Iran’s latest attacks across the Gulf and against Jordan are not random acts of retaliation. They reflect a deliberate political strategy: convince America’s regional partners that their relationships with Washington make them less secure, not more.

By striking American military facilities and related infrastructure in Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and Jordan, and by threatening shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, Tehran is targeting the long-established network of relationships and assets that allows the US to operate throughout the region.

Bahrain hosts the headquarters of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet. Qatar hosts Al Udeid Air Base, a major hub for American command-and-control operations. Kuwait provides critical logistics and air-defense infrastructure. Jordan is an indispensable platform for US operations, intelligence and regional defense. Oman occupies a pivotal position along the southern side of the Strait.

Iran is not simply choosing countries it dislikes. It is attacking the infrastructure of American regional power.

At the same time, Tehran appears to be calibrating its actions carefully. It has so far avoided the most devastating potential attacks on major Saudi and Emirati population centers, ports and energy infrastructure.

That is not because Iran regards Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates as friendly. Rather, major attacks against them could produce precisely what Tehran wants to prevent: a more unified coalition willing to impose severe costs on Iran.

Iran has avoided striking Israel in this round, presumably in order to avoid the significant Israeli retaliation that could lead to another cycle of escalation.

Rather than trigger an immediate region-wide war, Iran’s objective is to climb the escalation ladder selectively, pressure vulnerable American partners, and fragment the coalition confronting........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)