The Iran tanker seizures are precisely why the “more enhanced visibility” provided by USVs is critical to regional security and stability, he said in emailed comments.īilal Saab, director of the Defense and Security Program at the Washington-based Middle East Institute, warned the US faces an uphill battle convincing Gulf Arab states, who typically take large and expensive military gear, of the utility of these vessels. So far only Bahrain and Kuwait have publicly announced plans to buy USVs, according to Commander Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for US and coalition naval forces in Bahrain. She has also touted the autonomous vessels’ potential in the field of marine conservation. Julie Angus, co-founder of Canada’s Open Ocean Robotics which manufactures USVs, was among those who traveled to Bahrain in November to take part in a naval exercise. It also included a mock patient transfer in a USV. He described a US-led maritime exercise earlier this year as the largest in the region, involving 42 countries, 7,000 people, 35 ships and 30 USVs. “You can’t compare a rudimentary exercise to the broad sophisticated integration with large partners that we are leading here,” said Cooper, referring to those drills. In March, China held joint naval drills with Iran and Russia in the Gulf Oman.

It’s only logical China would want military bases in the Middle East to be “closer to the action,” said John Schaus, a defense expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. China, the largest trading partner for most of those countries and the top buyer of crude oil from the region, already has a naval base in Djibouti in the Horn of Africa. In addition to Iran, the US is concerned about China’s efforts to expand military and security ties with Gulf Arab states, who have historically relied on the US for defense needs. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

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