ING Groep NV stated that the US plan to escort vessels through the Strait of Hormuz is positive news for the oil market. However, unless Tehran's military capabilities are first degraded, the escort ships could come under attack. Analysts from ING's commodities team wrote in a report, "Naval escorts would be helpful, but again, this effort requires time. The naval escort vessels would become live targets for Iranian strikes. Therefore, the US may choose to wait for some time before deploying escort ships, until it assesses that Iran's offensive capacity has been reduced." ING warned that the longer disruptions persist in the Strait of Hormuz, the more upstream production will be halted.