The US Navy has assembled an unprecedentedly large naval force in the Middle East, with the USS Eisenhower aircraft carrier as the core. However, Iran seems undaunted and dares to challenge the US military. On November 28, local time, when the USS Eisenhower aircraft carrier strike group was operating in the central Persian Gulf, an Iranian drone flew again to a distance of less than 1,500 yards (about 1,372 meters) from the USS Eisenhower. This is already after the provocation on November 26, and the Iranian drone is once again extremely close to the US aircraft carrier. It can be said that the Iranian drone seems to have descended to an altitude of 1,500 meters without fear, looking down on the US nuclear aircraft carrier condescendingly, a move that is enough to capture the details of the aircraft carrier even for a commercial optical camera.
There's a pretty exciting scene going on over there in the Persian Gulf, you know?There was an Iranian drone that flew over the aircraft carrier of the US military. This is simply a big deal, and under normal circumstances, there should never be the act of flying over the sky of other countries. But the problem is that the recent tensions between the United States and Iran seem to be a bit of an imminent sign of war.
Specifically, on November 26, the US carrier-based aircraft actually heeded Iran's warning and landed honestly. What's even more exaggerated is that they didn't even dare to let the carrier-based aircraft take off to drive the Iranian drone away. This is simply a clear sign of weakness!In this case, it is simply a big surprise.
Faced with this situation, Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of the US Navy ** Command, signed a statement saying that Iranian drones have not only repeatedly ignored warnings, but also exhibited extremely unsafe, unprofessional and irresponsible behavior. However, such statements seem to be barely interesting and more frustrating. In the Middle East, the US Navy has almost become Israel's "verbal support group," shouting slogans but eventually falling into empty words. In the face of Iran's provocations, the US military seems helpless, because now they are facing the dilemma of supporting Ukraine and possibly head-on conflict with Russia.
As a result, the US military can be called the "most undesirable group" in the Middle East, and the anti-American sentiment among the people is getting stronger and higher. Against this backdrop, the U.S. military's statements seem to serve as a formality, emphasizing Iran's unprofessionalism and insecurity, but in reality they appear somewhat weak. Due to their reluctance to disperse their limited forces, the United States had to get involved in the Palestinian-Israeli war, but they did not dare to act at will, because the Middle Eastern countries** did not dare to openly support the United States and Israel. The United States must be cautious in its actions in the Middle East and cannot act rashly.
Attacks on U.S. military bases in Syria and Iraq are increasing every day, and even off the coast of Yemen have begun to strike at U.S. troops.
As recently as November 27, two ballistic missiles were fired from Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen aimed at the U.S. Navy's destroyer USS Mason. However, Pentagon spokesman Ryder said that the two missiles fell in the water only about 10 nautical miles (18 kilometers) away from the United States and did not cause damage to ships and personnel. It is worth mentioning that the Yemeni Houthis denied this, claiming that the missiles they fired were only aimed at hostile Israeli ships, dismissing the accusations of the United States and calling it a ridiculous farce.
On November 29, the U.S. Navy's destroyer USS Carney successfully intercepted a Yemeni Houthi suicide drone during an operation in the southern Red Sea. "The intentions of this suicide drone are not clear, but we note that it is flying towards us," the U.S. command said. "It is worth mentioning that the Carney had previously managed to prevent Yemen's Houthi from attempting to attack Israeli drones. The incident could have been a direct threat, but it could also have been a decoy machine, dedicated to reconnaissance. Normally, suicide drones do not act alone, and if Yemen's Houthi forces carry out an attack, it could involve a dozen or even hundreds of drones, forming a saturation attack.
On the whole, the US naval vessels were attacked, but they only acted in self-defense and did not launch a retaliatory strike. It is worth noting that the Houthis in Yemen have not been subjected to US airstrikes over the past few years. A few years ago, the United States carried out airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen on the grounds that they were threatened, but the response is somewhat unusual.
If we analyze it in depth, the US side is obviously cautious about expanding the conflict, after all, they do not want to cause a bigger blow. While Yemen's Houthis may not be a big threat, Iran is a different story. Considering that the terrain of the Persian Gulf is unfavorable for the US Navy, if Iran acts, it will be tantamount to fighting a war on their doorstep. All kinds of missiles can easily cover the United States, plus all kinds of small boats, although the number seems to be small, but if there are thousands of them, even aircraft carriers are difficult to resist.
The Houthi interception of Israeli freighters has undoubtedly increased tensions in the region. As a result, the U.S. military did not dare to act rashly, and the U.S. Department of Transportation's Maritime Administration even issued a transit alert for all merchant ships crossing the Indian Ocean, requiring Yamen to maintain a high level of vigilance around Yemen and the coast of Iran to prevent ships from being hijacked. Israel is equally cautious, with information that a container ship operated by the Israeli shipping company ZIM is circumnavigating Africa, away from the Suez Canal and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait near Yemen, to ensure safety. This increases time and costs, but also increases the average sailing time by about 18 days.
Today, the Houthis continue to blockade the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, and the impact on Israeli shipping is immeasurable. This may have a major impact on the Israeli economy, but the United States does not dare to act rashly, which shows how big their concerns are. In the face of the Russia-Ukraine war and the Palestinian-Israeli war, the United States is in a double dilemma. Any escalation of the crisis is difficult for the United States to bear, and the Russia-Ukraine war may turn into a world war because of the United States' involvement, while the Palestinian-Israeli war may trigger an anti-American war in the Middle East because of the United States sending troops. U.S. meddling could eventually lead to them getting into trouble.