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US Bombers Fly over Middle East in ‘Strategic’ Show of Deterrence

B-52H crews conduct second Middle East presence patrol of 2021 as key part of CENTCOM’s defensive posture. (CENTCOM)
B-52H crews conduct second Middle East presence patrol of 2021 as key part of CENTCOM’s defensive posture. (CENTCOM)
    London, Tehran - Asharq Al-Awsat
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US Bombers Fly over Middle East in ‘Strategic’ Show of Deterrence

B-52H crews conduct second Middle East presence patrol of 2021 as key part of CENTCOM’s defensive posture. (CENTCOM)
B-52H crews conduct second Middle East presence patrol of 2021 as key part of CENTCOM’s defensive posture. (CENTCOM)

US B-52H Stratofortress bombers flew over the Middle East on Sunday in a show of military strength amid heightened tensions with Iran.

“Short-term deployments of strategic assets are an important part of our defensive posture in the region,” said Gen. Frank McKenzie, commander of CENTCOM. McKenzie added that the mission “delivers a clear and consistent message in the operational environment to both friends and potential adversaries, alike.”

At least one B-52 assigned to the 5th Bomb Wing flew over the Middle East in an “observable” demonstration of military power, the US Central Command said in a press release on Sunday.

The flight is the second of its kind this year, and the fifth in recent months, the Command wrote.

The bombers flew over Israel towards the Arabian Gulf.

Further, long-range missiles from Iran splashed down close to a commercial ship in the Indian Ocean Saturday and 160 kilometers from the Nimitz aircraft carrier strike group, Fox News reported, in the latest example of rising tensions in the region.

Iran’s navy had kicked off a short-range missile drill in the Gulf of Oman on Wednesday.

A wide array of ground-to-ground ballistic missiles and drones were used to target “hypothetical enemy bases” during the first phase of the drill. The Zolfaqar, Zelzel and Dezful missiles, which officials claim are “able to break through enemy's defense systems,” were used in the drill.

Amirali Hajizadeh, the head of the aerospace division of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, said: “The missile program is a means for producing power and security for Iran.”

He noted that various classes of long-range ballistic missiles were launched in the final stage of the war game on Saturday morning to detonate the hypothetical enemy’s warships from a distance of 1,800 kilometers north of the Indian Ocean.

“Today, our goal was to destroy the enemy fleet in the northern Indian Ocean, 1,800 km away,” Hajizadeh added.

Guards chief Major General Hossein Salami stated: “One of our major goals in defense policies and strategies is to be able to target enemy ships, including aircraft carriers and battleships, using long-range ballistic missiles.”

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NATO Announces New Mission to Protect Undersea Cables in the Baltic Sea Region

Estonian naval ships sail in the Baltic Sea on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, as part of stepped-up NATO patrols in the region following suspected sabotage - The AP
Estonian naval ships sail in the Baltic Sea on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, as part of stepped-up NATO patrols in the region following suspected sabotage - The AP
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NATO Announces New Mission to Protect Undersea Cables in the Baltic Sea Region

Estonian naval ships sail in the Baltic Sea on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, as part of stepped-up NATO patrols in the region following suspected sabotage - The AP
Estonian naval ships sail in the Baltic Sea on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, as part of stepped-up NATO patrols in the region following suspected sabotage - The AP

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte announced Tuesday that the alliance is launching a new mission to protect undersea cables in the Baltic Sea region.

Rutte said at a meeting in Helsinki with the leaders of NATO countries located on the Baltic Sea that the effort would be dubbed Baltic Sentry.

“It will involve a range of assets, including frigates and maritime patrol aircraft, among others, and will enhance our vigilance in the Baltic,” Rutte told reporters. He also said that a small fleet of naval drones will be deployed “to provide enhanced surveillance and deterrence.”

The meeting follows a string of incidents in the Baltic that have heightened concerns about possible Russian activities in the region.

Even as Rutte was meeting in Helsinki with the leaders of eight Baltic nations, there were reports on the Polish state broadcaster TVP that a ship belonging to Russia's "shadow fleet” was seen circling a natural gas pipeline that runs from Norway to Poland, The AP reported.

Finland President Alexander Stubb said the issue had been discussed at the meeting without giving details.

The meeting included leaders from Finland, Germany, Poland, Denmark, Sweden, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.

Announcing the new operation, Rutte noted that more than 95% of internet traffic is secured via undersea cables, and 1.3 million kilometers (808,000 miles) of cables guarantee an estimated $10 trillion worth of financial transactions every day.

“Across the alliance, we have seen elements of a campaign to destabilize our societies through cyberattacks, assassination attempts and sabotage, including possible sabotage of undersea cables in the Baltic Sea,” he said.

Rutte said NATO’s adversaries must know that the alliance will not accept attacks on its critical infrastructure, underlining that “we will do everything in our power to make sure that we fight back, that we are able to see what is happening and then take the next steps to make sure that that doesn’t happen again.”

Pressed for details about what the operation might involve, Rutte declined to provide ship numbers, saying that the figure could vary week to week, and “we don’t want to make the enemy, any wiser than he or she is already.”

“We will make use of the full range of possibilities we as an alliance have,” he said, including “remotely operated vehicles” and drones.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in separate remarks to reporters that Germany will participate in the Baltic Sentry mission. Asked whether that means Germany will contribute ships or surveillance planes and whether he made a specific offer, he replied: “We will participate with everything we have in the way of naval capabilities; that will vary, as far as the concrete possibilities of deployment are concerned.”