An AI-powered U.S. Navy drone boat played a key role in rescuing the crew of a downed American Apache helicopter near the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, marking what military officials say is the first real-world rescue operation involving an unmanned surface vessel.
After the helicopter went down, the two American crew members remained stranded in the waters off Oman for nearly two hours as the U.S. military rushed to reach them before Iranian forces could.
On Tuesday, President Trump revealed that Iranian forces had shot down the aircraft and vowed that the United States would respond.
“I have just been informed by our Great Military that last night the Iranians shot down one of our highly sophisticated Apache Helicopters while patrolling over the Strait of Hormuz,” Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116721129088347687">said</a> on Truth Social. “There were two pilots involved, both are safe and uninjured. Nevertheless, the United States must, of necessity, respond to this attack.”
The unmanned vessel responsible for rescuing the crew is a Saronic Corsair, Capt. Tim Hawkins, spokesman for U.S. Central Command, told the <a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/apache-helicopter-crash-coast-oman-4de26c6d?st=wZabGz&amp;reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink">Wall Street Journal</a>.
“When it comes to search and rescue, you utilize the best asset that is the closest and the quickest, and that was the case in this instance,” Hawkins <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/world/articles/corsair-drone-boat-plucked-downed-194043671.html">said</a>.
The drone boat transported the soldiers to a safer location at sea, where they were later hoisted aboard a helicopter and evacuated to receive medical care. Both are in stable condition, according to Hawkins.
While such sea drones have been used in exercises, they have not been used in real-life, he added.
The vessel, which was deployed to CENTCOM in March shortly after the conflict with Iran began, is operated by the Navy&#8217;s Task Force 59, which has evolved rapidly since its <a href="https://www.navy.mil/Press-Office/News-Stories/Article/3645647/task-force-59-launches-new-unmanned-task-group-591/">creation</a> in 2021.  
The unit specializes in integrating artificial intelligence and autonomous systems into real-world maritime operations and has already tested more than 23 different unmanned platforms across the Middle East.
According to the Journal, Ukraine has used these types of vessels to target Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.
The incident comes just days after Iran struck Israel with at least 24 missiles for the first time since the ceasefire went into place about two months ago. In response, Israel fired back before both sides agreed to halt attacks at Trump’s request.

Saronic

The Robot That Beat Iran To Two American Pilots

Artificial Intelligence

Donald Trump

Iran

U.S. Navy

A Navy sailor admitted Monday that he strangled and killed a fellow service member before hiding her body in a suitcase and dumping it in a wooded area near Naval Station Norfolk. The guilty plea is raising questions of why military officials failed to remove him from service despite multiple prior allegations of violence against women.
Culinary Specialist 3rd Class Jeremiah Copeland pleaded guilty during a military court-martial to the unpremeditated murder of Petty Officer 3rd Class Angelina Resendiz, a 21-year-old sailor assigned to the guided-missile destroyer USS James E. Williams.
&#8220;I killed CS3 Resendiz on May 29, 2025,&#8221; Copeland told the military judge. &#8220;I strangled her with my hands.&#8221;
Under a plea agreement accepted by the court, Copeland also pleaded guilty to aggravated assault by strangulation, indecent recording, obstruction of justice, and making a false official statement. He faces a minimum sentence of 40 years and two months in prison, a dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and mandatory registration as a sex offender. 
According to court proceedings, Resendiz entered Copeland&#8217;s barracks room on May 29, 2025. Copeland admitted the two were drinking alcohol when an argument began after she saw something on his phone. He told the court he strangled her on the floor of the room before hiding her body in a suitcase in his closet. 
Investigators later determined Copeland kept Resendiz&#8217;s body concealed for several days before transporting it to a wooded area roughly ten miles from the base. Her decomposing remains were discovered on June 9, 2025, nearly two weeks after she vanished. 
But even before Resendiz&#8217;s death, Copeland was already facing allegations involving other women. 
Military prosecutors had previously accused Copeland of raping a fellow sailor in November 2024 and sexually assaulting and attempting to strangle another service member months earlier. Court records also show he was facing a separate rape allegation involving a civilian woman in Norfolk just days before Resendiz disappeared.
His history reportedly stretches back even further. Before joining the Navy in 2023, a Washington state judge issued a temporary sexual assault protection order against Copeland involving an underage girl. He was also accused in a separate incident of kissing and groping another underage girl against her will. 
Resendiz&#8217;s mother, Esmeralda Castle, has repeatedly argued that Navy leadership failed to act despite numerous warning signs. 
&#8220;This situation was absolutely preventable,&#8221; Castle said before trial proceedings began.
&#8220;If they would have dealt with him when he started harming women, he would never have gotten to Angie,&#8221; she later told <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/navy-sailor-admits-killing-fellow-service-member-mother-questions-missed-warning-signs">Fox News</a>. 
Castle has been among the most vocal critics of the Navy&#8217;s response to her daughter&#8217;s disappearance. Resendiz was last seen on May 29, 2025, but a statewide missing-person alert was not issued until five days later after military officials initially classified her as absent without leave.
The delay sparked criticism from family members and comparisons to the case of Army Specialist Vanessa Guillen, whose <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/vanessa-guillen-fort-hood.html">murder</a> prompted sweeping reforms throughout the military regarding sexual harassment and assault investigations.
Friends and family described Resendiz as a bright and ambitious young sailor who hoped to build a career in military culinary arts. According to her mother, Resendiz aimed to one day join the Navy&#8217;s elite culinary competition team and cook for world leaders.
Following Monday&#8217;s plea hearing, Castle met privately with Copeland. 
&#8220;I thanked him for telling the truth,&#8221; she <a href="https://www.stripes.com/branches/navy/2026-06-08/sailor-pleads-guilty-death-angelina-resendiz-21906865.html?mc_cid=9ce47e81e4&amp;mc_eid=4c1d7240e1">said</a>. 
While Castle said hearing Copeland finally admit responsibility brought her &#8220;peace of mind,&#8221; she remains convinced the tragedy should never have happened. 
&#8220;We have statutes, and we have policies, and we have procedures that were implemented by Congress to protect service members from this type of violence,&#8221; Castle said. &#8220;And nothing&#8217;s changed.&#8221;
The military judge is expected to formally impose a sentence under the terms of the plea agreement following the conclusion of court-martial proceedings.

