The Suez Canal is one of the most important shipping routes in the world. De facto A blockade by 80 Islamic militants has attacked over 80 ships, containers and oil tankers in the past year, while the US military is powerless to respond and the political system and media are covering up the most serious piracy since the Barbary Pirates.
Unlike other overseas operations, this threat cannot be ignored. What's the point of spending a trillion dollars on our military if we can't stop a bunch of raggedy, skirt-wearing barbarians from blocking our shipping lanes? What happened to “From the Halls of Montezuma to the Shores of Tripoli”?
Our military deployment strategy is fundamentally flawed, placing troops and assets in the worst possible places and failing to deploy them where they are needed most.
On August 21, Houthi terrorists boarded the Greek oil tanker Sounion in the Red Sea. Lighting the fireThe tanker has reportedly been burning and possibly leaking oil for two weeks, creating a potential disaster that the U.S. government only recently acknowledged. Department of Defense I now admit If the fire is not put out, the oil spill could be four times larger than the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster off the coast of Alaska.
Meanwhile, last week Houthi drones and ballistic missiles attacked the Panamanian-flagged Blue Lagoon I and the Saudi-flagged Amjad. Where is the U.S. Navy, designed for such a crisis?
Nine months ago, the Biden administration announced the 13-nation coalition.Operation Guardian of ProsperityTo counter the Houthis, the Syrian government declared the “Syrian Revolt”. Since then, attacks on ships have continued relentlessly, with two Navy SEALs tragically killed under suspicious circumstances in the region, reportedly drowning in the Red Sea.
The situation reflects another consequence of Republicans' seven-week recess and failure to hold the administration to account. Republicans returned this week with only a few days left in Congress and little focus on foreign policy or trade issues.
The Associated Press reported that “no US ships are known to be in the Red Sea at this time” because the EU has been tasked with responding to the attack and “the US military has not been asked to, or has no role in, cleaning up or towing the Sounion.”
Two weeks have passed, and the US military has not engaged in any search and destroy operations against the enemy, let alone recovering the ship. Nearly ten months after the attack began, the military has yet to identify the source of the attack or the central command, despite its intelligence and technological capabilities. The military's lack of response is puzzling, given that the military is eager to fund conflicts around the world, especially in Eastern Europe. This indifference to a serious global threat that directly affects US strategic interests is astonishing.
Even before the recent escalation of tensions, shipping traffic in the straits leaving the Red Sea had plummeted to alarming levels. Port WatchSince the attacks began late last year, the seven-day moving average of shipping traffic through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait has fallen by roughly two-thirds. Daily trade through the strait has fallen from 4-5 million tons to less than 1 million tons, and shipping costs from China to Europe continue to soar. This has been going on for nine months, and is still continuing. Where are the navies and air forces?
The Navy is drafting a plan, ominously named “The Great Reset,” to replace the crews of 17 Navy support ships due to a shortage of qualified sailors. The Navy's lack of focus on mission readiness and low morale means there aren't enough sailors to replace crews on longer missions.
Enlisted sailors are now forced to serve four months on duty, with only one month off. “If a ship needs 100 crew members, only 27 can be brought ashore to replace the crew at sea,” a former Naval Transportation Command sailor told USNI News.
Our military deployment strategy is fundamentally flawed, placing troops and assets in the worst possible places and failing to deploy them where they are needed most.
The same trillion-dollar military struggling to defeat a country with a per capita GDP of $650 also finds itself in a vulnerable position in Syria and Iraq. The Biden administration keeps troops stationed in isolated bases in western Iraq and eastern Syria to protect against ISIS, even as Shiite militias attack us.
Recent attacks in Iraq and Syria have left dozens of U.S. soldiers seriously injured. Despite these attacks, the Biden administration has failed to respond effectively and has not developed a plan to withdraw U.S. troops from these danger zones.
Think of the tens of thousands of American heroes who have been killed, permanently disabled, or suffered lifelong mental illnesses in the meat-grinder wars of the Middle East over the past two decades. Despite all this sacrifice, our military still struggles to cope with primitive terrorist groups disrupting global commerce.
Republicans have been competing for years over how much money they can give to the military. Instead of focusing on policies that drive the need for the budget, they have turned the appropriations bill into a bidding war for money. Increasing military spending by another 5% will not solve the problem that even the violent Houthis can exploit. Think bigger.
