<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<rss version="2.0"
	xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
	xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"
	xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
	xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
	xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"
	xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"
	>

<channel>
	<title>FrontPage Magazine &#187; strait of hormuz</title>
	<atom:link href="http://www.frontpagemag.com/tag/strait-of-hormuz/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
	<link>http://www.frontpagemag.com</link>
	<description></description>
	<lastBuildDate>Wed, 31 Dec 2014 13:47:27 +0000</lastBuildDate>
	<language>en-US</language>
		<sy:updatePeriod>hourly</sy:updatePeriod>
		<sy:updateFrequency>1</sy:updateFrequency>
	
	<item>
		<title>Iran Unveils Strategy to Destroy US Navy with Desire for Martyrdom and Speedboats</title>
		<link>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2014/dgreenfield/iran-unveils-strategy-to-destroy-us-navy-with-desire-for-martyrdom-and-speedboats/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=iran-unveils-strategy-to-destroy-us-navy-with-desire-for-martyrdom-and-speedboats</link>
		<comments>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2014/dgreenfield/iran-unveils-strategy-to-destroy-us-navy-with-desire-for-martyrdom-and-speedboats/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 21 May 2014 01:26:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Daniel Greenfield]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[The Point]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Iran]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[strait of hormuz]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.frontpagemag.com/?p=225878</guid>
		<description><![CDATA["Relying on faith, on a desire for martyrdom, and Iran's unique speedboats.”]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/DN-SN-89-03122-1024x747.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-225893" alt="DN-SN-89-03122-1024x747" src="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/DN-SN-89-03122-1024x747-450x328.jpg" width="450" height="328" /></a></p>
<p>How <a href="http://halalporkshop.blogspot.com/2014/05/their-weapons-are-ineffective-against.html">did that plan work out for Iran last time</a>? Let&#8217;s f<a href="http://www.navybook.com/no-higher-honor/timeline/operation-praying-mantis/">lash back to 1988</a>.</p>
<blockquote><p>Iranian Boghammar speedboats attack the Scan Bay, a Panamanian jack-up barge with 15 American workers in the Mubarak oil field off the United Arab Emirates. Through a lengthy commo hookup, President Reagan himself authorizes a strike against the boats — the first time U.S. forces had intervened to stop an attack on a non-U.S. flagged vessel in the Gulf, and a harbinger of a formal policy to come. Two A-6E Intruders and an F-14 Tomcat are dispatched to attack; SAG Bravo provides a vector.</p>
<p>The A-6s sink the lead Boghammar with Rockeye cluster bombs. Four other boats flee to the Iranian-controlled Abu Musa island and beach themselves.</p></blockquote>
<p>Now Iran is vowing suicide attacks, presumably by boat, and drones.</p>
<blockquote><p>Iranian naval commander said that he is prepared to order suicide attacks, drone strikes, and missile technology to “destroy the U.S. Navy” in any upcoming confrontation, according to an interview printed in Iran’s state-run media.</p>
<p>Iranian Naval Commander Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi, a member of Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), said that Iran is constantly training and preparing for a clash with the United States, according to a recounting of his remarks provided by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI).</p>
<p>Fadavi revealed that Iran “compensates for its technological inferiority to the United States with a strategy of asymmetrical warfare, including suicide attacks and the use of speedboat and its missile capability,” according to MEMRI.</p>
<p>Fadavi additionally revealed in another interview earlier this month that the IRGC is preparing to use drones to perform suicide attacks and also arming drones to fire missiles.</p>
<p>While the United States possesses advanced military equipment, “these weapons are ineffective against a new [Iranian] strategy relying on faith, on a desire for martyrdom, and on [Iran's] unique speedboats,” Fadavi said.</p></blockquote>
<p>Iran&#8217;s Navy didn&#8217;t seem to eager for martyrdom last time around. And Iran&#8217;s religious sector is inspiring a lot less devotion these days.</p>
<p>During the 2006 Lebanon War, Hezbollah working with Iran&#8217;s Revolutionary Guard successfully used a missile against an Israeli ship killing four. The vessel didn&#8217;t sink and the anti-missile system was not activated. Later Iran used Hezbollah to test a drone over Israel. Neither of these were especially great achievements and they tell us what Iran&#8217;s strategy will be.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2014/dgreenfield/iran-unveils-strategy-to-destroy-us-navy-with-desire-for-martyrdom-and-speedboats/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>19</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>&#8216;Unprecedented&#8217; EU Sanctions on Iran a Farce</title>