Volunteers place carnations at each grave at the Los Angeles National Cemetery in preparation of Memorial Day.

Navy Sailor Pleads Guilty To Murdering Fellow Service Member

Navy Sailor Pleads Guilty To Murder After Facing Multiple Rape Allegations

Crime

Military

U.S.

US Navy

Billions of dollars in Iranian crude are still reaching China through a &#8220;shadow fleet&#8221; of anonymous, aging oil tankers, evading both U.S. sanctions and the American naval blockade of Iran&#8217;s ports, a Wall Street Journal <a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/iranian-oil-shadow-fleet-black-market-3dc7fb6c?mod=hp_lead_pos7">report</a> revealed Wednesday.
The Journal&#8217;s investigation revealed what amounts to a floating black market for Iranian oil roughly 45 miles off the coast of Malaysia, where sanctioned tankers quietly offload their cargo to anonymized vessels bound for Chinese refineries — keeping Tehran&#8217;s most vital revenue streams alive despite U.S. efforts to choke off trade.
China, the Iranian regime&#8217;s strongest ally throughout its conflict with the United States, has made a significant effort to help the regime sustain its oil industry, which accounted for nearly 15% of China&#8217;s oil imports last year.
For Tehran, the black-market arrangement with the Chinese Communist Party is the financial lifeline that has allowed it to persevere through the economic devastation of Operation Epic Fury and U.S. sanctions. The Iranian regime hauled in roughly $31 billion in oil revenue from China over the past year, according to data from the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. That trade represented about 90% of the oil Iran sold abroad and covered nearly 45% of the regime&#8217;s annual government budget.
The Journal observed the process unfold in real time in early May. A U.S.-sanctioned tanker, loaded with Iranian oil, joined dozens of other vessels in a stretch of ocean known as the Eastern Outer Port Limits, or EOPL. The area lies within Malaysia&#8217;s exclusive economic zone but outside its territorial waters — a legal gray area that no government has clear authority to police.
After arriving at the EOPL, the Iranian vessel carried out &#8220;ship-to-ship transfers,&#8221; pumping its cargo through massive hoses into a second, anonymized tanker, which then departed toward Chinese refineries.
These secondary vessels, according to the Journal, belong to a network of about 1,500 aging oil tankers that mask their true owners behind “flags of convenience,” registering in countries like Liberia and Sierra Leone with limited maritime enforcement. As an additional precaution, the ships switch off their tracking transponders to conceal their movements and remove anything on board that could identify them. Many of the ships observed by the reporters were staffed by Chinese crews.
The Trump administration, for its part, is aware of the shadow fleet and has ramped up efforts to clamp down on the illicit oil trade — most recently dispatching U.S. Special Forces to rappel from helicopters onto the decks of two shadow-fleet tankers in the Indian Ocean. As part of the administration&#8217;s &#8220;Economic Fury&#8221; campaign, the Treasury Department also announced new sanctions targeting individual tankers and Chinese oil infrastructure.
“Under President Trump’s strong leadership, Treasury will continue to stop the Iranian regime from plundering the country’s natural resources in the name of terrorism,” a spokeswoman for the Department of the Treasury told the Journal.
The effort is likely to become more effective over time. Energy firm Vortexa estimates that roughly 90 million barrels of Iranian oil were in international waters before the blockade even began. Because Iranian tankers need two to three months to reach Chinese ports and two to three more to collect payment, the regime will eventually exhaust this floating reserve, leaving it with little to no fresh crude able to leave Iran to replace it.
This comes amid reports that U.S. and Iranian negotiators have reportedly agreed to a tentative 60-day framework extending the ceasefire that, pending President Trump&#8217;s final approval, would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and draw down the blockade in stages. If finalized, the noose would be at least temporarily loosened around the Iranian oil industry before its offshore reserves run dry in order to pursue a long-term peace deal.

ShadowFleet

Trump’s ‘Economic Fury’ Hits Iran Hard. A Shadow Fleet Keeps The Oil Flowing.

