PHOTO: REUTERS

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US President Donald Trump has indicated that he may send troops to seize control of Iran’s key oil export terminal at Kharg Island in the northern Gulf. So what’s behind this, how would it work and what are the risks?

Kharg Island has long been Iran’s chief outlet for its oil exports. The island sits offshore with waters deep enough to load product onto tankers known as Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs), which can hold around two million barrels. Around 90 percent of Iran’s oil exports pass through Kharg.

If the US does decide to invade Kharg Island then it would most likely be a temporary measure intended to put pressure on Iran by cutting off its fuel exports until it relinquished its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz and conceded to Washington’s demands.

Given the resilience and defiance of the Iranian regime it is highly questionable whether this would work. The speaker of Iran’s parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, has warned that his country’s forces would “rain down fire” on any invading US forces. Iran is believed to have reinforced its defences on the island, including with surface-to-air missile batteries.

Iran has also accused the US of duplicity by proposing peace talks at the same time as dispatching troops to the region. These forces are made up of nearly 5,000 US Marines and around 2,000 paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division.

In theory, the paratroopers could make an airborne assault to seize key positions on this small island.

Thousands of soldiers from the US Army’s elite 82nd Airborne Division have started arriving in the Middle East, two US officials told Reuters.

Such is the awesome fighting power of these Marine Expeditionary Units (MEUs) that the US force would almost certainly prevail, but it could come at the expense of a severe number of casualties, say analysts.

The US then has the problem of holding the ground, for an indeterminate period, while subject to bombardment from the Iranian mainland, reports BBC.