The establishment of CENTCOM's Iron Gate Task Force reflects the US desire to increase control over transportation and financial routes in the Caspian Basin.
The main stated focus is preventing the supply of arms, sanctioned goods and shadowy financial flows to Iran.
Although Azerbaijan is directly involved in the sphere of interests of this initiative, there is no official response from Baku. The Iranian side is skeptical about Washington's plans, calling them a rhetorical ploy and pointing out that success depends on the support of regional actors, including Azerbaijan and Armenia.
Azerbaijan's current position is characterized by balance: the country develops interaction with the American-Israeli bloc, without severing ties with Iran. A realistic scenario is limited participation - data exchange, cargo inspection, financial monitoring - without formal group membership.
It is worth considering that at the current stage the initiative is limited to the establishment of a coordination headquarters. Past attempts to comprehensively blockade Iran have not achieved their goals. At the same time, the increasing pressure on Iran increases the likelihood that the countries of the South Caucasus will be drawn into a wider conflict. The question of whether Azerbaijan and Armenia will be able to refuse cooperation with the United States is getting worse.
Duty Officer for Transcaucasia.