News

Operation Epic Fury

Strait of Hormuz

Iranian forces launched cruise missiles at U.S. Navy ships and commercial vessels under American protection in the Strait of Hormuz, marking the first significant escalation since the implementation of the ceasefire last month.
U.S. Central Command Commander Adm. Brad Cooper described the actions by Iranian forces as “Iran initiating aggressive behavior” on a call with journalists Monday.
“The cruise missiles were going after both U.S. Navy ships, but mostly after commercial shipping,” Cooper said. “We&#8217;ve defended both ourselves and, consistent with our commitment, we defended all the commercial ships.”
Cooper declined to comment on whether Iran&#8217;s actions violated the ceasefire agreement. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
No U.S. Navy ships or commercial ships have been hit by Iranian strikes, which began about 12 hours ago, according to Cooper.
He added that Iranian forces also used drones and small boats to attack commercial ships. Cooper said six of those boats were destroyed by Apache and Seahawk helicopters.
“You typically see between 20 and 40 small boats in a pack coming out,” he said. “Today we saw six and eliminated them quickly. I think this is an example of the degradation of their capability. That doesn&#8217;t mean it&#8217;s all gone, but it&#8217;s highly degraded.”
The attacks come as President Donald Trump has intensified pressure on Tehran through “Project Freedom,” an operation designed to restore the flow of global commerce through the narrow waterway after escalating Iranian threats.
Trump said Iran had already targeted vessels not related to the operation, including a South Korean cargo ship.
“Perhaps it’s time for South Korea to come and join the mission!” he added.
Cooper said the U.S. military is carrying out two simultaneous operations in two different bodies of water — one aimed at isolating Iran economically, the other at reopening maritime transit.
“We&#8217;re enforcing the blockade in the Gulf of Oman. There is no commerce going into and out of Iran, and we will be sustaining this effort. Second, we&#8217;ve now opened a passage through the Strait of Hormuz to allow for the free flow of commerce to proceed,” he said, adding that the blockade has so far been 100% effective.
He said that the pathway, which was used by two merchant vessels flying U.S. flags earlier today, has received “great enthusiasm” from over 87 countries represented by the vessels “held hostage” in the Arabian Gulf by Iran’s threats in the Strait of Hormuz.
While the U.S. Navy is not personally escorting the vessels, it is protecting a corridor for them to pass through with large amounts of U.S. military assets.
“We are employing U.S. ballistic missile defense capable destroyers, over 100 land and sea-based aircraft, multi-domain unmanned platforms—meaning under the sea, on the sea, and from the air—and then 15,000 service members to extend this defensive umbrella across the Strait of Hormuz to protect our forces and also, as committed, to defend commercial shipping,” Cooper said.
Aircraft, vessels, and personnel used in the efforts include A-10s, F-15s, F-16s, F/A-18s, F-35s, EA-18 Growlers, RC-135s, KC-46s, and KC-135 fixed-wing aircraft, as well as numerous U.S. warships, including destroyers, two carrier strike groups, an Amphibious Readiness Group, and the Marine Expeditionary Units. 
As the operations continue, Cooper said U.S. commanders on the scene “have all the authorities necessary to defend their units and to defend commercial shipping.”
“Iranian forces are strongly advised to remain well clear of U.S. assets and personnel operating in international waters in and near the Strait of Hormuz,” Cooper said.

Satellite Imagery Of The Strait Of Hormuz

Iran Violates Ceasefire By Firing Straight At Americans

The U.S. military is taking its blockade of Iran global, targeting Tehran’s shadowy “dark fleet” in a move aimed at choking off the regime’s illicit oil lifeline.
General Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, warned that the U.S. Navy will &#8220;actively pursue” Iranian-linked ships not just in the Middle East, but in other theaters as well.
“The joint force through operations and activities in other areas of responsibility like the Pacific … will actively pursue any Iranian-flagged vessel or any vessel attempting to provide material support to Iran,” he said. “This includes dark fleet vessels carrying Iranian oil.”
Caine described the “dark fleet” as illicit or illegal ships “evading international regulations, sanctions or insurance requirements.”
The announcement marks a significant expansion of the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports and coastline into a worldwide enforcement effort. United Against a Nuclear Iran (UANI) has identified more than 570 vessels as part of Tehran’s so-called “dark fleet,” many of which are already under U.S. sanctions imposed by the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
One such sanctioned vessel, the Rich Starry, drew international attention this week after appearing to successfully transit the Strait of Hormuz before turning back toward Iranian waters after reportedly facing the blockade. The Chinese-owned tanker bound for China, <a href="https://www.seatrade-maritime.com/security/sanctioned-tanker-pulls-strait-of-hormuz-u-turn">carrying</a> roughly 250,000 barrels of methanol loaded from the United Arab Emirates, is flagged to the landlocked country of Malawi — an indicator it is likely part of Iran’s “dark fleet” using false registration to evade sanctions. The vessel previously sailed under the name Full Star when it <a href="https://ofac.treasury.gov/recent-actions/20230302">was added</a> to the Treasury Department’s sanctions list in early 2023.
United States Naval Forces Central Command (USNAVCENT) issued an update about the blockade expansion, announcing that “all Iranian vessels with OFAC sanctions, and vessels suspected of carrying contraband, are subject to belligerent right to visit and search” regardless of location, according to <a href="https://www.seatrade-maritime.com/security/us-targets-dark-fleet-contraband-cargoes-with-blockade-extension">Seatrade Maritime News</a>.
Caine said that the blockade will apply to all ships, regardless of nationality, and that U.S. forces will enforce it both in international waters and “inside Iran’s territorial seas.”
He added that U.S. forces have yet to board any targeted vessels, but that 13 have turned around rather than attempt to break the blockade.
<a href="https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sb0405#:~:text=This%20action%20is%20in%20furtherance,have%20repeatedly%20and%20courageously%20demanded.">According to OFAC</a>, Iran’s illicit fleet serves as the “regime’s primary source of revenue for financing domestic repression, terrorist proxies, and weapons programs.”
The Treasury Department has also ramped up pressure through what it calls “Operation Economic Fury,” warning that financial institutions worldwide face consequences for facilitating Iran’s oil trade. The move also included new sanctions on more than two dozen individuals, companies, and vessels on Wednesday.
“Treasury is moving aggressively with Economic Fury, maintaining maximum pressure on Iran,” the department said, adding that it is prepared to use the full range of authorities — including secondary sanctions against foreign financial institutions that continue to support Tehran.
The department <a href="https://x.com/USTreasury/status/2044122873036673130">also said</a> a short-term authorization allowing the sale of Iranian oil stranded at sea will expire within days and will not be renewed. The waiver, <a href="https://gcaptain.com/maximum-pressure-returns-u-s-targets-shadow-fleet-tankers-as-iran-oil-waiver-expires/">issued</a> on March 20, permitted the sale of roughly 140 million barrels of oil already loaded onto vessels.
Under OFAC rules, sanctioned individuals and companies have any assets in the United States frozen, and businesses they own are also restricted. U.S. citizens and residents generally cannot do business with them, and foreign companies that help them can face secondary sanctions. Some violations can lead to civil or criminal penalties.

