Professor Pape Warns Iran Strike on US Navy Ships Could Trigger Full War

What was said

"The goal here is fairly straightforward. What you are seeing is an effort by the United States to run the blockade. They're trying to break Iran's grip on the Strait of Hormuz by literally running ships through the blockade. And then the bet is that Iran will not fight back, that Iran will not shoot back. If they hit just one ship, one U.S. vessel, that is probably going to trigger what you are hearing Secretary Hagel says with all of that other force, the spiral then of escalation."

University of Chicago Professor Robert Pape characterizes U.S. Operation Freedom as a high-risk gamble that depends on Iran not retaliating against American vessels. He warns that a single successful Iranian strike on a U.S. Navy ship would likely trigger major combat operations and spiral escalation. Pape describes this as the escalation trap playing out in real time.