Confirmed: the US empire seeks to 'clear' the path for the invasion of Iran

globinfo freexchange

Sometimes it's quite surprising how fast some estimations appear to be confirmed.

Only four days ago, we wrote that the US imperialists know that an all-out war with Iran would equal a suicide. The goal is probably a 'surgical' invasion on the south shores of the country that would last just as long as to permit the US and allies to control the Strait of Hormuz, and therefore, the global oil market. The first step towards such an operation would be the mine-clearing of the strait.

This probably explains why the Western media insisted to circulate the scenario of the 'naval mine'. They want to drag Western leaderships behind US in an operation to clear the mines in the Strait of Hormuz, in the name of global energy security.

Well, we were quite close actually. Three days later, the US leadership attempted a broader global alignment - including rival countries like China - towards the protection of "freedom of navigation in the region". As al-monitor reported: [important parts highlighted]

The Donald Trump administration is calling on nations that import the bulk of oil from the Gulf to help protect freedom of navigation in the region after the United States blamed Iran for attacking shipping vessels. The vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Paul Selva, said today that the Pentagon and State Department had approved plans to reach out to China, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Indonesia and other oil importers about a possible response to defend tanker traffic. He did not offer any details about what those nations may be asked to do. “This is a bigger problem than the free flow of oil,” Selva told a group of defense reporters. “It’s a country taking unilateral action. I think there is a military role in defending freedom of navigation. The question will be to what extent the international community will get behind that role.” But the Pentagon’s planning appeared to be further scrambled today when President Trump announced that Shanahan’s presumptive nomination to be defense secretary would not be moving forward, following media reports of domestic violence allegations from a former marriage. Army Secretary Mark Esper, a former Raytheon lobbyist, will assume the role on an acting basis, Trump said. After Germany and Japan asked the United States for further evidence of Iran’s role in the attacks, the Defense Department released nearly a dozen new images on Monday that appear to depict blast damage to Norwegian and Japanese vessels hit in the Gulf of Oman last week. The Pentagon said the images confirm that the attacks were carried out by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' navy through the use of limpet mines spotted by US military helicopters.

Although the US officials "did not offer any details about what those nations may be asked to do", everything shows that the US empire will drag nations into its primary pre-invasion strategic goal to proceed in the 'mine-clearing' of the Strait of Hormuz, in the name of 'freedom of navigation'.

It seems that, despite that the Japanese company that owns ‘Kokuka Courageous' - one of the tankers that were attacked in the Gulf of Oman - immediately presented an alternative story of what happened, contrary to the 'mine' scenario, the US suddenly found further 'evidence' in order to exercise additional pressure to key allies like Germany and Japan.

It appears that this is probably another false flag operation staged by the US, which aims to hit specifically the heart of Iran's strongest defence advantage in the Strait: its mine-laying capability.

Update

Here is further evidence towards the scenario above: The United States Navy on Wednesday displayed limpet mine fragments and a magnet it said it had removed from one of two oil tankers attacked in the Gulf of Oman last week, saying the mines bore a striking resemblance to Iranian ones.