		<link>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/rick-moran/unprecedented-eu-sanctions-on-iran-a-farce/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=unprecedented-eu-sanctions-on-iran-a-farce</link>
		<comments>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/rick-moran/unprecedented-eu-sanctions-on-iran-a-farce/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 24 Jan 2012 04:35:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Rick Moran]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Daily Mailer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FrontPage]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[european union]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Iran]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nuclear Weapons]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sanctions]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[strait of hormuz]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://frontpagemag.com/?p=120252</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The international community gives the Islamic Republic more time and cover in its march toward the bomb. ]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Ahmadinejad-Nuclear-Iran.gif"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-120281" title="Ahmadinejad-Nuclear-Iran" src="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Ahmadinejad-Nuclear-Iran.gif" alt="" width="375" height="251" /></a></p>
<p>The European Union has agreed to an <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16674660">&#8220;unprecedented&#8221;</a> set of sanctions against Iran, banning the importation of Iranian oil to its member states while also imposing currency and commodity sanctions on Iran&#8217;s central bank. But far from forcing Iran into a corner, the latest sanctions leave a backdoor open to the regime, affording it more time and cover to pursue its nuclear objectives.</p>
<p>Three of the <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-01-23/gulf-states-should-help-greece-replace-iran-oil-rosenthal-says.html">weakest economies </a>in Europe will be hit hard by the oil embargo. Italy, Greece, and Spain import 68% of EU oil from Iran. All three nations are in the midst of a sovereign debt crisis that won&#8217;t be improved by the scramble to replace the supply of oil from Tehran.</p>
<p>The EU<a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16674660"> also agreed </a>to ban sales of petrochemical supplies to the Iranians as well as freezing the assets of Iran&#8217;s central bank. Gold, silver, and other commodity deals will also be banned.</p>
<p>But, as proof that these tough sounding sanctions will have the bite of a toothless lion, the ban is not scheduled to take effect for several months &#8212; July 1 &#8212; as EU nations need time to replace the oil imported from Iran with other sources of supply. This will give the Iranians plenty of time to find other buyers for their oil &#8212; if they don&#8217;t close the spigot to Europe immediately. The official Fars News Agency <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16674660">quoted </a>one Iranian official suggesting that Tehran should halt sales to Europe now &#8220;so that the price of oil soars and the Europeans &#8230; have trouble.&#8221;</p>
<p>The Iranians have also <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/markets/oil-falls-below-98-a-barrel-in-asia-as-outcome-of-greece-debt-haircut-talks-awaited/2012/01/23/gIQAXqADKQ_story.html?tid=pm_business_pop">once again</a> threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz, but most analysts see that as a bluff since Iran doesn&#8217;t have the firepower to stand up to the US Navy, which would almost certainly be called upon to keep the Strait open.</p>
<p>Some states, such as Greece, pleaded with the EU not to impose any oil sanctions at all, or at least, radically alter the terms of the ban. The Greeks import about 20% of their oil from Iran on extremely favorable terms and<a href="http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-01-23/gulf-states-should-help-greece-replace-iran-oil-rosenthal-says.html"> covering the shortfall </a>and getting the same deal from other oil producing states will almost certainly prove to be impossible. Considering the precarious nature of the Greek economy and an angry, restive populace, civil unrest is not out of the question if gasoline prices skyrocket.</p>
<p>Thus, another round of sanctions against Iran, designed to bring Tehran back to the negotiating table in order to convince the regime to halt its uranium enrichment program, continues to reveal the paralysis of the world community in the face of a determined, radical, terrorist state that is undeterred in its drive to possess the ultimate guarantee against mocking the prophet. The thought of the most powerful weapon on Earth in the hands of the most irresponsible nation on the planet doesn&#8217;t seem to elicit much in the way of urgency on the part of any nation in the world &#8212; except Israel, of course. And Prime Minister Netanyahu appears to be in a wait-and-see mode as far as sanctions are concerned &#8212; at least for the moment. Washington <a href="http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2012/01/15/obama-intentions-iran-israel/">has warned Israel</a> several times not to attack Iran on its own, but the Israeli government doesn&#8217;t seem confident that the sanctions will halt Tehran&#8217;s drive to possess nuclear weapons.</p>
