Sinking the `Dena'. An audacious Iranian gamble that failed.
I decided to write this, as the narrative in the Indian media gives the impression that the Iranian warship IRIS Dena (Islamic republic of Iran ship DENA) was invited to India for the international fleet review we hosted and on departing, ship was sunk by a US submarine. It has been alleged that the sinking of an unarmed ship, with mostly cadets under training, was a war crime and a snub to India, since the ship was `under our protection’. At the least it questions our credentials in being the guardian of the Indian ocean, or allowing our `guest’ to be killed in cold blood. I have a different view and one not speculated on by the media. I think it was an audacious and high risk gamble by the Iranian navy, to target US merchant shipping, in the event of war. That gamble failed. The gamble involved 3 Iranian warships (not just the IRIS Dena) that were deployed far from home waters, to carry out what might have been a surprise attack on US supply or merchant shipping, in an unexpected are...