Venezuela Oil Tanker

New U.S. Target? Iran’s ‘Dark Fleet’ Long Accused Of Skirting The Rules.

Treasury Department

In the days ahead, the direction of Operation Epic Fury will become unmistakable in the targets the United States and Israel choose to strike.
The U.S.-Israeli air campaign has already delivered historic results. Our losses to enemy fire have been dramatically lower than in past major operations — far below the roughly one aircraft per day suffered in the run-up to Desert Storm. Precision strikes combined with air superiority have severely damaged Iran’s missile forces, air defenses, and naval capabilities.
The extraordinary rescue of the downed F-15E pilot and weapons systems officer — the latter extracted on Easter Sunday after going missing on Good Friday — further showcased unmatched special operations skill and real-time intelligence fusion, with operators inserted near Isfahan and a small team sortieing to a 7,000-foot ridge to recover the injured colonel under enemy pressure.
These successes set the stage for the critical phase now unfolding.
President Donald Trump’s remarks on Monday included both talks of negotiations and a threat to hit dual-use infrastructure, but the clearest indicators will be the strikes themselves in the coming hours and days.
For America and its allies, the central goals remain eliminating Iran’s nuclear and missile threat, neutralizing its ability to close the Strait of Hormuz, and cutting off support for its terror proxies — Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis. These elements have long formed the regime’s capacity to destabilize the region and threaten global energy security.
<div id="attachment_1059641" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1059641" class="size-large wp-image-1059641" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/GettyImages-2242929815-864x576.jpg" alt="Strait of Hormuz (Photo by Gallo Images/Orbital Horizon/Copernicus Sentinel Data 2025)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/GettyImages-2242929815-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/GettyImages-2242929815-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/GettyImages-2242929815-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/GettyImages-2242929815.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Strait of Hormuz (Photo by Gallo Images/Orbital Horizon/Copernicus Sentinel Data 2025)</div>
Iran’s center of gravity is more existential: the survival of the revolutionary regime itself.
Animated by a messianic death cult ideology that seeks to hasten the end times and the return of the 12th Hidden Imam — the Mahdi — the regime views its stockpile of 60% enriched uranium as vital insurance for that apocalyptic mission.
But preserving custody of that material increasingly forces a confrontation with the regime’s very existence, even if full regime change has not been the publicly stated goal.
Watch the target sets carefully. 
If strikes concentrate on tactical assets around the Strait of Hormuz — anti-ship missiles, coastal batteries, fast-attack craft, and related naval infrastructure — the immediate priority will be reopening vital shipping lanes and safeguarding global oil flows. This approach would focus on restoring freedom of navigation while building on gains already achieved. But, as operations against the Houthis to safeguard the Red Sea showed, it’s not easy.
But targeting dual-use infrastructure, such as bridges, power plants, and logistics nodes, would indicate sustained pressure on the regime’s ability to move forces and maintain domestic control. Such targets squeeze the theocrats’ sustainment without committing to large-scale ground operations, potentially accelerating internal strains on a population long weary of repression.
The most telling sign, however, would be systematic attacks on Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Basij militia leadership, command nodes, and control networks. If the campaign pivots decisively in this direction, it will mark the abandonment of meaningful negotiation and a clear intent to drive this terror regime toward collapse. Air power that degrades the mullahs’ tools of internal repression — especially amid existing domestic discontent — could burst open the door for rapid regime collapse.
Only the last option — going after the regime — would likely lead to the United States recovering Iran’s enriched uranium.
Ultimately, the regime faces a binary choice: recognize the futility of defiance or cling to its apocalyptic ideology at ever greater cost. The Iranian people, long oppressed by a corrupt theocracy, could prove decisive once the regime’s instruments of control are sufficiently shattered.
Operation Epic Fury has already reshaped the battlefield in America’s favor. The strategic decisions made now — guided by a clear grasp of centers of gravity as Carl von Clausewitz described them, the hub of all power and movement — will determine whether this campaign delivers not just tactical success but lasting victory: a Middle East more secure, global commerce protected, and a dangerous regime consigned to history’s garbage pile.
What unfolds in the coming days will turn on those target choices and the intent behind them.
* * *
Chuck DeVore is the Chief National Initiatives Officer at the Texas Public Policy Foundation.

