.S. 5th Fleet officials confirmed to USNI News on Thursday. Read More
Vice Adm. Jim Malloy, commander of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT), U.S. 5th Fleet and Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) delivers remarks during the hybrid change of command on board Naval Support Activity Bahrain on Aug. 19, 2020. US Navy Photo
A new commander has taken charge of U.S. naval forces in the Middle East as tensions with Iran continue to simmer. Read More
An F/A-18E Super Hornet, assigned to the “’olden Warriors’ of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 87, launches from the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) on May 26, 2020. US Navy Photo
This post has been updated to clarify comments from Bryan Clark.
After nearly a decade of fits and starts, the Navy has quietly initiated work to develop its first new carrier-based fighter in almost 20 years, standing up a new program office and holding early discussions with industry, USNI News has learned. Read More
M/T Wila, a merchant vessel in international waters en-route to the UAE port of Khor Fakkan, in the Gulf of Oman, was boarded by armed Iranian personnel from both an Iranian Sea King helicopter and the Iranian auxiliary vessel Hendijan (1401) on Aug. 12, 2020. US Navy Photo
Iranian forces were looking for 1.1 million barrels in petroleum products seized by the U.S. Justice Department when they took over a merchant tanker in the Gulf of Oman earlier this week, DoJ officials confirmed to USNI News. Read More
