Iran is directly behind tanker attacks, US says
TRUMP AUTHORISES ARMS SALES TO SAUDI ARABIA, UAE AND JORDAN
The Pentagon has accused Iran’s Revolutionary Guards of being directly responsible for attacks on tankers off the coast of the UAE earlier this month.
Rear Admiral Michael Gilday, the director of the Joint Staff, on Friday described US intelligence portraying a new Iranian “campaign” that used old tactics, and stretched from Iraq to Yemen to the waters in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital maritime chokepoint for the global oil trade.
“We believe with a high degree of confidence that this stems back to the leadership of Iran at the highest levels and that all of the attacks that I mentioned have been attributed to Iran through their proxies or their forces,” he said.
“The attack against the shipping in Fujairah, we attribute it to the IRGC,” Gilday said, explaining that the Pentagon attributed limpet mines used in the attack directly to the IRGC. He declined to describe “the means of delivery” of the mines, however.
This came as US President Donald Trump, declaring a national
emergency because of tensions with Iran, swept aside objections from Congress on Friday to complete the sale of over $8 billion worth of weapons to Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Jordan.
The Trump administration informed congressional committees that it will go ahead with 22 military sales to the kingdom, UAE and Jordan.
One-time event
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement that US partners in the Middle East needed the contracts to be completed to help deter Iran, and that the decision to circumvent Congress was meant to be a “one-time event”.
Pompeo listed a wide range of products and services that would be provided to the countries.
The US on Friday announced the deployment of 1,500 troops to the Middle East, describing it as an effort to bolster defences against Iran.
United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Friday the Trump administration had decided to proceed with arms sales to Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Jordan in a move bypassing Congress because any delay could increase risk for US partners at a time of instability caused by Iran.
“These sales will support our allies, enhance Middle East stability, and help these nations to deter and defend themselves from the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Pompeo said in a statement, adding the decision to circumvent Congress was meant to be a “one-time event.”
President Donald Trump circumvented Congress on Friday by declaring an emergency over Iran and moving forward with arms sales to Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Jordan that had been blocked by Congress since last year. Trump also announced on Friday that he would order about 1,500 additional troops to the Middle East to increase protection of those US forces already there. The new deployment is less than what hardliners in the Trump White House were said to have wanted, and below what commanders in the region were considering.
The deployment is relatively small compared with the about 70,000 American troops now stationed across
a region that stretches from Egypt to Afghanistan. In addition, some 600 of the 1,500 “new” troops are already in the Middle East manning Patriot missiles, but will see their deployments extended.
Rear Admiral Michael Gilday, the director of the Joint Staff, on Friday described US intelligence portraying a new Iranian “campaign” that used old tactics, and stretched from Iraq to Yemen to the waters in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital maritime chokepoint for the global oil trade.