TOPSHOT-US-ISRAEL-IRAN-WAR-POLITICS-TRUMP

Why What Comes Next In Iran Will Decide Everything

What Comes Next In Operation Epic Fury: By Sea And By Land, Watch The Targets Closely

Middle East

Pete Hegseth

U.S. Military

The following is an edited transcript excerpt of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mks-ep-1939-sub?elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel">The Michael Knowles Show</a>.
* * *
The war in Iran is in its third week, and the U.S. Army is raising the enlistment age to 42. 
Hearing that news makes me want to pull out the banjo and start playing that old Arlo Guthrie song, &#8220;The Draft Dodger Rag.&#8221; Have you ever heard that song? I actually played it in my little high school band. 
It goes like this:
<blockquote>&#8220;Sarge, I&#8217;m only eighteen, I got a ruptured spleen
And I always carry a purse
I&#8217;ve got eyes like a bat and my feet are flat
My asthma&#8217;s getting worse&#8221;</blockquote>
The whole song is about this guy who doesn’t want to be drafted and is making all these excuses.
How quaint it is now, too. “I’m only 18, I’ve got a ruptured spleen, and I always carry a purse.” The excuse is — “I’m a gay guy.” Under Obama and Biden they were only recruiting gay people. The CIA and the military were putting out commercials about going with your lesbian moms to the pride parade and how that would prepare you for the Army or whatever.
Now the commercials are getting a little tougher. Now they’re going back to just regular old guys — disproportionately white guys, actually — but, you know, just real tough guys.
In any case, they’re raising the age. Why? Does this mean the Iran war will go on for years? Does this mean there’s going to be a draft?
I don’t think that’s what it means. I think it means the world is getting more dangerous.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/mks-ep-1939-sub?elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowHeadline=Recent+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-large wp-image-1054531 aligncenter" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-1024x171.jpg" alt="DailyWire+" width="1024" height="171" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-1024x171.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-300x50.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-768x128.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1-1536x256.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/MK-watch-now-1.jpg 1800w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a>
From the fall of the Berlin Wall up until September 11, 2001, we had a vacation from history. And even during the global war on terror, only a very small percentage of Americans actually served in the military. The war dragged on forever, but there was no real intense national focus on winning. It wasn’t even clear what the objectives were. They became vague — kind of imperial wars with humanitarian justifications: We need to protect women’s education in Afghanistan.
Now the world is starting to feel a little more real. There’s growing talk of multipolarity, and even the current war in Iran — which has disrupted the Strait of Hormuz — could threaten the petrodollar. The fact that oil is priced and purchased in U.S. dollars gives the United States a massive advantage on the global stage.
You could envision a world — though I’m not betting on it, as Trump still has my full trust — where, if things went south, China steps in, demands that oil be purchased in yuan, and triggers a major shift in global power: multipolarity, or even a China-led order.
All of that means things are going to get more dangerous.
And when things get more dangerous, we raise the enlistment age to 42 — which is a little scary for me. I mean, I barely made the T-ball team — I’m not the most athletic guy in the world. But I just turned 36 — I’m still well within range.
Also, they’re lifting a restriction. Previously, if you had a minor marijuana offense, you weren’t eligible to enlist. Now they’re lifting that restriction. And coincidentally, they’re doing it on April 20th — 4/20 — so clearly someone in the Pentagon is having a little fun with that.
But regardless of whether you can puff a little devil’s lettuce now, what this is telling you — once you sober up — is that the world is getting more dangerous.
The Pentagon is declaring it and we should be listening.

