A newly-formed Gulf naval coalition may be imperative to counter rising Iranian threats in the Arabian Gulf, an expert believes.
Bahrain fits in as the ‘key asset’ in such an alliance with its strategic geographical positioning, combined with the presence of the US fifth fleet, said Bahrain Centre for Strategic, International and Energy Studies (Derasat) International and Strategic Studies director Dr Ashraf Mohammed Keshk.
The expert was speaking to the GDN on the sidelines of a Derasat webinar on the Management of the Kuwait Invasion Crisis and Liberation – a view on the Gulf-International Alliance, when he cited the naval coalition as part of the lessons which the GCC nations should adapt from lesson learnt from the 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait Liberation.
The ‘struggles at sea’ are likely to increase with Iran’s asymmetric warfare tactics against the GCC, cautioned the analyst, pointing to the recent tanker attacks allegedly carried out with Tehran’s support.
The latest incident was the attack on the Mercer Street oil tanker off the coast of Oman on July 29. G7 members blamed Iran for the suspected drone attack, which left two people dead.
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