<p>There have been <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanctions_against_Iran">4 rounds of sanctions</a> against Iran passed by the United Nations. Each round in itself is severely underwhelming. Beginning in December 2006, the Security Council banned the sale of nuclear related materials and froze the assets of some regime officials. In March 2007, the UN expanded the asset freeze and slapped an arms embargo on Iran. In March of 2008, the asset freeze was extended again, and member states were authorized to monitor ships and planes headed for Iran as well as individuals involved in the nuclear program.</p>
<p>The last round of international sanctions passed in June of 2010, froze the funds of individuals and businesses connected to the Revolutionary Guards and went after the financial sector of the Iranian economy.</p>
<p>In addition to international sanctions, about a dozen individual states &#8212; including the US, the EU, Japan, and Australia &#8212; have added their own national sanctions on everything from penalizing companies that do business with Iran to preventing the sale of oil and gas equipment to replace Tehran&#8217;s aging oil infrastructure.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/rick-moran/unprecedented-eu-sanctions-on-iran-a-farce/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>20</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Israel&#8217;s Strategic Importance Reaches New Level</title>
		<link>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/kerry-patton/israels-strategic-importance-reaches-new-level/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=israels-strategic-importance-reaches-new-level</link>
		<comments>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/kerry-patton/israels-strategic-importance-reaches-new-level/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 09 Jan 2012 04:01:13 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Kerry Patton]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Afternoon Edition]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Daily Mailer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FrontPage]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Iran]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Israel]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Middle East]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[strait of hormuz]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[troop deployment]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[US]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://frontpagemag.com/?p=118460</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[US to deploy a record level of troops to Israel -- will their stay be permanent? ]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/US-troops-deploying-israel.gif"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-118496" title="US-troops-deploying-israel" src="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/US-troops-deploying-israel.gif" alt="" width="375" height="258" /></a></p>
<p>On January 19<sup>th</sup> 1991, during the first Gulf War, the United States sent <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/index/iraq/nirq050.htm">Patriot Missiles</a> and a contingent of U.S. service members into Israel on temporary assignment. This was the least we could have done for Israel as they vowed not to respond to Saddam’s SCUD attacks which reached deep inside Tel Aviv. Never have U.S. forces found a permanent home inside the Holy Land—until today.</p>
<p>Twenty years later, the United States committed to a permanent presence in Israel. According to <a href="http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=3744319">Defense News</a>, as of September 21<sup>st</sup> 2011, the United States deployed a high-powered, high-frequency, transportable X-band radar system to Israel along with a small contingent of support personnel. Designed to detect and track ballistic missiles soon after launch, the AN/TPY-2 Transportable Radar Surveillance/Forward Based X-band Transportable (FBX-T), its ancillary components, and some 120 EUCOM personnel are prepared to defeat any Iranian missile attack. Today, these service members make home at Israel&#8217;s Nevatim Air Base.</p>
<p>In an attempt to comfort those who may feel alarmed by this news, rest assured that a U.S. military presence in Israel has been planned for some time now. In fact, since 2007, the U.S. Army solicited contractual opportunities for Israel’s Nevatim Air Base. Solicitation number <a href="https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&amp;mode=form&amp;id=e31256b6bef740a899ad0fff1b705562&amp;tab=core&amp;_cview=0">W912GB-07-R-0013</a> was released in April 2007 specifically designed for the new construction of two aircraft hangars, hazardous material storage buildings, hangar annex buildings, a dining facility, a utility building, a boom treatment station, part washing and storage facilities, a laboratory and workshop building, as well as site development to include roads, parking, taxiways and landscaping.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/kerry-patton/israels-strategic-importance-reaches-new-level/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>2</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Iran&#8217;s Bluff?</title>
