Modern historical consensus gives the breach of the treaty mentioned by Appian and the raising of the siege of Thurii as the explanation for the attack on the Roman ships. Appian's claim of sight-seeing is deemed implausible. Tarentum was concerned about growing Roman influence in this area, which started with Thurii asking for Roman protection in 286 or 285 BC. Thurii turning to Rome instead of Tarentum was taken as an acknowledgment of the emergence of Rome as the hegemonic power in Italy by the latter. This is probably why Appian wrote that the Tarentines blamed Thurii for overstepping the limits of the treaty, attacked the city and expelled the Roman garrison there. It has been speculated that the mentioned treaty might have been a peace treaty made by Alexander of Epirus with the Romans in 332 BC while campaigning in southern Italy to support Tarentum against the Lucani, or a treaty made with Cleonymus of Sparta in 303 BC for the same reason. There has also been speculation that when the Romans raised the siege of Thurii their troops might have been transported by a small fleet which turned up off Tarentum.