Update on the Iranian Threat to the U.S. Navy

Further to this earlier posting How the U.S.-Iran War May Start and updated here, here's what U.S. SecDef Robert Gates had to say on Monday, May 4 about Iranian threats to the U.S. Navy, including fast boats:

Speaking to Navy officers and civilians at a U.S. Navy association's annual expo, Gates said countries like Iran and China are developing systems that could destroy new classes of Navy ships and aircraft and cost the U.S. billions of dollars in losses....

Gates said Hezbollah used anti-ship missiles against Israel's navy during the 2006 Lebanon war, and Iran is combining ballistic and cruise missiles, anti-ship missiles, mines, and swarming speedboats to challenge the U.S. Navy in the Persian Gulf.

And here's what Iran's naval chief Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayari had to say about the Iranian buzzing of the USS Eisenhower carrier two weeks ago:

"The F27 plane of the navy flew above this aircraft carrier and took a thorough film. Despite the carrier's objection we insist that this is our right," the agency quoted Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayari as saying.

On April 21, the Iranian aircraft came as close as 915 meters to the U.S.S. Eisenhower in the international waters south of Iran, a senior US military officer said, adding that nothing had come of the incident.

Iran announced that it will begin a "massive military exercise" in the Gulf and Indian Ocean on Wednesday. "The drill aims to display Iran's prowess in defending the country's territory and carries the message of 'peace and friendship' for regional countries, Naval Commander Sayyari said.

According to the Iranian news account, "the major naval drill comes less than two weeks after the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps held a massive military drill in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz."

During those drills, Iranian Revolutionary Guard stopped and searched French and Italian vessels in the Straits of Hormuz for "environmental" checks.

The war games are planned to last eight days. Let the games begin?

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