		<link>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/kenneth-r-timmerman/irans-bluff/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=irans-bluff</link>
		<comments>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/kenneth-r-timmerman/irans-bluff/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 06 Jan 2012 04:32:08 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Kenneth R. Timmerman]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Daily Mailer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FrontPage]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Iran]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[persian gulf]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[strait of hormuz]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[U.S.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[U.S. naval power]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://frontpagemag.com/?p=118243</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[What will the Mullahs really do if push comes to shove? ]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/ahmadinejad1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-118248" title="ahmadinejad1" src="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/ahmadinejad1.jpg" alt="" width="403" height="270" /></a></p>
<p>Iranian leaders are threatening to close the Strait of Hormuz to international traffic, and on Wednesday the parliament passed a law “forbidding” foreign warships to enter the Persian Gulf.</p>
<p>These moves came as the United States and Europe consider moves that will dramatically increase the economic and diplomatic pressure on Tehran – moves that already have caused the Iranian currency to lose more than half of its value, plunging from <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/03/iran-currency-dollar-idUSL6E8C30JN20120103">10,500 rials to the U.S. dollar last month</a> to around 18,000 rials on Monday, before recovering to around 15,500 on Wednesday.</p>
<p>On Dec. 31, President Obama signed a Defense Authorization bill that includes comprehensive new sanctions against Bank Markazi, Iran’s Central Bank. Existing sanctions against Iranian commercial banks have forced Iran over the past two years to increasingly take payment for its oil exports – the overwhelming hard currency income for the regime – through Bank Markazi.</p>
<p>While <a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/corruption-currents/2012/01/03/obama-signs-iran-central-bank-sanctions-into-law/">loopholes in the legislation exist</a> that Obama has pledged to exploit, the National Iranian American Council – a group that consistently reflects the concerns and policy goals of the Iranian regime – <a href="http://www.niacouncil.org/site/PageServer?pagename=Action_SanctionsCampaign">lobbied hard against it.</a></p>
<p>Most significant among NIAC (and Tehran’s) worries is the potential that “Tehran could find itself unable to execute oil sales,” <a href="http://www.niacouncil.org/site/DocServer/Unintended_Consequences_of_Central_Bank_Sanctions.pdf?docID=1141">a NIAC briefing paper</a> warned.</p>
<p>But that is precisely the reason Congress finally took the step of imposing a worldwide ban on Iran’s Central Bank after years of hand-wringing that such a move would drive up oil prices and impinge upon the president’s ability to conduct foreign policy.</p>
<p>“Without immediate and serious action, the Islamic Republic of Iran will have a nuclear weapons capability in the near future,&#8221; <a href="http://kirk.senate.gov/?p=press_release&amp;id=363">Senator Mark Kirk said </a>when he filed the amendment in November. &#8220;As the world&#8217;s leading state sponsor of terrorism, it&#8217;s quite likely that the Iranian regime would transfer its nuclear weapons to terrorist organizations like Hezbollah and Hamas. And we can be sure that an Iranian bomb will set off a nuclear arms race in the Middle East &#8211; from Saudi Arabia to Egypt. We must act now or face the consequences of a nuclear Iran.&#8221;</p>
<p>So what will Iran really do if push comes to shove? And how will the increased tensions affect the price of oil?</p>
<p><strong>Scenario 1: Iran attempts to close the Strait of Hormuz.</strong></p>
<p>The Iranian navy could attempt to use its Russian-made <em>Kilo-class</em> diesel-electric subs and smaller home-made <em>Ghadir-class</em> boats to torpedo ships entering the narrow sea lanes of the Strait, or try a repeat of its 1988 effort to mine the Strait.</p>
<p>Iranian leaders have made many threats recently that this is what they will do, boasting like drunken sailors that closing the Strait is a simple matter they could undertake with no preparation that would devastate world oil markets and exacerbate the international economic downturn.</p>
<p>But most analysts believe such a move would provide an acceptable excuse for the U.S. Navy to unleash its overwhelming firepower against Iran, sinking the majority of Iran’s major surface ships, knocking out its coastal artillery and anti-shipping missile batteries, and perhaps sinking offshore oil platforms, as during Operation Praying Mantis in April 1988.</p>
<p>“If the Islamic Republic wants to commit suicide, then by all means, close the Strait of Hormuz right away,” <a href="http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/dec/28/tehrans-moment-of-truth/">the Washington Times editorial page</a> remarked recently.</p>
