![]() ![]() colours and provided naval escort to protect them from Iran's attacks. The Reagan administration then "reflagged" 11 Kuwait tankers with U.S. ![]() cruisers, destroyers and frigates were severely limited in what actions they could take against armed speedboats preying on unarmed oil tankers and container ships and sowing mines in Gulf shipping channels. ![]() Navy was called on to protect commercial shipping from attacks by Iran. Marines to the shores of Tripoli.įlash ahead to the Persian Gulf "tanker war" of 1987-88, when the U.S. Those pirates were demanding tribute from American vessels, and Decatur's solution was to dispatch U.S. Navy Commodore Stephen Decatur battled the infamous Barbary pirates off the northern coast of that same continent. The frustrating situation, what military experts call "asymmetrical warfare," has echoes dating back two centuries. naval fleet designed for all-out war must find a way to swat belligerent mosquitoes - in this case, pirates holding hostage the captain of a container ship in a lifeboat off the African coast. NEW YORK - Not for the first time, a powerful U.S. ![]()
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