America’s top four nation-state enemies in the world have all shown signs of increased military aggression against the United States over the last 24 hours.
Earlier today, 11 Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) boats swarmed several U.S. naval ships that “were conducting joint integration operations with U.S. Army AH-64E Apache attack helicopters in the international waters of the North Arabian Gulf,” the U.S. Navy said in a statement.
The Navy said that the Iranian boats got within 10 yards of the U.S. vessels and did not respond to “five short blasts from the ships’ horns and long-range acoustic noise maker devices.”
The Navy added, “The IRGCN’s dangerous and provocative actions increased the risk of miscalculation and collision, were not in accordance with the internationally recognized Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGS) ‘rules of the road’ or internationally recognized maritime customs, and were not in accordance with the obligation under international law to act with due regard for the safety of other vessels in the area.”
WATCH:
BREAKING: 11 Iranian #IRGCN vessels repeatedly conducted dangerous & harassing approaches against U.S. naval ships operating in international waters of North Arabian Gulf. U.S. crews took actions deemed appropriate to avoid collision.
Details: https://t.co/ZVKPKv738o pic.twitter.com/lKJgDz0l2N
— U.S. Navy (@USNavy) April 15, 2020
The aggression from Iran comes after a bombshell report from The Wall Street Journal indicating that communist China might be conducting secret nuclear weapons tests in violation of international law.
The Wall Street Journal reported:
China might be secretly conducting nuclear tests with very low explosive power despite Beijing’s assertions that it is strictly adhering to an international accord banning all nuclear tests, according to a new arms-control report to be made public by the State Department.
The coming report doesn’t present proof that China is violating its promise to uphold the agreement, but it cites an array of activities that “raise concerns” that Beijing might not be complying with the “zero-yield” nuclear-weapons testing ban.
The concerns stem from the high tempo of activity at China’s Lop Nur test site, extensive excavations at the site, and Beijing’s purported use of special chambers to contain explosions.
Another factor feeding U.S. suspicions is the interruption in past years of data transmissions from monitoring stations on Chinese territory that are designed to detect radioactive emissions and seismic tremors.
The news concerning possible nuclear tests by communist China comes after the Russian military tested a “direct-ascent anti-satellite (DA-ASAT) missile” on Wednesday, which is designed to destroy “satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO),” according to the United States Space Command.
“Russia’s DA-ASAT test provides yet another example that the threats to U.S. and allied space systems are real, serious and growing,” said Gen. John W. “Jay” Raymond, USSPACECOM commander and U.S. Space Force Chief of Space Operations. “The United States is ready and committed to deterring aggression and defending the Nation, our allies and U.S. interests from hostile acts in space.”
“This test is further proof of Russia’s hypocritical advocacy of outer space arms control proposals designed to restrict the capabilities of the United States while clearly having no intention of halting their counterspace weapons programs,” Raymond said. “Space is critical to all nations and our way of life. The demands on space systems continue in this time of crisis where global logistics, transportation and communication are key to defeating the COVID-19 pandemic.
The U.S. Navy also reported on Wednesday that the Russian military buzzed a U.S. military aircraft that was flying in international airspace over the Mediterranean Sea.
“On April 15, 2020, a U.S. P-8A Poseidon aircraft flying in international airspace over the Mediterranean Sea was intercepted by a Russian SU-35,” the Navy said in a statement. “The interaction was determined to be unsafe due to the SU-35 conducting a high-speed, inverted maneuver, 25 ft. directly in front of the mission aircraft, which put our pilots and crew at risk. The crew of the P-8A reported wake turbulence following the interaction.”
On Tuesday, North Korea fired “multiple short-range anti-ship cruise missiles into the sea and Sukhoi jets fired air-to-surface missiles” as part of military exercises, Reuters reported.
The U.S. Military conducted an “elephant walk” at Andersen AFB, Guam, on Tuesday that showcased some of the most powerful bombers in the world that have the capability to deliver nuclear bombs anywhere in the world in a matter of hours.
#ICYMI A @USNavy MQ-4C Triton, @usairforce RQ-4 Global Hawk, B-52 Stratofortresses, and KC-135 Stratotankers at Andersen AFB, Guam, perform an Elephant Walk April 13, 2020. The Elephant Walk showcases their commitment to ensure regional stability throughout the Indo-Pacific. pic.twitter.com/LUDdzh6a1k
— PACAF (@PACAF) April 14, 2020