U.S. Forming New Persian Gulf Plan, Enlisting Other Countries to Keep Watch
China should be leaning hard on its ally Iran to stop whatever causes friction. China gets a pretty substantial portion of its oil and of its LNG from the Persian Gulf. The US would not really be hit by a closure – at least not immediately. So, China risks big and in its own self-interest make sure that whatever goes on there simmers down. The US is right to let others do that job – at least in part.
An emerging U.S. plan for deterring attacks on tankers that Washington blames on Iran calls for ships from Arab, Asian and other foreign nations to stand watch in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman while maritime patrol planes fly overhead, U.S. officials said.
