In a U.S. Department of Defense briefing on Iran, Rear Admiral Michael Gilday, Director of U.S. Joint Chief of Staff confirmed that the U.S. is attributing the attack on oil tankers off the coast of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
The U.S. official explained that analysts have linked limpet mines used in the attack to limpet mines used by the IRGC.
The IRGC was recently designated as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) by the United States. It was a move that may seem bold because it is the first time an American government has designated another country’s military as a terrorist organisation. However, it is a designation that could have justifiably been carried out many years ago, as the IRGC meets all of the criteria.
The United States, under the Trump administration, has vowed to tackle the Iran threat head on. President Trump has taken a number of steps to curb the Iran threat, including upping its rhetoric against the regime, pulling out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), re-imposing crippling sanctions and imposing fresh sanctions.
The Trump administration has also recently authorised the dispatch of an additional 1,500 U.S. soldiers to the region and a number of vessels were deployed to the Gulf. The Iranian Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, has accused the United States of endangering world peace. He also said that the Trump administration is trying to “create excuses for its belligerent policies in the Persian Gulf”.
President Trump has been very explicit in his recent moves, explaining that the United States is taking action now so that it cannot be surprised by an attack by Iran. His administration said that Iran had issued threats and that it was preparing itself. President Trump also warned Iran that military conflict between the two countries would spell the end of the regime.
And he is quite right because the regime is under significant economic pressure. It cannot endure a war economically, but more importantly it cannot afford to create even more of a division between the people and the regime.
The IRGC is also concerned about the prospects of a war with the United States and has tried to shift the rhetoric in a new direction.
An IRGC commander has said that the United States, “the enemy”, has put Iran in a difficult position. Major General Gholam Ali Rashid said that Iran is left to choose between instability and war. He also spoke about the Strait of Hormuz, basically threatening the international community that security there is not a given unless the Iranian regime’s interests are guaranteed, including its ability to export oil.
A member of the Iranian parliament has also tried to make out that the United States is trying to threaten peace and security in the region. Hossein Maghsudi said that war “brings nothing but humiliation for the people”, trying to make it look like the regime has the people’s best interests at heart. The regime has never put the interests of the people before its own.
Source » ncr-iran