by Kris Osborn, President, Center for Military Modernization
“Fully enabled by Iran,” were the words Pentagon Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh used to describe the recent Houthi missile and drone attacks on commercial vessels and a US Navy warship in the Red Sea.
“These attacks represent a direct threat to international commerce and maritime security. They have jeopardized the lives of international crews representing multiple countries around the world. And we also believe these attacks, while launched from — while launched by the Houthis in Yemen, are fully enabled by Iran,” Singh told reporters, according to a Pentagon transcript.
Singh described how the USS Carney, a Navy destroyer, responded to distress calls from commercial ships in the Red Sea, a move which led to the ship both intercepting Houthi-missiles fired from Yemen and destroying several Houthi-drones on track to possibly attack the USS Carney.
Singh was also clear that the Pentagon could retaliate with military force.
“The United States will continue all appropriate responses in full coordination with its international allies and partners,” she said.
US Attack? Retaliation? Counterattack?
The Pentagon’s prevailing strategy throughout the Israeli-Hamas war has been to prevent the conflict from escalating or spreading beyond the current IDF-Hamas war. This may be a reason why, despite the numerous Houthi-attacks at Israel near US and international vessels, the US Navy has performed defensive “intercepts” but not attacked Houthis directly.
Senior US officials are consistently clear that the US will respond when, if and how it may choose, yet Pentagon leaders are also clear to point out the overall success of the massive US deterrence efforts in the region. One could certainly argue that the large-scale US deterrence efforts, which has included dual carrier operations in the Mediterranean Sea and carrier strike group operations throughout the region, have been effective to a large degree.
Will these recent attacks, which arguably amount to a direct and deliberate attack on US forces by Iranian-backed Houthi-rebel groups, lead to any kind of broader escalation between the US & Iran? The possibility raises the question as to what any kind of US-led attack on iran look like, should one become necessary?
The prospect of a measured US responsive attack of some kind raises significant questions regarding what assets or platforms might be best suited for a mission such as this — submarine or ship launched Tomahawk missiles? Or stealth aircraft such as a B-2 or even an F-35?
Kris Osborn is President of Warrior Maven – Center for Military Modernization. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a Highly Qualified Expert with the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The History Channel. He also has a Masters Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia University.
