Syrian Air Strikes ‘A Watershed Moment’ In Terrorism Struggle: Sen. Levin

WASHINGTON: The allied air strikes against ISIL that brought together the U.S., Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the UAE and Jordan “are a watershed moment” in the fight to solve terrorism, “the major security issue of our time,” one of the most rational defense lawmakers in Congress said today. Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the strikes offered…

Navy Moves Smaller Coastal Craft To Persian Gulf As We Pull Big Ships

Navy Moves Smaller Coastal Craft To Persian Gulf As We Pull Big Ships
Navy Moves Smaller Coastal Craft To Persian Gulf As We Pull Big Ships

Three Navy coastal patrol craft arrived in the Persian Gulf this morning aboard a transoceanic transport ship. Once again, the US Navy is moving more warships to the Persian Gulf. This time, though, we’re not sending an extra aircraft carrier or another task force. This is arguably a de-escalation of possible tensions with Iran. In…

Near Iran, U.S. Hosts Huge Persian Gulf Wargame; 35 Ships, 41 Countries

Near Iran, U.S. Hosts Huge Persian Gulf Wargame; 35 Ships, 41 Countries
Near Iran, U.S. Hosts Huge Persian Gulf Wargame; 35 Ships, 41 Countries

Just nine months after hosting the biggest multinational mine-warfare exercises “ever” to be held in and around the Persian Gulf, the Navy’s 5th Fleet and its foreign partners outdid themselves with a second, even larger wargame. More than 20 nations participated in September’s International Mine Counter-Measures Exercise 2012, collaborating against fictional ecoterrorists whose capabilities were suspiciously…

Navy Mine War Game ‘Not About Iran,’ Officially; Biggest Mine Exercise ‘Ever’

CORRECTED: Fixes Number of Minesweepers in US Ports 9:35 am 10/1/2012 Officially, despite rising tensions with Tehran, the enemy in in the international naval wargames that kicked off in the Gulf this week is not, repeat not, Iran: It’s radical environmentalists. Very, very well-armed environmentalists. Against this fictional Greenpeace gone rogue are set the ships,…

Navy Needs Both LCS Versions For War With China, Iran; Navy UnderSec Defends Program

WASHINGTON: While the Littoral Combat Ship is not suited for the front lines of a war with China, it would provide vital protection to US supply lines in such conflict, said Under Secretary of the Navy Robert Work, and against Iran, LCS would be in the battle from “day one,” with eight LCSs ultimately operating…

CNO Downplays Gulf Tensions Even As Navy Sends More Ships – Calls Iranian Navy “Professional And Courteous”

The Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Jonathan Greenert, detailed the Navy’s build-up in the Persian Gulf today, but he downplayed the prospects of any immediate conflict with Iran – even as the fleet develops new weapons for coastal combat and plans to double its deployment of minesweepers and upgunned patrol craft to Bahrain. “I will…