The US Navy's 5th Fleet is instrumental in maintaining security and freedom of movement in the Middle East.

The fleet, which shares a commander and headquarters with US Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) in Bahrain, is a component of US Central Command (CENTCOM).

Its area of operations encompasses about 2.5 million square miles of water and includes the Arabian Gulf, Red Sea, Gulf of Oman, Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea and parts of the Indian Ocean, according to the US Navy.

This area comprises 21 nations and three critical choke points at the Strait of Hormuz, Suez Canal and Strait of Bab al-Mandeb.

NAVCENT/5th Fleet's mission is to conduct maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts and to strengthen partner nations' maritime capabilities in order to promote security and stability in the region.

It consists of eight task forces focused on strike, contingency response, mine warfare, surface, expeditionary combat, unmanned systems, and logistics to support naval operations.

It leads the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF), a 46-nation security partnership established in 2001 to counter non-state actors in the maritime domain of the region.

Countering malign actors

The 5th Fleet plays an indispensable role in ensuring stability and safeguarding vital maritime trade routes.

Iran, with its strategic position along the Strait of Hormuz, has a history of leveraging its geographical advantage to threaten global oil supplies and enabling malign regional proxies.

Similarly, Russia's growing military presence in Syria and occasional naval deployments in the Mediterranean reflect its ambition to exert control over key regional dynamics.

Without the 5th Fleet's oversight, the Russian-Iranian alliance could grow bolder, escalating its aggressive posture.

This misbehavior could lead to increased militarization of maritime chokepoints, such as the Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb straits, threatening the free flow of goods and energy supplies critical to the global economy.

The absence of a robust counterbalance might embolden Iran's regional proxies, such as the Houthis in Yemen and Hizbullah in Lebanon, to intensify their activities, further destabilizing already volatile areas.

The absence of the 5th Fleet could lead Russia and China to assert dominance, turning the vital maritime trade routes into zones of limited access and directly threatening the free and open use of these vital routes.

The US 5th Fleet acts as a deterrent, ensuring that no single power can dominate the region to the detriment of global security.