Iran has altered its approach by focusing on attacks against commercial shipping in the Gulf region, aiming to boost global oil prices (Reuters)
Iran is changing its tactics to step up attacks on commercial shipping in the Gulf and keep global oil prices elevated ahead of the November 3 US midterm elections. This comes as Tehran seeks to increase economic pressure on US President Donald Trump.“The aim is to frustrate efforts by the United States and its allies to bring down global oil prices,” news agency Reuters quoted one Iranian official saying. The official added that the strategy had been approved at the highest levels of Iran's leadership.The official said Tehran would seek to push prices higher whenever Washington appeared close to bringing them down.“Just when they think they are getting close to the point where prices will fall, we will push them away from it.
This is a game of chess,” the official told Reuters, describing the campaign as an effort to undermine Trump's attempts to ease energy costs before voters go to the polls.The tactical change involves the use of unarmed spotters in small boats by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to identify potential targets, including US naval vessels.A US military official told Reuters that the tactic emerged after US strikes damaged much of Iran's radar capabilities.
In a previously unreported incident, US forces identified spotters operating from a traditional dhow and relaying targeting information to the IRGC.The Iranian officials also said Iran intended to expand its operations beyond the Strait of Hormuz to the Gulf of Oman and waters further afield, including areas off Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.“Such vessels would be safe nowhere, even outside the Strait of Hormuz,” the official said, warning that ships violating Iran's restrictions could face threats beyond the strategic waterway.The strategy could complicate Trump's efforts to ease energy costs ahead of the November 3 midterm elections, in which control of Congress is at stake.Sustained disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz could keep oil prices elevated, increasing fuel costs for American consumers and adding to economic pressure on the administration.Higher energy prices could also give Trump's political opponents an opportunity to criticise his handling of the conflict and its economic consequences.