<p><strong><em>Consequence: oil prices increase sharply for several days, then drop like a rock. Iran loses.</em></strong></p>
<p><strong>Scenario 2: Iran uses “swarming” attacks against U.S. warships in the Persian Gulf.</strong></p>
<p>When the USS John C. Stennis or another U.S. carrier attempts to re-enter the Persian Gulf (which the U.S. Navy <a href="http://www.gonavy.jp/CVLocation.html">sometimes refers to</a> as the “Arabian” Gulf), Iran could carry out its threat to attack – not using large surface ships or missile boats, but with swarms of small “go-fast” boats armed with Revolutionary Guards troops and shoulder-launched weapons.</p>
<p>Such attacks could have dramatic success. U.S. planners have been worried about this since at least 2002, when they had to <a href="http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/jan/4/iranian-threats-churn-up-fears-of-spiking-oil-pric/">halt a war -gaming exercise</a> after Iranian go-fast boats sank the majority of the U.S. fleet.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/kenneth-r-timmerman/irans-bluff/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>25</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Reagan and the Hormuz Doctrine</title>
		<link>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/alan-w-dowd/reagan-and-the-hormuz-doctrine/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=reagan-and-the-hormuz-doctrine</link>
		<comments>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/alan-w-dowd/reagan-and-the-hormuz-doctrine/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 06 Jan 2012 04:23:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Alan W. Dowd]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Daily Mailer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FrontPage]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Iran]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Navy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[persian gulf]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Reagan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[strait of hormuz]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://frontpagemag.com/?p=118143</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Why we need to respond to Iranian provocations like Reagan did. ]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/507921452.gif"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-118167" title="507921452" src="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/507921452.gif" alt="" width="375" height="258" /></a></p>
<p>Tehran is making lots of noise about closing the Strait of Hormuz, boasting that it would be “easier than drinking a glass of water,” according to Iran’s naval chief, and warning U.S. aircraft carriers to steer clear of the vital waterway. The Iranians have punctuated their threats with missile tests, naval maneuvers and other provocative acts. What if the president responded by explaining that closure of the Strait of Hormuz “would constitute an illegal interference with navigation of the sea,” by making it unambiguously clear to Iran’s leaders that “we will protect our ships, and if they threaten us, they’ll pay a price,” and by deploying and even using military force to ensure that Tehran had “no illusions about the cost of irresponsible behavior”?</p>
<p>As a matter of fact, the president has already responded to Iranian provocations in this manner. Of course, the president who did so was Ronald Reagan.</p>
<p>It happened in 1987-88, after Iran launched cruise missiles at ships in the Persian Gulf, attacked unarmed oil tankers, laid mines that destroyed cargo ships, harassed U.S. warships and aircraft deployed to ensure freedom of the seas, and deployed ship-killing missiles on its side of the Strait of Hormuz.</p>
<p>After an Iranian mine ripped through a U.S. warship, Reagan had enough and ordered a series of punishing military responses against Iranian naval assets all across the lower half of the Persian Gulf. While most Americans forget this war on the Gulf, Tehran doesn’t. On a single day in 1988, the U.S. crippled Iran’s navy: U.S. helicopters disabled and then captured an Iranian ship; U.S. warships set Iranian oil platforms ablaze; and the U.S. armada eliminated six Iranian warships, effectively turning Iran’s military into a land-only force. Even the New York Times called it “The right response to Khomeini.”</p>
<p>Today, Tehran is even more capable of wreaking havoc in and around the Strait of Hormuz. Military analyst Anthony Cordesman of the Center for Security and International Studies has noted that “Iran has given modernization of its naval forces high priority,” acquiring sophisticated anti-ship missiles from China and Ukraine, submarines from Russia, high-speed attack boats from France and an arsenal of some 2,000 mines. In Cordesman’s view, Iran may have the “potential capability to close the Gulf until U.S. naval and air power could clear the mines and destroy the missile launchers and submarines.”</p>
<p>Although now may not be the time for Reaganesque military action against Iran’s navy, it’s certainly the time for Reaganesque words from this president. All we’ve heard so far in response to Iran’s threatened closure of the Strait of Hormuz is a brief but blunt warning from the U.S. Fifth Fleet that disruptions of the vital transit route “will not be tolerated.”</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/alan-w-dowd/reagan-and-the-hormuz-doctrine/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>39</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Stopping the EPA</title>
