CAIRO, March 21 (Xinhua) -- U.S. media reported on Friday that the Pentagon is sending three more warships and more Marines to the Middle East, marking the second such deployment to the region within a week, as the U.S.-Israel-Iran war escalates.
What are these additional forces, what is their mission, and can they achieve it?
WHAT ARE THE ADDITIONAL FORCES?
U.S. media reported on Friday that the U.S. military's amphibious assault ship USS Boxer, accompanied by the dock-landing ship USS Comstock and amphibious transport dock USS Portland, had left San Diego, California. They are transporting the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, comprising about 2,500 Marines, to the Middle East.
On Tuesday, maritime tracking data showed the amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli, carrying Marines and sailors to the Middle East, was nearing the Malacca Strait off Singapore as it made its way to the region. The Tripoli is the Navy's most updated amphibious warship, known as a "big deck."
A U.S. Marine Expeditionary Unit typically has over 2,000 Marines. Its ground forces are equipped with armored vehicles and artillery, while its air combat element features Osprey aircraft, helicopters, and F-35 fighter jets.
Based on their location, it will take at least three weeks for the three warships, including the USS Boxer, to reach the Middle East. The USS Tripoli had already reached waters near Singapore earlier this week. Once assembled, U.S. troops in the region will reach 50,000.
A Marine Expeditionary Unit was last used in a U.S. raid on Venezuela earlier this year. The amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima transported the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, along with Delta Force, for that military operation.
WHAT IS THEIR MISSION?
Iran has restricted navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, targeting ships associated with the United States and Israel. Blockade of this vital global energy route has driven up oil and gas prices worldwide, exacerbating inflation in the United States. Trump recently called on allies to send warships for escort operations in the strait, a request that has so far garnered little response.
U.S. media reported that the Trump administration is also considering deploying ground forces to Kharg Island, Iran's key oil export hub, to seize it as leverage for restoring free passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
Kharg Island lies about 25 km off Iran's northwestern Gulf coast. Roughly 6 km long and 3 km wide, it handles about 90 percent of Iran's crude exports because much of Iran's coastline is too shallow for large tankers.
On March 12, U.S. forces carried out heavy strikes on the island, while deliberately sparing its oil facilities. Trump warned that any interference with shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, by Iran or any other party, would prompt him to "immediately reconsider" that decision, leaving open the possibility of future strikes on the island's energy infrastructure.
CAN THEY ACHIEVE IT?
Regarding the U.S. plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, military experts have said that success is unlikely without deploying ground forces to control Iran's coastline.
"You'll need to create a buffer zone on the ground if it's determined that air strikes do not sufficiently decrease Iran's ability to fire onto traffic transiting the straits," said retired Army General James A. Marks. "That's why Marines are en route. It's a contingency force."
Jason H. Campbell, a senior fellow on defense and security issues at the Middle East Institute in Washington, also said U.S. forces would need to take control of the Iranian coastline bordering the Strait and create a buffer zone.
However, analysts noted that, given low U.S. public support for military action against Iran and the failure to achieve a quick victory, using ground forces could pose significant political risks for the Trump administration.
A joint public opinion poll completed by Reuters and Ipsos on Thursday showed that 59 percent of Americans disapprove of the U.S. taking military action against Iran, while only 7 percent support sending ground troops to fight in Iran.
A White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, recently told the media that Washington has not yet decided whether to deploy ground forces to Iran, "but President Trump wisely keeps all options at his disposal." ■
