U.S. Pulls Key Amphibious Asset from Japan for Middle East as Scholars Urge Taiwan to Act

As the U.S.-Iran conflict enters its third week, the scope of military operations may expand beyond missile and drone exchanges to include amphibious operations targeting strategically critical islands near the Strait of Hormuz. According to reports frominternational wire services and theU.S. Naval Institute (USNI), the U.S. military moved the amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli and approximately 2,200 Marines of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (31st MEU) from Japan to the Middle East over the weekend, signaling a possible next phase focused on securing freedom of navigation through the strait.

The United States last week struck military facilities on Kharg Island, Iran's main crude oil export terminal in the Persian Gulf. If President Donald Trump follows through on stated objectives to restore shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, analysts say the three small but strategically significant islands near the strait — Abu Musa, Greater Tunb, and Lesser Tunb — cannot be overlooked. （Related： Opinion | When Leaders Call for War, Do Their Children Ever Answer? ｜ Latest ）

Iran's Island Grip on the Strait of Hormuz

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has long asserted sovereignty over the three islands, but Iran seized control of them in late 1971. The territorial dispute has remained unresolved for more than 50 years.

The U.S. Navy has maintained a carrier and an amphibious assault ship on a rotational basis in Japan. The USS Tripoli replaced the USS America as the forward-deployed amphibious assault ship at Sasebo Naval Base in Nagasaki Prefecture in June of last year. When tasked with a mission, the vessel typically embarks with the 31st MEU, based in Okinawa, before deploying to its area of operations.

According to aUSNI report, as of Monday, March 9, the USS Tripoli was operating in the Philippine Sea near Taiwan, conducting exercises with two other U.S. amphibious ships. It remains unclear whether all three vessels are heading to the Middle East. Open-source intelligence data indicated the Tripoli was spotted in the Luzon Strait, south of Taiwan, on Thursday, March 12.
Large-scale U.S. amphibious operations have been rare since the Korean War, but Marine expeditionary forces have been involved in nearly every major U.S. military engagement since — including Vietnam, Grenada in 1983, the Gulf War from 1990 to 1991, Somalia from 1992 to 1994, and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq following the September 11, 2001 attacks. （Related： Opinion | When Leaders Call for War, Do Their Children Ever Answer? ｜ Latest ）

Shipping Lanes Run Directly Past Iran's Islands

Maps clearly illustrate the strategic significance of Abu Musa, Greater Tunb, and Lesser Tunb, which sit at the eastern end of the Persian Gulf, directly facing the Strait of Hormuz. Their location gives Iran substantial potential leverage over commercial shipping through the strait.

The Strait of Hormuz itself is approximately 33 kilometers wide, but deep-draft vessels such as oil tankers are restricted to even narrower navigable channels — lanes that pass in close proximity to the three islands.

According to multiple international media reports, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which effectively commands Iran's military forces, uses the three islands as forward operating bases. Abu Musa, for instance, reportedly hosts missile installations, drone runways, and port facilities capable of rapid minelaying. U.S. officials have indicated that any effort to restore freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz — as President Trump has publicly pledged — would likely require addressing the Iranian military presence on these islands.​

Qeshm Island: Struck Early, Still a Threat

A separate Iranian island threat lies on Qeshm Island, also near the Strait of Hormuz. Qeshm is considerably larger than the three disputed islands and sits less than 60 kilometers from the nearest coast of Oman across the strait. （Related： Opinion | When Leaders Call for War, Do Their Children Ever Answer? ｜ Latest ）

The Associated Press reported that Qeshm has a resident population of approximately 150,000. Iran's Foreign Ministry accused U.S. forces of striking a desalination plant on the island on March 8, though U.S. officials have not confirmed the allegation.

The New York Times reported that the IRGC maintains multiple underground tunnel complexes on Qeshm housing fast attack boats, suicide drones, and missiles — capabilities that pose a direct threat to Strait of Hormuz shipping. Iranian military installations on the island were among the targets struck by U.S. forces in the early stages of the conflict.

The transit time for the USS Tripoli and accompanying amphibious forces from Japan to the Middle East is estimated at 10 to 15 days, meaning the vessels could arrive in the Arabian Sea or the Gulf of Oman as early as next week. Given the pattern of the current conflict — in which the United States built up forces in the region over an extended period before launching its initial strikes against Iran — the overall campaign may continue for several more weeks. （Related： Opinion | When Leaders Call for War, Do Their Children Ever Answer? ｜ Latest ）

Scholar: Taiwan Must Engage Washington, Resist Being a Bargaining Chip

Fu Tse-min (傅澤民), an assistant research fellow at the Institute of Political Science of Academia Sinica, said the successive redeployment of U.S. forces from Japan and South Korea to the Middle East, combined with the partial suspension of arms deliveries to Taiwan, represents a short-term negative signal that Taipei must take seriously.

Fu said the United States would not abandon Taiwan, but stressed that Taiwan must maintain active communication with Washington and work through the framework of the Taiwan Relations Act to ensure that delayed arms deliveries do not become indefinite postponements.

Fu also called on Taiwan to deepen defense cooperation with regional partners such as Japan and Australia, and to leverage pro-Taiwan support in the U.S. Congress to reinforce the security architecture under the Taiwan Relations Act. He said these steps were necessary to "ensure that Taiwan does not become a bargaining chip for the U.S. executive branch," adding that only by doing so can Taiwan avoid being negatively impacted amid this turbulent situation.

（Related： Opinion | When Leaders Call for War, Do Their Children Ever Answer? ｜ Latest ）