INTERNACIONAL
US turns to drones after retiring minesweepers to reopen Strait of Hormuz amid Iran crisis
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The U.S. is racing to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as Iran threatens one of the world’s most critical shipping lanes, testing a Navy that has recently retired most of its dedicated minesweepers and is now relying on a smaller fleet of unmanned systems to do the job.
President Donald Trump has warned Tehran against further escalation and signaled the U.S. is prepared to act to keep the strait open, while Iranian forces have laid mines and threatened commercial traffic in the narrow waterway that carries a significant share of global oil.
The confrontation is now testing a weakness in the Navy’s mine-warfare posture. As the U.S. moves to reopen the Strait of Hormuz after Iranian mining threats, it is doing so after retiring most of the ships once dedicated to that mission and while still relying on a limited mix of legacy vessels and newer unmanned systems to clear one of the world’s most critical shipping lanes.
At the current moment, any mine-clearing effort is unfolding amid an active standoff in the strait. The U.S. has imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports, while Iran has responded with attacks on commercial vessels, seizures of ships and threats to close the waterway entirely.
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The merchant vessel Seaway Hawk sails in the Persian Gulf while transporting decommissioned U.S. Navy Avenger-class mine countermeasures ships, USS Devastator, USS Dextrous, USS Gladiator and USS Sentry. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Iain Page /U.S. Naval Forces Central Command / U.S. 5th Fleet)
At least several commercial ships have come under fire in recent days, and both sides have intercepted vessels as they attempt to move through the choke point, underscoring the risks facing any operation to restore traffic.
Iran has tied further negotiations to the lifting of the U.S. naval blockade, while Washington has insisted on security guarantees and reopening the strait, leaving little immediate path to a deal.
The operation comes after a major shift in how the Navy handles mine warfare. The service retired its four Bahrain-based minesweepers last year, ending a decades-long presence of dedicated mine-hunting ships in the Middle East.
At the start of the current crisis, the Navy’s remaining minesweepers were based in Japan, not the Persian Gulf, and newer littoral combat ships equipped for mine countermeasures were not all positioned in the region.
Multiple news outlets have reported Iran has laid at least a dozen mines in the strait, citing intelligence assessments, though some estimates put the number higher.
Now, as the U.S. moves to reopen the strait, some of those assets are being brought back in. Two Avenger-class mine countermeasure ships, USS Chief and USS Pioneer, were tracked sailing west from Southeast Asia toward the Middle East in recent days as preparations for mine-clearing operations ramp up.
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Image shows the Turkish Navy’s version of the mine-sweeping drone. (Ali Atmaca/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
The shift has left the Navy relying on a mix of legacy ships being surged into theater and newer unmanned systems designed to detect and neutralize mines.
«To be honest, that the minesweepers retired was never a concern to me, because we had brought in newer technology,» retired Vice Adm. Kevin Donegan, who previously commanded the Navy’s 5th Fleet, told Fox News Digital.
But analysts say the Navy is still working through a transition as it replaces its older minesweepers with newer systems.
«We’re sort of at this nadir of the Navy’s mine sweeping capacity,» Bryan Clark, a defense analyst at the Hudson Institute, told Fox News Digital.
Clark said the Navy has spent years developing unmanned systems to replace legacy ships, but currently has a limited number of those systems available for large-scale operations.
U.S. forces are not sending ships blindly into minefields. Instead, the operation begins with a wave of unmanned systems scanning the seabed to identify potential threats.
Underwater drones — some torpedo-shaped — are deployed in grid patterns to map the ocean floor and detect objects that could be mines, using high-resolution sonar to distinguish them from debris.
«They kind of look like torpedoes and they map the bottom,» Donegan said.
In parallel, surface drones tow sonar systems through narrow lanes, while helicopters equipped with sensors scan for mines closer to the surface, allowing the Navy to build a detailed picture of what is actually in the water.
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But identifying mines is only the first step.
«The mine neutralization part is really the long leg of the process,» Clark said.
Once a mine is located, operators deploy remotely controlled systems to disable it — either by detonating it in place or puncturing it so it sinks. Even then, the danger is not fully removed.
«You’ve got to then retrieve this thing with EOD personnel,» Clark said, referring to explosive ordnance disposal teams tasked with clearing debris that can still pose a hazard to passing ships.
The U.S. Navy has currently launched a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz amid a standoff with Iran. (Photo by Stephanie Contreras- U.S. Navy via Getty Images)
Clearing mines remains a slow and methodical process that can stretch timelines depending on how many devices are in the water and how they are deployed.
The Pentagon has told Congress the effort could take as long as six months, according to a Washington Post report.
Clark said recent war-gaming suggests U.S. forces could identify and begin neutralizing mines within weeks, but fully removing them from key shipping lanes could take significantly longer.
«The finding part, you could do within a couple of weeks,» he said, adding that neutralizing mines could take additional time and that removing debris and ensuring lanes are completely safe could extend operations into months.
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Donegan cautioned that timelines are difficult to predict, in part because U.S. forces must first confirm whether mines are actually present in the areas Iran has claimed.
«When somebody says they mined it, you have to go validate if that’s even true, and that takes time,» he said.
us navy, middle east, pentagon, war with iran, iran
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A car reportedly drove into a crowd in the northern Italian city of Modena on Saturday, injuring at least eight people.
The vehicle slammed into a store window, and its driver, identified as Salim El Koudri, 31, allegedly stabbed a passerby who attempted to intervene.
Mayor Massimo Mezzetti told Italian TV no one was killed, but eight people were injured, including four who were in critical condition.
Debris is seen in front of a wrecked car on a street in Modena, Italy, Saturday, after its driver allegedly rammed into a group of people and stabbed a passerby. (Lapresse via AP)
Mezzetti said the vehicle entered one of the city’s main streets and «drove onto the sidewalk, sending several people flying,» before crashing into the shop window.