		<link>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/susan-brown/stopping-the-epa/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=stopping-the-epa</link>
		<comments>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/susan-brown/stopping-the-epa/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 05 Jan 2012 04:11:18 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Susan Brown]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Afternoon Edition]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Daily Mailer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FrontPage]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Barack Obama]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[EPA]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[federal government]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[OIL]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[regulations]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[strait of hormuz]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://frontpagemag.com/?p=118256</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[An eleventh-hour court ruling saved the day for struggling Americans. ]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/jackson-obama-epa.gif"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-118261" title="jackson-obama-epa" src="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/jackson-obama-epa.gif" alt="" width="375" height="252" /></a></p>
<p>An eleventh-hour ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals in D.C. to delay an Environmental Protection Agency&#8217;s Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) scheduled to go into effect January 1, 2012 saved the day for Americans who are doing their best to make ends meet in this struggling economy and cannot afford higher electricity bills.</p>
<p>The cost of CSAPR is extremely high according to the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which released a December 31, 2011 statement claiming had the ruling not been blocked, CSAPR combined with other current and pending EPA regulations, would have raised consumers&#8217; electricity bills and jeopardized up to 1.6 million jobs &#8212; at a consumer cost of nearly $21 billion annually. Very much like the administration&#8217;s &#8220;jobs saved or created&#8221; verbiage, the administration makes &#8220;lives saved&#8221; or illnesses &#8220;prevented&#8221; claims on its EPA website. One can make a case for anything until, over time, facts prevail.</p>
<p>The delay buys Americans some time, and one can only hope it is enough time to get a new president in office to change the atmosphere in Washington. After all, don&#8217;t we have more pressing matters to attend to? Iran&#8217;s recent threat to seal off the Strait of Hormuz could, in effect, interrupt the shipment of nearly one-fifth of the world&#8217;s oil supply. And while Iran&#8217;s threat will likely remain just that, there is no time like the present to ratchet up domestic oil drilling and explore cleaner ways to produce energy from our own natural resources.</p>
<p>But it won&#8217;t happen on Obama&#8217;s watch. Nor will it happen until the EPA&#8217;s power is either reduced or nullified altogether. The Gulf Oil spill was a dream-come-true for many, in that the crisis gave the administration an excuse to tighten regulations and put a choke-hold on future production. There is no doubt, that when it comes to matters that truly matter to him, President Obama is an uncompromising ideologue. I recall no one, save a minute percentage of Americans, who wanted Obamacare, but we got it anyway &#8212; because the Democrat-controlled Congress handed it to him on a silver platter. Not to mention the Stimulus plan and the government takeover of banks and the automobile industry. He promised &#8220;fundamental change&#8221; and he meant what he said.</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/susan-brown/stopping-the-epa/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>8</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Iranian War Drums</title>
		<link>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/stephenbrown/iranian-war-drums/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=iranian-war-drums</link>
		<comments>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/stephenbrown/iranian-war-drums/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 04 Jan 2012 04:45:37 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Stephen Brown]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Daily Mailer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FrontPage]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Iran]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[OIL]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[persian gulf]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Russia]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[strait of hormuz]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[US]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://frontpagemag.com/?p=118039</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[A showdown looms in the Strait of Hormuz. ]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Picture-41.gif"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-118044" title="Picture-41" src="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Picture-41.gif" alt="" width="375" height="242" /></a></p>
