Why is the US Navy Still in the Strait of Hormuz?
StatecraftSep 25, 2020
US Navy officials confirmed on Tues. that a warning flare was fired to prevent a crash between an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) speedboat and a US warship in the Strait of Hormuz on Mon. as the Iranian ship was allegedly traveling at a "dangerously high speed."
The incident between US Navy vessels - the USS Sirocco and the USNS Choctaw County - and three Iranian boats comes as talks to revive the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and global powers remain in deadlock.
The boldness of these Iranian naval maneuvers shows that Iran has a sense of superiority in the region. The Iranian navy isn't going to stop antagonizing the US in the Strait of Hormuz until Washington removes its sanctions on the Islamic Republic. Until then, the US will only continue to aimlessly - and dangerously - patrol and surveil the waters.
The Iranian Guard has acted irresponsibly in the Strait of Hormuz for decades, having been involved in piracy and causing crises in the region for 40 years. Yet again, they have violated international law and put US military personnel at risk.
There's a 23% chance that the US will rejoin the Iran Nuclear Deal by 2024, according to the Metaculus prediction community.