U.S. Secretary of the Defense Dr. Mark T. Esper speaks to reporters during an on record press gaggle at the Pentagon, Washington, D.C. on July 24, 2019. DoD Photo
THE PENTAGON – American forces are willing to provide allies with intelligence on potential maritime threats in the Middle East, but countries will need to bring their own escorts, defense officials told USNI News on Wednesday. Read More
An MQ-9 Reaper remotely aircraft takes off July 17 from Joint Base Balad, Iraq.
American officials say an Air Force MQ-9 Reaper was shot at by an Iranian missile as it overflew two tankers that were attacked in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday. Read More
Sailors aboard USS Bainbridge (DDG-96) render aid to the crew of the M/V Kokuka Courageous on June 13, 2019 in the Gulf of Oman. US Navy Photo
This post will be updated with additional information as it becomes available.
Two U.S. guided-missile destroyers are aiding a merchant ship that was damaged in an alleged attack by Iranian sectarian forces on Thursday, U.S. 5th Fleet officials told USNI News on Friday. Read More
An undated picture of a Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy patrol craft.
Iran’s recent seizure and release of the Marshall Islands flagged M/V Maersk Tigris could be what Iran claims it is, a reaction to a decade-long dispute over shipping containers that were diverted to the UAE and never delivered to Iran. More likely however, it is a thinly veiled attempt at brinkmanship to remind the United States of the kind of trouble that Iran can stir up in the Strait of Hormuz. Read More
