The Iranian warship "strong towing" the US unmanned boat incident is full of mysteries, who is making up hollywood stories?

Source: Global Times

Recently, the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy tried to capture an American unmanned boat, but was later stopped by the US Navy. Some Western media accuse Iran of "stealing" unmanned boats, but Chinese experts believe that these unmanned boats of the US Navy are not "stealing" some other countries' data. This may be a new version of "Thief Shouts to Catch a Thief".

The US warship prevented Iran from "capturing" the unmanned boat

The U.S. military's Defense Visual Information Distribution Service released a press release on August 30 saying that from August 29 to 30, the U.S. Navy thwarted "Iran's attempt to capture unmanned boats in the Arabian Gulf." The press release said that at about 11:00 p.m. local time on August 29, when the US Fifth Fleet sailed through the "international waters", it observed that the support ship "Martyr Bazar" of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGCN) was observed dragging a Saildrone Explorer unmanned boat of the US Navy's Fifth Fleet and trying to detain it. The U.S. Navy Coast Patrol Boat USS Raider (PC 12), which was operating nearby, responded immediately. At the same time, the U.S. Fifth Fleet also sent an MH-60S Seahawk from the 26th Helicopter Squadron in Bahrain to take off.

The U.S. Navy's response allegedly caused the Iranian vessel to disconnect its tow rope from the unmanned vessel and leave the area after about 4 hours. Lt. Gen. Brad Cooper, Commander of U.S. Navy Central Command, Fifth Fleet and Joint Maritime Forces, said, "The actions of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy are blatant, unfounded, and inconsistent with the actions of professional maritime forces, and U.S. Naval forces remain vigilant about this and will continue to fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows, while promoting a rules-based international order throughout the region." ”

The Saildrone Explorer unmanned craft that IRGCN is trying to capture is the property of the U.S. government and is equipped with sensors, radars and cameras for navigation and data collection, and the system does not store sensitive or confidential information, the press release said. The U.S. Fifth Fleet operates a network of manned and unmanned systems. "The integration of unmanned systems and artificial intelligence into fleet operations has increased the maritime vigilance of the U.S. military and international partners in Middle Eastern waters." According to CNN reported on August 31, the US military communicated directly with the Iranian side at that time, hoping that they would return the unmanned boat. Gen. Michael Eric Curilla, commander of U.S. Central Command, reacted strongly, calling Iran's actions illegal. "This incident once again demonstrates Iran's continued destabilizing, illegal and unprofessional activities in the Middle East," Culilla said in a statement. ”

Who's making up Hollywood stories?

The U.S. Power website Warzone channel reported on Aug. 30 that the solar-powered Saildrone Explorer unmanned boat is just one of many unmanned systems equipped with the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet, which will perform its first mission in the Gulf of Aqaba at the northern tip of the Red Sea in 2021. As part of a demonstration program nicknamed "Digital Horizon," the mission was overseen by naval personnel from Task Force 59, one of nine task forces currently operating under the Navy's Fifth Fleet. Task Force 59 is focused on the operation of unmanned systems, enabling greater intelligence-gathering capabilities by fusing sensors and unmanned technology.

The report also speculated that it is not the first time that the Iranian military has "seized" the maritime assets of other countries. Recently, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy seized a South Korean-flagged tanker carrying 7,200 tons of "petrochemicals" in the Strait of Hormuz.

However, Iranian media offered another version of the story. The Tasnim news agency website reported on Aug. 31 that the IrGC's naval control and towing of U.S. vessels is designed to ensure the safety of shipping lanes and prevent accidents, as there have been several such incidents in recent weeks. "In recent weeks, many unmanned U.S. vessels have been deployed into international waters and international shipping lanes near Bahrain, not complying with protocols on unmanned vessels and unmanned vehicles at sea, leading to problems in shipping routes."

The purpose of deploying such unmanned aerial vehicles to the route is unclear, as their navigation communication systems may drop offline, triggering unexpected maritime accidents. The IRGC said the U.S. Navy released a "Hollywood-style story" that distorted the facts and tried to "create an epic" after the incident, trying to cover up part of its failure.

Thief shouting to catch a thief?

Many Western media have described Iran's action as "theft." The power website article claims that Iran is attempting to "steal" unmanned boats from the U.S. Navy. The article also attempts to link the incident to China. A similar "kidnapping incident" occurred in 2016. At that time, a rescue salvage vessel of the Chinese Navy released a dinghy and salvaged one of two U.S. underwater gliders and brought it back to the ship for inspection. At the time, the U.S. investigation vessel was nearby and was trying to recover the two underwater gliders. Soon after, China issued a statement saying the confiscation was to prevent the device from posing a danger to the navigation safety of passing ships and personnel, and eventually returned it to the U.S. Navy.

Although underwater gliders are mainly used for marine research and are not a classified technology, this situation once again proves how easy it is for hostile countries to intercept, "steal" or even eliminate unmanned systems. According to the "Power" website, the lack of human presence on unmanned aerial vehicles has greatly reduced the difficulty of capturing opponents.

However, some Chinese military experts told the Global Times reporter that the US military, whether it is the US military or the US media, often deliberately obscure the location of related events. The so-called Incident of China's fishing of the US underwater glider mentioned by the US media occurred in the "relevant waters of the South China Sea", when the Chinese side identified and verified the devices of the US Navy in order to prevent navigation safety problems.

Experts believe that these unmanned vehicles, some sailing on the surface of the water, some sailing underwater, often in other countries' exclusive economic zones, near busy routes, and may even enter the territorial waters of other countries. On the one hand, they carry out relevant reconnaissance and detection, collect marine data without the permission of the relevant countries, or enter the territorial waters of other countries in the form of underwater, which is suspected of violating the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea; On the other hand, it may also affect the relevant routes. Therefore, although the US media accuses Iran of trying to "steal" the US unmanned boats, perhaps these unmanned boats are carrying out another form of theft, to some extent, the US military and the US media are more like "thieves shouting to catch thieves".