US Nuclear-Armed Submarine Enters Strait of Hormuz

Two weeks before the anniversary of Qasem Soleimani’s assassination, the United States has deployed the nuclear-armed submarine Georgia to the Strait of Hormuz. The deployment of this submarine has been described as demonstrating America’s commitment to its regional partners.

This unusual action in the Strait of Hormuz, aimed at displaying American military capability, comes following the killing of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, Iran’s nuclear scientist, whom Iran has also named the United States as “among those complicit in his physical elimination.”

This move also takes place two weeks before the anniversary of the killing of Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force (the extraterritorial unit of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps), in a US drone strike near Baghdad airport. Iran has repeatedly stated it will avenge this American action.

The US Navy states that the purpose of the Georgia submarine’s presence in regional waters is to demonstrate this country’s “commitment” to “regional partners and maritime security.” The United States has announced that it also wants to demonstrate its readiness through this action to “defend against any threat at any time.”

The USS Georgia is armed with 154 Tomahawk cruise missiles and can carry 66 special operations forces personnel.

In early this month (December), two American bombers also entered regional airspace in a mission that the United States called “a deterrent message to Iran,” passing near Iranian airspace.

The display of American military power could be a message to Iran meaning that the United States, despite President Donald Trump’s efforts to reduce its military presence in Iraq and Afghanistan, remains committed to the Middle East.

The Fifth Fleet of the US Navy is responsible for protecting American interests in waters spanning two and a half million square miles (six and a half million square kilometers), including the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Gulf of Oman, and parts of the Indian Ocean.

Source: DW