Army Hosts Air Assault Operations Training Exercises At Fort Carson In Colorado

The Army Just Made A Few Changes That Make Me Think One Thing

Marijuana

Michael Knowles

Opinion

Soldiers

U.S. Army

In current foreign-policy debates on the Right, some have pushed for dividing the world into “spheres of influence.” The United States would get the Americas, the People’s Republic of China would be granted sway over Asia, and Vladimir Putin would have carte blanche to intervene in European affairs. Far from being steely-eyed “realism,” splitting up the world in that way might actually not take the national interest seriously enough.
The “spheres of influence” gambit has a superficial logic. By some measures, the United States is a smaller portion of the global economy than it was fifty years ago. It faces growing fiscal burdens. Its industrial infrastructure has withered. Some of its longstanding allies have hit economic and demographic slumps. The growth of other regional powers means that the geopolitical landscape has become more multipolar. Yet withdrawing from much of the globe would hamper the ability of the United States to respond to those changed circumstances and would also undermine the policy aims of American populists. International networks will be critical for renewing American industry and reinforcing national sovereignty.
While some European partners need urgent reforms (from cutting red tape to hiking defense budgets), the continent remains a major global economic hub. The White House’s recent <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2025-National-Security-Strategy.pdf">National Security Strategy</a> observed that Europe “is home to cutting-edge scientific research and world-leading cultural institutions” and that it retains robust manufacturing and technology sectors. A full-scale American withdrawal from Europe could close down a crucial market for American industry (including defense sales) and could also threaten regional stability. Ending NATO and shuttering American military bases would create a power vacuum in that continent and also hurt the ability of the United States to project power abroad.
Nor can the United States afford to ignore Asia. Responsible for about half of <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/mgi/media-center/cusp-of-new-era-in-asia">global manufacturing output</a>, Asia has become the workshop for the world. The People’s Republic of China is already a manufacturing powerhouse, and it could consolidate industrial dominance if the United States severs its commitments to allies in the Pacific. That is especially the case for the advanced technologies that are the building blocks of the digital economy. A link in countless international supply chains, Taiwan produces about <a href="https://www.trade.gov/country-commercial-guides/taiwan-semiconductors-including-chip-design-ai">90%</a> of the world’s most advanced semiconductors. If the People’s Republic of China conquered that island, it would have a chokehold on the American and global economies. It could cut off the chips that are needed for cars, computers, missiles, and phones. Beijing is already trying to use its control of key market sectors to influence policymaking in the United States. Responding to American tariffs and industrial policy, China has floated restrictions on some critical minerals, including those that are essential for <a href="https://www.csis.org/analysis/chinas-new-rare-earth-and-magnet-restrictions-threaten-us-defense-supply-chains">defense technologies</a>.
Populists have rallied around the claims of national sovereignty, but allowing the Chinese Communist Party to cut off the American economy at a whim is the antithesis of national independence. While building out American domestic semiconductor production is a national-security imperative, that’s also a very long process. The United States cannot afford to surrender economic self-governance for the indefinite future while it waits for some eschaton of economic autarky.
Conversely, coordinating with allies in Europe and Asia can bolster economic agency. For example, the PRC is responsible for over <a href="https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2025/mcs2025-tungsten.pdf">80%</a> of the global annual production of tungsten, which is used for drills, computer chips, aerospace, x-rays, and more. The United States has not even mined tungsten commercially in over a decade. In addition to bringing back domestic tungsten production, American allies could help de-risk the tungsten market. Australia has massive tungsten reserves, and South Korea’s <a href="https://www.mining.com/sangdong-tungsten-mine-in-south-korea-returns-to-production-after-30-years/">Sangdong Mine</a> has returned to production for the first time in decades. Accessing those resources will require keeping Pacific alliances strong — and not surrendering that region to Beijing.
Likewise, allies in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East will continue to be important for American national-security aims. Even as it has stressed the need to reform certain geopolitical arrangements, the Trump administration’s foreign-policy strategy is premised on the United States being a global great-power. Losing the hard power that backs the dollar’s reserve-currency status would cause an immediate economic crisis at home, but a global defense infrastructure also helps target American foes abroad. The Jacksonian tradition of foreign policy — which prioritizes the targeted use of military force to defend the national interest — has achieved a renewed prominence in the Trump presidencies. Jacksonianism could be a way of rebalancing global commitments by keeping America’s rivals off-balance without tying down the United States. International alliances can help optimize such Jacksonian exertions of force.
From its very founding, the United States has prioritized having access to global markets. When the Barbary pirates threatened American ships, Thomas Jefferson sent frigates to Tripoli. To open up Japan, Commodore Matthew Perry brought the United States Navy to Edo Bay. The network of alliances in the aftermath of World War II could be seen as an extension of a long-term strategic imperative: that the Stars and Stripes should be able to move freely throughout the world and that those who live under that banner should be safe from both foreign and domestic threats.
We now face a very different political landscape from 1946 or 1999. Implementing “liberal democracy” in a country is a lot harder than getting an Amazon package there. If policymakers had sought to integrate the world into some post-historical bazaar, their dreams have been sorely disappointed. Great-power competition is back, and populist movements have roiled political establishments on both sides of the Atlantic. Those changes indicate the need to rethink international alliances without abandoning them entirely.
Yes, the United States needs to recognize the limits of power and to try to defer existential conflict with its competitors. It also needs to understand the interests of those competitors. At the same time, the United States needs to understand its own interests. Cutting itself off from allies in Europe, Asia, and elsewhere would squander a major geopolitical advantage and undercut efforts to build a stronger nation at home.
* * *
Fred Bauer is a writer from New England. Find his work at National Review, City Journal, The Atlantic, UnHerd, and The Washington Post. @fredbauerblog

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The Plan To Split The World Into Spheres And What It Means For America

