U.S. forces have disabled an Iranian-flagged cargo vessel in the Arabian Sea after it did not comply with warnings, according to U.S. Central Command.
The guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance intercepted the vessel, identified as M/V Touska, as it transited towards Bandar Abbas. U.S. forces issued multiple warnings over a six-hour period, the command said.
After the vessel did not comply, USS Spruance directed the crew to evacuate the engine room and fired rounds from its 5-inch gun, disabling the ship’s propulsion, according to the command.
U.S. Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit later boarded the vessel, which remains in U.S. custody, the command stated.
CENTCOM said the action was taken as part of enforcement of a U.S. naval blockade and described it as “deliberate, professional, and proportional”.
The command added that 25 commercial vessels have been directed to turn around or return to port since the blockade began.
It’s like an episode of TEAM AMERICA, I really wonder what the US navy is going to do with more than a handful of full super tankers who’s engine rooms have been shot out by 5 inch gun fire.
Where are they going to park them for a start when the UK has already ruled out using Diego Garcia to enforce the blockade.
How many tugs will it take to get one back to port and what port will let them in if your looking at a permanently stranded vessel probably under US and EU sanctions.
This is the problem with populist politicians peddling “simple” solutions.
I suppose the USN have made their point…. Knowing that your going to get several 5 inch shells into your engine space if you fail to stop, I’d be surprised if there were going to be many other ships that decided to ignore the US Navy.
Unless the Iranians figure out they can flood the zone and call the US bluff.
I would have thought the tens of thousands of bombs dropped all over Iran and the seizing of the MV Touska would be sufficient to show the US wasn’t bluffing!
Believe i heard Tulsa on the video on BBC News? USS Tulsa Independence Class LCS. Maybe this is the mission that will vindicate them?
Didn’t read the article before i posted 😩. Must have heard Touska….
It would make more sense if this was an LCS firing a 57mm through the engine room rather than a Burke firing a 5inch.
I think the hostilities are going to kick off again, Iran’s regime won’t compromise, and neither will the US.
To make the Straits safe, the US would have to completely degrade the IRGC capabilities, something that would take months of bombing and would probably require some (possibly temporary) land incursions/raids.
Iran plays the long game, thinking that the US and the global economy does not have the stamina/will for a long conflict.
But then again, the world has had 47 years to think about this problem.
More pipelines and transport systems to Red Sea ports could have been built by now.
All the IRGC has to say is they placed mines somewhere in the strait and shipping stops at anytime, they don’t even have to do it. There is no military solution to this unless the USN wants to crew tankers.
But note Iran’s recent minelaying effort was close to the coast of Oman and not its own.
They can’t totally close the Strait with mines as their own ships would get hit.
It is implied that a relatively small number of mines (likely dozens) were sown.
Yes, that occurred to me as well.
Why wasn’t the pipeline across to the Red Sea to avoid this issue expanded in capacity? Politics?
Maybe the interested parties will think about now?
It would be in everyone’s (except Iran’s) interest to avoid shipping anything via the Persian Gulf.
** think about it ***
The pipeline can handle almost twice what it is being used for just now. The issue is port capacity in the Red Sea. Problem is you spend billion on these things then find out you need them for months.
Then the market always reverts back to the cheapest solution.
It would be much cheaper to pay Iran a toll that’s about 1% of cargo value instead of shipping the product in a pipeline to the Red Sea where you also face the prospect of either an expensive transit north via Suez or a second blocked straight in the South.
Good god, Can the US act any more like terrorists?
I wonder if the Yanks fly the Jolly Rodger? I suppose they will just let that drift now. Freedom, democracy and liberty thank God we have the Yanks to protect the side of the righteous in the world. What an utter bunch of ***** Hopefully the new PM in June will have a more coherent defence policy but more than likely will immediately no nothing like the Reverend Starmer so we will still be left bereft and reliant on bunch of colonial rednecks for “security”. I do hope if that ship is insured by Lloyds that they sue the ass of the Yanks for the claim.
I’m sure shooting up unarmed cargo ships is helping them cope with sky high energy prices and the feeling of loosing a war they didn’t have a reason to start.
Now their god king emperor can proclaim his vitality and virtue all to the chant of USA USA USA!!!!