The U.S reports that 2 cargo ships were attacked while sailing in the red sea, the missiles were reportedly fired from Yemen territory. The cargo ships both reported different attacks, one with a drone, one with a missiles. Both were reportedly launched from Houthi controlled land, a rebel movement backed by Iran. The attack happened within the Bab el Mandab a important strait for global trade that leads to the Suez canal, making this attack on U.S ships even more important.
The U.S will have to divert warships or patrol boats within the strait to protect their boats from Missile launches and piracy even more than before, the problem with this larger detachment of boats is that the U.S navy will be even more spread out than it already is. With the need for ships near Ukraine, Israel, Yemen, Oman, Panama, the U.S coasts, Philippines, Japan, and Singapore there may be an increase in piracy or terrorism within the worlds naval economy. The only way for the U.S to end these kinds of attacks are to directly fight the terrorists being backed by Iran like we did in Afghanistan and Iraq. But we cant overextend ourselves because we will get large amounts of backlash if a campaign like Afghanistan fails again, it would also give confidence to China, Iran, and Russia.
This is connected to class because this choke point is an important place in the world for cargo ships to pass through. The U.S’s national interest as well as the international communities interest is to keep the strait open for economic prosperity and to keep it safe for civilian passage. This strait is an example of geopolitics working at its best within important parts of the world, meaning the U.S has yet another part of the world to protect its national interests within.
Article: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67727601