The Plan To Split The World Into Spheres And What It Could Means For America

China

Economics

Europe

National Security

Russia

The United States is rapidly expanding its military footprint across the Middle East, positioning major naval and air assets across the region as the Trump administration mounts pressure on Iran.
While the second round of nuclear negotiations wrapped this week and were described as “constructive,” the United States has continued to amass over a dozen warships and hundreds of planes throughout the region. 
Here are the assets we know are powering America’s surging military presence:
<h2>Aircraft Carrier Strike Groups</h2>
At the center of the buildup are aircraft carrier strike groups — both equipped with aircraft, warships, and vast amounts of weaponry. 
USS Gerald R. Ford strike group
The USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest warship and its accompanying strike group, is en route to the Middle East from the Caribbean, according to <a href="https://news.usni.org/2026/02/17/usni-news-fleet-and-marine-tracker-feb-17-2026">USNI News</a>.  On Wednesday morning, it was spotted off the coast of Morocco, presumably heading to the Strait of Gibraltar. The Ford strike group carries a full combat air wing of F/A-18 Super Hornets, EA-18G Growlers for electronic warfare, E-2D Hawkeye airborne command aircraft, and Seahawk helicopters — giving it deep strike, surveillance, and electronic attack capabilities.
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Gerald R. Ford — nuclear aircraft carrier</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Bainbridge — Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Mahan — Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Winston S. Churchill — Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
USS Abraham Lincoln Strike Group
The USS Abraham Lincoln Strike group arrived in the Arabian Sea last month after traveling from the South China Sea. As of Tuesday, the strike group was in position and reportedly around 700 kilometers away from Iran. The Lincoln strike group fields roughly 90 aircraft, including Marine F-35C stealth fighters, Super Hornets, Growlers, and Hawkeyes — a force capable of sustained combat operations.
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Abraham Lincoln, aircraft carrier</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Frank E. Petersen Jr., Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Spruance, Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer</li>
</ul>
<h2>U.S. Warships</h2>
Mediterranean Sea
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Roosevelt, Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Bulkeley, Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer</li>
</ul>
Red Sea
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Delbert D. Black, Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
Arabian Sea
<ul>
<li>USS McFaul, Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer</li>
</ul>
Persian Gulf
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Mitscher, Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Michael Murphy, Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer (part of the USS Lincoln strike group)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Canberra, Independence-class littoral combat ship</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Santa Barbara, Independence-class littoral combat ship</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">USS Tulsa, Independence-class littoral combat ship</li>
</ul>
<h2>Airpower</h2>
Europe
Numerous U.S. aircraft have been observed staging through and departing from bases across the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, and Greece. The pace of movement has been so high that <a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/us-amasses-more-airpower-middle-east-iran/">tracking</a> every flight in real time has become increasingly difficult. Among the aircraft we have been able to confirm are:
<ul>
<li>Numerous F-22s in the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TheAviationist/photos/the-deployment-of-f-22s-towards-the-middle-east-has-been-considered-by-many-to-b/919194347525233/">United Kingdom</a></li>
<li>Two E-3 Sentry AWACS in the <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/live/cddny45zppet">United Kingdom</a></li>
<li>7 KC-135 Stratotankers departed the U.K. heading to <a href="https://www.itamilradar.com/2026/02/16/usaf-deploys-18-f-35a-from-lakenheath-to-the-middle-east-marking-one-of-the-largest-recent-lightning-ii-movements/">Crete</a></li>
<li>12 F-16 Falcons seen leaving <a href="https://www.itamilradar.com/2026/02/17/usaf-sends-18-f-16s-toward-the-gulf-one-day-after-18-f-35s-confirming-sustained-fighter-surge/">Italy</a></li>
<li>Over a dozen refueling aircraft have been seen leaving the <a href="https://militarywatchmagazine.com/article/satellite-footage-us-surge-tanker-qatar">Middle East</a> or Europe generally</li>
<li>6 F-35s seen leaving <a href="https://www.itamilradar.com/2026/02/13/usaf-f-35a-redeployment-from-spain-concludes-gulf-reinforcement-phase/">Spain</a></li>
<li>RC-135 Rivet Joint signals aircraft seen arriving in <a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/us-amasses-more-airpower-middle-east-iran/">Crete</a> with another on the way</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
Middle East
Numerous aircraft have also been spotted in Jordan, Qatar, and flying over the Strait of Hormuz. Throughout Tuesday and Wednesday, The Daily Wire tracked U.S. military cargo planes flying to and from bases across the Middle East, presumably transporting equipment and other assets.
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">Over 50 F-15 and EA-18 fighter jets arrived at Muwaffaq Salti military base in Jordan, <a href="https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/iran-news/article-886998">reported</a> The Jerusalem Post.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;">Airlift flights by C-17s and C-5Ms <a href="https://www.airforce-technology.com/features/us-monitor-persian-gulf-after-considerable-military-build-up/?cf-view">were reported</a> between mid-January and February 9. Dozens more continued through Tuesday and Wednesday, according to live flight-tracking data.</li>
</ul>
(Drew Berkemeyer contributed to this report)

The Sheer Scale Of The U.S. Military Presence Building Up Around Iran

aircraft carrier

Under Secretary of War Anthony J. Tata announced Thursday that a former U.S. Navy serviceman discharged for refusing the COVID vaccine has been reinstated.
Devin Berry has been reinstated to the U.S. Navy and promoted to Petty Officer Third Class, becoming a high-profile success story in the military’s efforts to reverse COVID vaccine mandate separations. Berry, an Aviation Boatswain’s Mate, was involuntarily discharged in July 2022 after refusing the vaccine.
The then-Department of Defense <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/soldiers-file-lawsuit-over-military-vaccine-mandate-seeking-exemption-for-natural-immunity">ordered all service members</a> to receive a COVID vaccine beginning August 24, 2021. More than 17,000 service members declined the shots, citing safety fears related to the vaccine’s rapid development, questions about messenger RNA technology, and objections tied to the use of fetal cell lines in testing, according to a 2023 <a href="https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-military/2023/03/27/the-fallout-of-the-militarys-covid-19-vaccine-mandate/?utm_source=chatgpt.com">report</a> from Air Force Times.
After President Donald Trump signed Executive Order 14184 to offer reinstatement to service members involuntarily separated due to the vaccine requirement, Berry collaborated with the Navy’s reinstatement team to rejoin the fleet, receiving full back pay and three years of active-duty credit.  Tata lauded Berry’s return, quoting the sailor’s desire to finish his career in what he called &#8220;the best job in the Navy.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Pleased to share the story of another brave warrior impacted by the COVID-19 vaccine mandate, Devin Berry.
E3 Berry, an Aviation Boatswain’s Mate, was involuntarily separated in July 2022 after refusing to take the COVID-19 vaccine. After <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> signed EO 14184, he contacted the… <a href="https://t.co/XYP2ETwo8k">pic.twitter.com/XYP2ETwo8k</a>
— Under Secretary of War Anthony J. Tata (@USW_PR_HONTata) <a href="https://twitter.com/USW_PR_HONTata/status/2021982043467292788?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 12, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Berry’s case is part of a broader federal initiative to restore the honor of thousands of service members impacted by the 2021 vaccine mandate. Between August 2021 and the mandate’s rescission in January 2023, an estimated <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/01/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-reinstates-service-members-discharged-for-refusing-the-covid-vaccine">8,000 service members</a> were involuntarily separated. The Marine Corps saw the highest number of discharges, at more than 3,700, followed by significant numbers in the Navy, Army, and Air Force. Thousands more in the Guard and Reserve faced suspensions, and some chose to resign or retire early rather than comply.
The controversy surrounding the mandate centered on the military&#8217;s low approval rates for religious and medical exemptions, prompting numerous lawsuits and claims of violations of religious freedom. While many service members were discharged &#8220;honorably,&#8221; roughly 4,000 received &#8220;General (Under Honorable Conditions)&#8221; discharges, a designation that can limit access to GI Bill education benefits and hinder their transition to civilian life.
The tide turned after President Trump returned to office in early 2025. Executive Order 14184 authorized the reinstatement of all service members separated under the mandate, and the War Department moved to restore rank, back pay, and lost service time. A December 2025 review began automatically upgrading &#8220;General&#8221; discharges to &#8220;Honorable,&#8221; restoring GI Bill benefits for nearly 900 veterans.
While the return rate was initially low — with only 43 individuals rejoining in the first year after the mandate ended — the new incentives and formal apologies from leadership have aimed to improve those numbers. Returning service members are generally required to commit to a new four-year service obligation.
For Berry and others like him, the policy shift marks a second chance to complete the military careers they once thought were over.

