President Trump continues to say that Iran wants to make a deal to end the war and that the U.S. has control over the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, the president downplayed concerns about the conditions aboard the USS Lincoln. MS NOW Senior National Security Reporter David Rohde and New York Times Chief White House Correspondent Peter Baker join Stephanie Ruhle with more details and analysis.
The bases in the Gulf states weren’t just sitting there for command. They were supposed to provide near-real-time intelligence and rapid response, in particular for the countries where those bases were stationed but also in general for the area. The bases synergized to protect each other, and in particular to protect Israel.
The point of that was to assert US control of the Persian Gulf and keep the Gulf states compliant. The importance of that can’t be understated for the US’s economy. These bases weren’t built as a joke.
The US believed that Iran’s government would fall and that Iran’s military would be unable to mount a resistance. That’s why the bases weren’t evacuated before the war.
So losing them is a huge deal. It’s at least 10 radar systems targeted, including the likely loss of 4 AN/TPY-2 radars for THAAD, of which only 14 has ever been produced. This means that the US is now in a much worse position to project power in the Persian Gulf.
The US will also never enter the Persian Gulf by sea again. I don’t think these losses can be beushed off as inconsequential. These assets can not be replaced or made up for with bases elsewhere. And when the US military presence is removed from the Gulf States, it is reasonable to assume that the petrodollar will be significantly weakened.