<p>After threatening only days ago to close the Strait of Hormuz, through which twenty percent of the world’s oil supplies moves, the Iranian government has once again engaged in ominous sabre-rattling.</p>
<p>The mullah regime’s <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/01/03/pentagon-officials-dismiss-iranian-warning-against-us-carrier-in-gulf/">latest threat</a> involves a warning to the United States on Tuesday not to send its naval task force group, headed by the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis, back to the Persian Gulf. The Stennis had already left Gulf waters last week en route to the Afghan war theater and is now “somewhere between Oman and Pakistan.&#8221;</p>
<p>“I advise, recommend and warn them [the Americans] over the return of this carrier to the Persian Gulf because we are not in the habit of warning more than once,” Iranian Army Chief Ataollah Salehi reportedly <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/01/03/pentagon-officials-dismiss-iranian-warning-against-us-carrier-in-gulf/">stated</a>.</p>
<p>The reason for Iran’s latest bellicose outburst is that the Obama administration is implementing a strict set of sanctions that could seriously damage, even topple, the Iranian government. The latest punitive measures are being imposed because Iran is still refusing, despite worldwide condemnation, to give up its nuclear weapons program. The fact Iran may be as little as a year away from developing its first nuclear weapon accounts for the sanctions&#8217; severity. The International Atomic Energy Commission also <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/28/world/middleeast/iran-threatens-to-block-oil-route-if-embargo-is-imposed.html?pagewanted=all">reported</a> recently that Iranian scientists are “working to design a nuclear warhead.”</p>
<p>Iran’s rulers have survived previous sanction attempts to halt their nuclear program because Iran is the fourth-largest energy exporter in the world. Its sales of oil and gas, which comprise the country’s largest exports, have allowed the Iranian government to maintain the enormous state subsidy system that has, more or less, maintained social peace in the country. There have been anti-government demonstrations in Iran, but they have failed to develop into &#8220;Arab Spring&#8221;-like movements that have brought about regime change in countries like Egypt and Tunisia.</p>
<p>But the latest restrictions were constructed to target those all-important oil revenues, the mullah regime’s life blood. In the future, countries that buy Iranian oil will not be allowed to “<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/28/world/middleeast/iran-threatens-to-block-oil-route-if-embargo-is-imposed.html?pagewanted=all">conduct financial transactions</a> in the United States.” Governments who continue to do so would thus be excluded from a major part of the world’s financial system. In essence, what these new sanctions amount to is an embargo on Iranian oil.</p>
<p>It is obviously believed a US-induced boycott of Iranian oil will cause such economic havoc in Iran that the mullahs will give up their nuclear ambitions and “<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/01/03/pentagon-officials-dismiss-iranian-warning-against-us-carrier-in-gulf/">come back</a> into compliance with its international obligations.” What is left unspoken, however, is that it is most likely hoped the ensuing economic disruption after the sanctions begin to bite will lead to the mullahs’ undoing. It was in response to this embargoing of its oil that the Iranian government issued its first threat to close the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s vice president stated “<a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/01/03/pentagon-officials-dismiss-iranian-warning-against-us-carrier-in-gulf/">even one drop</a> of oil” will not pass through the strait if Iran’s oil exports were affected.</p>
<p>But as with all plans, there are also setbacks. A major concern regarding the latest sanctions is that it is <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/28/world/middleeast/iran-threatens-to-block-oil-route-if-embargo-is-imposed.html?pagewanted=all">“unclear”</a> whether there will be enough alternative sources of oil to make up for the expected reduction in Iranian exports. A second problem is that oil prices would also certainly rise at a time when many countries are in recession. And while Western nations are expected to co-operate with the boycott, China, which imports a lot of its oil from Iran, will definitely be more problematic.</p>
<p>“The only strategy that is going to work here is one where you get the cooperation of oil buyers,” <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/28/world/middleeast/iran-threatens-to-block-oil-route-if-embargo-is-imposed.html?pagewanted=all">said</a> one analyst in the <em>New York Times</em>. “You could imagine the Europeans, the Japanese, and the South Koreans cooperating, and then China would suck up all of the oil that was initially going to everyone else.”</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/stephenbrown/iranian-war-drums/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>66</slash:comments>
