U.S. Works With Mideast Allies on Drone Plan

"MANAMA, Bahrain -- The U.S. Navy is working with Israel, Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern nations to build a network of unmanned drones as it seeks to constrain Iran's military in the region -- a program the Pentagon hopes would be a model for operations around the world.

A ship operated by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps attempted to seize an American maritime drone -- equipped with cameras, radar and other sensors -- but abandoned that effort Tuesday when a U.S. warship and helicopter approached, U.S. officials said.

U.S. officers declined to disclose the number of aerial and maritime drones deployed by the U.S. and its allies, or to give details about where and how they are used. But they said the unmanned vessels and aircraft are giving them better visibility over the region's waters.

By next summer, the Navy said, it expects to have 100 small surveillance drones -- contributed by various countries -- operating from the Suez Canal in Egypt to waters off the Iranian coast and feeding information to a command center in Bahrain, headquarters of the U.S. Fifth Fleet.

"I think we are truly on the cusp of an unmanned technological revolution," said Capt. Michael Brasseur, who heads the U.S. Navy task force working to build the drone fleet in the Middle East.

The drone initiative, now in its sixth month, is part of a burgeoning cooperative relationship among the U.S., Israel and Gulf nations following the Abraham Accords.

From the Robotic Operation Center in Manama, Bahrain, U.S. Navy personnel and private contractors monitor the drones' progress. Video screens display blinking red alerts when the drones identify so-called dark targets or suspected threats.

The drones can send back detailed images and other data. Analysts review the images and try to determine what they show.

Vice Adm. Brad Cooper, the commander spearheading the effort, said the fleet has proven its value by detecting activity such as a Chinese naval ship moving through the area and suspicious ship-to-ship transfers.

The drones being tested are unarmed. But defense analysts expect the Navy to move toward equipping some with weapons in the future. U.S. lawmakers have raised concerns about plans to build larger unmanned ships, a program that could cost billions of dollars.

The U.S. drone operations come as there is mounting concern about Iran's expanding influence in one of the world's most important economic thoroughfares. Tehran has deployed ships and submarines equipped with aerial drones and has warned it is prepared to use them." [1]

1. World News: U.S. Works With Mideast Allies on Drone Plan
Nissenbaum, Dion. 
Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]. 01 Sep 2022: A.16.