#历史开讲 #
For us, the most well-known fleet of the US Navy is undoubtedly the Seventh Fleet. The Seventh Fleet was headquartered in Yokosuka, Japan, and did not fail to cause chaos to the mainland in the western Pacific.
In addition to the Seventh Fleet, the Sixth Fleet, headquartered in Naples, Italy, is also not famous. Among the six major fleets of the United States, the highest rank is the lesser-known Fifth Fleet, which is responsible for the sea area, not in the Pacific or the Atlantic, but in the Indian Ocean.
In terms of surrounding prosperity, the Indian Ocean may not be as good as the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, but it has a maritime communication artery between Asia and Europe, which is of extraordinary strategic importance, especially in the northern seas. The U.S. Fifth Fleet is responsible for these waters, namely the Persian Gulf, the Arabian Sea, the Red Sea, and Kenya in Africa.
The Persian Gulf is known as the world's energy warehouse, and once there is any wind and grass in the Persian Gulf, the whole world will be soldiers. As soon as the United States raised interest rates, several major oil-producing countries in the Persian Gulf announced production cuts, which was evidenced by the fact that the United States jumped to its feet and cursed.
The US Fifth Fleet is stationed in the Persian Gulf, and if it really fights, it will be a crack in the sky.
After the Gulf War, the United States believed that its naval power in the Persian Gulf was relatively weak, and if something happened in the Persian Gulf, the United States needed to transfer troops from the Seventh Fleet in the western Pacific, which was time-consuming and laborious. The main purpose of the Fifth Fleet, established on the basis of the US Middle East Navy, is to maintain the strategic superiority of the United States in the Middle East and to suppress several disobedient countries in the Middle East: Iraq, Iran, Syria and so on.
On the U.S. strategic chessboard, the Middle East is relatively important compared to other regions, so the Fifth Fleet is correspondingly higher in the U.S. military. The U.S. Central Command has Army Command, Air Force Command, Navy Command, Marine Corps Command, Special Operations Command, etc. The headquarters of these major commands are all in the United States, except for the Navy. Where is the headquarters of the US Navy Command?
It is in Bahrain, where the Fifth Fleet is stationed. The Fifth Fleet is the only U.S. fleet on a par with the National Navy Command, the Commander of the National Navy concurrently serves as the commander of the Fifth Fleet, and the other fleets are subordinate to the competent naval authorities of the oceans. For example, the Second Fleet and the Sixth Fleet are subordinate to the former U.S. Atlantic Fleet (renamed U.S. Fleet Command), and the Third and Seventh Fleets are subordinate to the U.S. Pacific Fleet.
Unlike the oil big brothers of Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, Bahrain is a rare quiet zone in the Middle East. Bahrain has a total land area of only 780 square kilometers, which is slightly larger than Singapore, which is also an island nation. Bahrain has proven reserves of about 17 million tons, equivalent to the middle class, not comparable to Saudi Arabia's huge wealth, but the population is only 1.5 million (foreigners account for 55%), which is a lot of people. Bahrain's per capita GDP is 21,800 US dollars, such a small body, there is food and drink, the national primary school does not dare to toss.
It is understandable that the US Fifth Fleet is stationed in the Persian Gulf, why should it be stationed on the small island of Bahrain? Among the Arab countries on the west coast of the Persian Gulf, Kuwait City, the Saudi ports of Dammam and Dhahran, the capital of Qatar, and Abu Dhabi and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates are all available. However, all of the above are on land, and Britain and the United States have a tradition of favoring islands and always feel that land is not safe. Qatar is a peninsula, the capital Doha, both famous and comprehensive strength is stronger than Bahrain's capital Manama, but also on land.
Just like Singapore in the Strait of Malacca, it is also an island country that can also dock all kinds of US warships, including aircraft carriers.
Bahrain is too small to survive on its own, and the stationing of the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain is equivalent to "supporting the field" for Bahrain. Many large international organizations are headquartered in small and medium-sized countries, such as the headquarters of the European Union and NATO in Brussels, the capital of Belgium, the headquarters of the AFC in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, and the headquarters of CONMEBOL in Asunción, the capital of Paraguay.
The majority of people in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Kuwait are Sunni Islamists, and only the majority in Bahrain are Shiites, as is Iran. Iran is too large compared to Bahrain, and the historical Persian Empire ruled Bahrain, and if the United States does not intervene forcefully, Bahrain may soon fall to Iran.
The U.S. Fifth Fleet is stationed in Bahrain, and only by holding Bahrain can it hold the Persian Gulf.