		</item>
		<item>
		<title>Iran Flexes Its Muscles</title>
		<link>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/ryan-mauro/iran-flexes-its-muscles/?utm_source=rss&#038;utm_medium=rss&#038;utm_campaign=iran-flexes-its-muscles</link>
		<comments>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/ryan-mauro/iran-flexes-its-muscles/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 02 Jan 2012 04:25:45 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Ryan Mauro]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Daily Mailer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[FrontPage]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Barack Obama]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Iran]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[missile test]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Nuclear Weapons]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[strait of hormuz]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://frontpagemag.com/?p=117818</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[It will be a very lucky year if 2012 passes without a major confrontation.]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Picture-40.gif"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-117821" title="Picture-40" src="http://cdn.frontpagemag.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Picture-40.gif" alt="" width="375" height="248" /></a></p>
<p>Iran is flexing its muscles as the U.S. places new sanctions on its Central Bank. Before President Obama signed the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act that included the measure, Iran began a 10-day exercise to showcase its ability to threaten the Strait of Hormuz. Iran later toned down its language but on Sunday, announced it tested its first domestically produced nuclear fuel rod and tested a new medium-range surface-to-air missile.</p>
<p>On Saturday, President Obama signed the NDAA that paves the way for sanctions on foreign businesses dealing with Iran’s Central Bank, potentially dealing a severe blow to the Iranian regime’s vital oil exports. The Iranian currency fell to a new low after it was signed even though it will be <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204720204577132923798499772.html">60 days</a> before any sanctions are officially placed and up to six months for the toughest sanctions to be enacted.</p>
<p>President Obama signaled that he would exempt some foreign businesses from punishment. He <a href="http://blogs.ajc.com/jamie-dupree-washington-insider/2011/12/31/obama-defense-bill-signing-statement/">said</a> that the legislation “would interfere with my constitutional authority to conduct foreign relations” so “should any application of these provisions conflict with my constitutional authorities, I will treat the provisions as nonbinding.” This statement indicates that Obama might protect European, Russian or Chinese companies doing business with Iran if he feels sanctions will have negative diplomatic repercussions. Officials say that the sanctions will be implemented carefully in order to avoid damage to the world economy.</p>
<p>European countries are in talks with the U.S. right now about further sanctions and a possible oil embargo that could prove fatal to the regime. Sixty percent or more of the regime’s budget is derived from oil exports, <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/12/27/us-iran-oil-hormuz-idUSTRE7BQ0I320111227">about 18%</a> of which goes to the European Union. The Iranian regime faces increasing political in-fighting, popular resentment, economic stress and strikes and protests by workers, including in the energy sector. The regime takes the threat of further sanctions seriously, so it threatened to close down the Strait of Hormuz through which <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/01/us-iran-missile-idUSTRE80007E20120101">40% of the world&#8217;s oil transits.</a> Iran launched military exercises to practice such an operation for 10 days.</p>
<p>Iran’s language softened this weekend. The Revolutionary Guards’ website carried a statement from General Masoud Jazayeri that said, “Discourse about closing the Strait of Hormuz belongs to five years ago. Today’s debate in the Islamic Republic of Iran contains new layers and the time has not come to raise it.” The second sentence leaves open the possibility of an attack in the future. A political official named Ismail Kowsari, on the other hand, <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle-east/irans-navy-says-it-has-tested-medium-range-missile-during-drill-near-strategic-waterway/2012/01/01/gIQAR1LnTP_story.html">said</a>, “If we feel that the enemies want to prevent our oil exports, definitely we will close the Strait of Hormuz.”</p>
]]></content:encoded>
			<wfw:commentRss>http://www.frontpagemag.com/2012/ryan-mauro/iran-flexes-its-muscles/feed/</wfw:commentRss>
		<slash:comments>9</slash:comments>
		</item>
	</channel>
</rss>

<!-- Performance optimized by W3 Total Cache. Learn more: http://www.w3-edge.com/wordpress-plugins/

Object Caching 741/796 objects using disk
Content Delivery Network via cdn.frontpagemag.com

 Served from: www.frontpagemag.com @ 2014-12-31 09:38:52 by W3 Total Cache -->