Tehran has warned of harsh retaliation if its key energy hub is targeted
FILE PHOTO: Satellite view of Iran's Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf. © Getty Images / Gallo Images
US
forces have struck military facilities on Kharg Island off Iran’s
coast, with US President Donald Trump warning that a major oil terminal
there might also be attacked if Tehran continues to block the Strait of
Hormuz.
Iranian authorities have responded by promising to target US-linked oil infrastructure in the Persian Gulf if that happens.
The
tiny island is responsible for processing some 90% of Iran’s crude
exports, and remained untouched during the first two weeks of the US and
Israeli war on the country, which led to oil prices soaring worldwide.
On Friday, Trump announced that the US has “totally obliterated every military target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island.” The president claimed that he chose not to target the oil infrastructure this time, but cautioned that “should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision.”
According to the US military, more than 90 targets on Kharg Island
were hit, including naval mine storage facilities, missile depots and
other military sites.
Iranian state media, however, reported 15
explosions on the island, with the strikes being aimed at air defense
systems, a naval base, an airport control tower and a helicopter hangar.
The oil terminal remains unaffected, it stressed.
On Saturday, Trump reiterated his threat, telling NBC News that “we may hit it (Kharg island) a few more times just for fun.”
Key to Iran’s economy
An
attack on the oil facilities would represent a major escalation.
Despite being only 20 square kilometers in size, Kharg Island plays a
crucial role in the Iranian economy, handling almost all of the
country’s crude exports. These strikes threaten to deepen the global
energy crisis even further as, according to Reuters, Iran supplies about
4.5% of the world’s oil.
The oil terminal is located on a coral outcrop, sitting around 25
kilometers (15 miles) from the coast. It was built by the American
company Amoco before the 1979 Islamic Revolution drove a major wedge
between the US and Iran. The location was chosen because the shallow
waters off the country’s shores made it problematic for large tanker
ships to enter the ports on the mainland.
Pipelines deliver crude from the oilfields across Iran to Kharg Island, which is often referred to by the public as the “forbidden island” because of the tight security around it.
Satellite
images have shown the terminal at the island working around the clock
during the conflict as Iran continues to ship oil to China, despite
closing the Strait of Hormuz to vessels from most other countries.
Iran
once exported 1.5 million barrels per day. However, because of the
sanctions, deliveries spiked in the run up to the US and Israeli attack.
It started exporting more than 2 million barrels daily and sometimes
saw volumes reach 3.7 million barrels, according to data from Kpler
trade analyst.
Kharg Island also hosts an oil storage facility
with an estimated capacity of 30 million liters, which is currently
around 60% full, Kpler said.
Tehran warns of retaliation
Following Friday’s attack, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) vowed to set the oil and gas infrastructure in the Gulf “on fire” if energy sites on Kharg Island are struck.
On Saturday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told MS Now that “our armed forces have already stated that they will retaliate if our oil and energy infrastructure is attacked. They will strike any energy facility in the region that belongs to or is partially owned by an American company.”
Is a US ground operation possible?
The
strikes on Kharg Island are also likely to complicate Trump’s plans to
put a friendly government in power in Iran in order to benefit from its
oil sector, like the US has been doing in Caracas since the kidnapping
of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in early January.
Rumors have emerged in recent days of Washington preparing a ground
operation to capture energy infrastructure on the island, fueled by the
announcement that a rapid response US marine unit of about 2,500 troops
will be deployed to the Middle East.
The US president told Fox News that boots on the ground was “one of so many different things” considered by his administration. “It’s not high on the list, but it’s one of so many different things, and I can change my mind in seconds,” he said.
Trump first spoke about the seizure of Kharg Island in 1988. “I’d be harsh on Iran. They’ve been beating us psychologically, making us look like a bunch of fools. One bullet shot at one of our men or ships, and I’d do a number on Kharg Island. I’d go in and take it,” he said at the time.
Military
experts have been warning that the ground operation would be an
extremely risky affair. Even if the US marines are able to capture the
island, holding on to it would be problematic due to its proximity to
the mainland and its flat surface, which would provide almost no cover
from the Iranian drones, missiles or artillery.