He added one woman, who was pinned against a shop window, may require the amputation of both legs.
Authorities said El Koudri was born in Bergamo and raised in Modena with Maghreb origins, is unemployed, and was known to have mental disorders. There have been no confirmed links to extremist groups.
El Koudri was detained and questioned at police headquarters as authorities worked to determine if he acted deliberately, the mayor said. There was no indication he was under the influence at the time of the wreck.
Police patrol a scene after an incident in Modena, Italy, Saturday. (Lapresse via AP)
Modena Prefect Fabrizia Triolo told The Associated Press that El Koudri had «been known to local mental health services for schizoid disorders,» and early findings suggested «possible mental instability.»
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni described the incident as «extremely serious» in a statement posted to X.
«I express my closeness to the injured people and their families,» Meloni wrote in the post. «I also extend my thanks to the citizens who bravely intervened to stop the perpetrator and to the law enforcement agencies for their response.»
Meloni said she has spoken with the mayor and remains in constant contact with the authorities to follow the developments of the situation.
«I trust that the perpetrator will be held fully accountable for his actions,» she wrote.
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This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
italy, europe, crime world, world
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Ministros de Finanzas del G7 se reúnen en París para debatir puntos en común frente a las tensiones económicas mundiales
Los ministros de Finanzas del G7 se reunirán este lunes en París para intentar encontrar puntos en común frente a las tensiones económicas mundiales y coordinar el suministro de minerales críticos, en medio de crecientes diferencias geopolíticas entre Estados Unidos y sus aliados.
La reunión de dos días tendrá lugar después de la cumbre entre el presidente estadounidense, Donald Trump, y el líder chino, Xi Jinping, en Beijing, un encuentro que dejó pocos avances económicos concretos y mantuvo latentes las tensiones sobre Taiwán y el comercio.
En el centro de la agenda estará lo que el ministro de Finanzas francés, Roland Lescure, describió como profundos desequilibrios económicos mundiales que alimentan las fricciones comerciales y aumentan el riesgo de una reorganización turbulenta de los mercados financieros.
“La forma en que se ha desarrollado la economía global durante los últimos 10 años es claramente insostenible”, dijo Lescure. El funcionario señaló un patrón en el que China “consume menos de lo que debería”, Estados Unidos “consume en exceso” y Europa “invierte menos de lo necesario”.
Lescure, anfitrión de las conversaciones, sostuvo además que el G7 ofrecerá una oportunidad para un diálogo franco entre aliados en un momento de crecientes desacuerdos con Washington.
“Estas conversaciones no son fáciles. No voy a decirles que estamos de acuerdo en todo, incluyendo, por supuesto, lo más importante con nuestros amigos estadounidenses”, afirmó antes del encuentro.
Los ministros de Finanzas estarán atentos a las novedades sobre las relaciones entre Estados Unidos y China después de la cumbre entre Trump y Xi y a los últimos esfuerzos estadounidenses para reabrir el estrecho de Ormuz, después de que la administración Trump permitiera que expirara el sábado la exención de sanciones al petróleo ruso transportado por vía marítima.
Según funcionarios franceses implicados en los preparativos, bastaría con que cada parte aceptara cierta responsabilidad por los desequilibrios en el comercio y los flujos de capital, aunque consideran probable que Estados Unidos se muestre reacio a esa posición.
Philip Luck, director del programa de economía del Centro de Estudios Estratégicos e Internacionales de Washington, puso en duda esa posibilidad. “Me sorprendería mucho que aceptaran la idea de que esto es culpa de Estados Unidos de alguna manera”, declaró Luck.
Los ministros también prevén debatir las consecuencias económicas del conflicto en Oriente Medio y la volatilidad de los mercados mundiales de bonos, una situación que preocupa especialmente a Japón.
El Ministerio de Finanzas británico informó que Rachel Reeves “presionaría para que se tomen medidas coordinadas para limitar la inflación y las presiones en la cadena de suministro, y para que se restablezca la libertad de navegación a través del estrecho de Ormuz” durante la reunión.
Según el gobierno británico, Reeves también reafirmará el deseo de Londres de reducir las barreras comerciales entre Gran Bretaña y la Unión Europea.
Las divisiones dentro del G7 complican los esfuerzos por mostrar unidad mientras los ministros se preparan para la cumbre de líderes prevista del 15 al 17 de junio en la ciudad francesa de Evian.
Otra de las prioridades de la reunión será la cuestión de los minerales críticos y las tierras raras, un sector en el que los gobiernos del G7 intentan coordinar esfuerzos para reducir la dependencia de China, que domina las cadenas de suministro necesarias para tecnologías como vehículos eléctricos, energías renovables y sistemas de defensa.
Lescure afirmó que el G7 impulsará una mayor coordinación para supervisar los mercados, anticipar interrupciones y desarrollar fuentes alternativas de suministro mediante proyectos conjuntos entre economías aliadas.
El objetivo es garantizar que “ningún país vuelva a tener el monopolio” de esos materiales, añadió.
Los países del G7 buscan acordar medidas comunes para estabilizar los mercados y fomentar la inversión nacional, con iniciativas que podrían incluir precios mínimos para productores, compras conjuntas y aranceles.
No obstante, Luck sostuvo que la iniciativa todavía se encuentra en una etapa inicial y consideró improbable un acuerdo amplio en el corto plazo.
“Estamos en las primeras etapas de este proceso”, afirmó. “No creo que haya consenso sobre una estrategia ni siquiera dentro del gobierno estadounidense, y mucho menos que seamos capaces de explicarla de forma convincente a nuestros socios para que la apoyen”, agregó.
(Con información de REUTERS)
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