Damn Few

Restoring Honor: Navy Reinstates Sailor Discharged Over Vaccine Refusal

COVID-19 Vaccine

Politics

Vaccine Mandate

The U.S. military downed an unmanned Iranian drone as it “aggressively approached&#8221; the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea on Tuesday, according to the U.S. military.
U.S. Central Command spokesman Capt. Tim Hawkins said the Iranian Shahed-139 drone was shot down by an F-35C fighter jet from the USS Abraham Lincoln &#8220;in self-defense and to protect the aircraft carrier and personnel on board.&#8221;
The USS Abraham Lincoln was reportedly 500 miles from Iran’s southern coast when the drone approached with “unclear intent” despite de-escalatory measures taken by American forces.
Hours later, forces with Iran&#8217;s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a U.S.-designated foreign terror organization, harassed a U.S.-flagged and crewed oil tanker, Stena Imperative, that was passing through the Strait of Hormuz. According to Hawkins, two Iranian boats and an Iranian Mohajer drone approached the American vessel &#8220;at high speeds and threatened to board the tanker,&#8221; per CENTCOM.
The USS McFaul, a guided-missile destroyer, was in the area and escorted the vessel along with “defensive air support from the U.S. Air Force” to de-escalate the situation.
&#8220;CENTCOM forces are operating at the highest levels of professionalism and ensuring the safety of U.S. personnel, ships, and aircraft in the Middle East,&#8221; Hawkins said. &#8220;Continued Iranian harassment and threats in international waters and airspace will not be tolerated. Iran&#8217;s unnecessary aggression near U.S. forces, regional partners and commercial vessels increases risks of collision, miscalculation, and regional destabilization.&#8221;
The USS Abraham Lincoln Strike Group, which recently arrived in international waters near Iran, adds roughly 5,700 U.S. service members to the region. The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and its three Arleigh Burke-class destroyer escorts are among the 10 U.S. warships believed to be operating in the area.
The arrival of the strike group — along with additional vessels and aircraft — marks a broader military buildup as tensions between President Donald Trump and the Islamic Republic of Iran continue to escalate over the regime’s violent crackdown on protesters, with death toll estimates reaching as high as 36,000.
Despite the rising tensions, U.S. officials are still expected to meet with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Friday.

Trump and Ayatollah

U.S. Shoots Down Iranian Drone After It ‘Aggressively Approached’ USS Abraham Lincoln

A U.S. Navy guided-missile destroyer, the USS Delbert D. Black, docked Friday at Israel&#8217;s Red Sea port of Eilat amid ongoing tensions between the Trump administration and the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the vessel’s arrival was pre-planned and part of the ongoing cooperation between American and Israeli forces, <a href="https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/us-missile-destroyer-docks-at-eilat-port-amid-tensions-with-iran/">the Times of Israel reported</a>. The port call comes as Washington continues to reposition military assets across the Middle East, including the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly touted the “massive armada” that is moving toward Iran as he pressures the regime to negotiate a nuclear deal and stop killing anti-regime protesters.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
The USS Delbert D. Black docked in Eilat, Israel today.
The ship is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer capable of defending against aircraft and missiles and launching Tomahawk cruise missiles.<a href="https://t.co/3glGyHyg7g">pic.twitter.com/3glGyHyg7g</a>
— Kassy Akiva (@KassyAkiva) <a href="https://twitter.com/KassyAkiva/status/2017293125572518218?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 30, 2026</a></blockquote>
The USS Delbert D. Black was tracked sailing through the Suez Canal earlier this week toward the Gulf, making it likely the tenth American warship operating in the area of responsibility for U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), which oversees American forces across the Middle East, Central Asia, and parts of South Asia.
The vessel is an Arleigh Burke–class destroyer designed to counter threats in the air, on land, at sea, and underwater. It is equipped with the AEGIS combat system, which can defend against aircraft, missiles, and surface threats, and is capable of launching long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles. More than 30 Tomahawks were used in the U.S. strike on Iranian nuclear sites in June 2025.
<a href="https://www.navy.mil/Resources/Fact-Files/Display-FactFiles/Article/2169871/destroyers-ddg-51/">According to the U.S. Navy</a>, 73 Arleigh Burke-class destroyers are currently in commission, with 10 under construction and another 16 under contract.
American warships frequently operate in the Red Sea, though port calls in Eilat are relatively rare. In 2022, the USS Nitze <a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7426851/uss-nitze-pulls-into-israel">docked</a> in Eilat, followed by <a href="https://www.dvidshub.net/image/7596399/uss-truxtun-ddg-103-departs-eilat">a visit</a> from the USS Truxtun in 2023.

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U.S. Destroyer Docks In Israel’s Red Sea Port Amid Rising Iran Tensions

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