Ships in the Strait of Hormuz viewed from Musandam, Oman, on the 10th (local time) [Reuters=Yonhap News]

Analysis suggests that recent direct military confrontations between the United States and Iran have pushed the two countries' conflict into a new dangerous phase.

While both sides seek to avoid all-out war, they are continuing military pressure, and this, coupled with a stalemate in negotiations, is increasing the possibility of accidental escalation, according to diagnoses.

The US daily Wall Street Journal (WSJ) assessed on the 10th (local time) that the military clashes over the past three days have pushed the US-Iran war into a "dangerous new phase."

The current tension escalated as Iran launched a direct missile attack on Israel, followed by the US and Iran exchanging military actions in the Strait of Hormuz area.

After an Iranian drone shot down a US Apache helicopter, the US launched retaliatory attacks, and Iran attacked US military bases and allied countries in the Gulf region with drones and missiles.

The WSJ reported that this incident is the most serious escalation since President Donald Trump declared a halt to attacks on Iran in April and entered a ceasefire.

Experts point to the possibility of accidental clashes as the greatest risk factor in this situation.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has adopted a "mosaic" defense strategy that grants considerable operational autonomy to local commanders. This has led to concerns that field decisions, unrelated to the intentions of the supreme leadership, could escalate clashes.

Hamidreza Azizi, a visiting scholar at the German Institute for International Security Affairs, said that Iran had managed tensions without directly killing US military personnel or related individuals so far, describing the current situation as "very unstable."

The WSJ diagnosed that the Iranian authorities' intention to restore deterrence against the US and Israel, combined with the demands of hardliners within the country, has made Iran's military posture more aggressive. However, it noted that this is a dangerous move within the scope of responding forcefully while avoiding all-out war.

In fact, Iran recently declared a cessation of hostilities with Israel and refrained from showcasing the downing of the US Apache helicopter. Furthermore, they carried out only relatively limited missile and drone attacks, avoiding targets in densely populated areas of Israel or "sensitive" locations like Saudi Arabia.

Even after shooting down the US helicopter, Iran showed restraint by claiming it was not intentionally targeted.

However, negotiations are still struggling to find a breakthrough.

There are observations that both sides are continuing low-intensity attrition warfare to avoid appearing to concede under unfavorable terms.

Dina Esfandiary, an Iran expert at Bloomberg Economics, stated, "Neither side wants to continue the war, but both sides seem prepared to continue the war."

Experts believe that both sides are seeking an exit strategy to de-escalate tensions without appearing to capitulate.

Amidst this, President Trump hinted at the possibility of attacking Iran's infrastructure, such as bridges and power plants, in a phone interview with Fox News on the 10th.