Fire Reported on Tanker off the Coast of Iraq
UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) has reported a fire aboard a vessel in the Iraqi exclusive economic zone of the Arabian Gulf, the latest incident believed to be linked to the U.S.-Iran war - and further evidence that the effects of the conflict are spreading outwards from the Strait of Hormuz.
UKMTO said that it had received multiple reports of a ship on fire at a position about 60 nautical miles to the southeast of Al-Faw. The organization had no further details on the vessel's status.
Security consultant Brett Erickson of Obsidian Risk Advisors noted that this was the 10th suspected Iranian strike on a ship since the start of this month, and interpreted the pattern as a sign of escalation. In September, Iranian ship strikes were concentrated in and around Hormuz, but Al-Faw is hundreds of miles away to the northwest - and outside of the umbrella of U.S. air protection in the strait.
Erickson also noted that the strikes are growing more serious in nature, and the hits are now heavy enough that they are often disabling ships rather than simply damaging them. One container ship was even sunk last week, a rare occurrence in a war with lots of damage and relatively few total losses.
Striking at Iraq-linked tankers would serve Iran's objective of discouraging GCC oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz - a policy which has come under pressure because of an effective, below-the-radar U.S. military protection mission. Even if Iran has to work hard to hit targets in the Strait, it can still strike at tankers when they are elsewhere - off Iraq, Qatar, Oman and the UAE.
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The strategy has proven effective in keeping war risk insurance pricing and tanker day rates sky-high, which in turn helps sustain the high price of crude oil, a key part of Iran's negotiating strategy. Brent crude futures are hovering in the range of $115 per barrel, just days ahead of a U.S. election that has been defined by the price of energy.
