On Monday, things at the United Nations grew tense (when are things at the United Nations not tense?) as the United States and Iran started another round of snap and slash. In this latest exchange, the United States warned the Iranian regime against any aggressive moves against American or Israeli forces.
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The United States warned Iran at the United Nations on Monday that if it undertakes any further aggressive acts against Israel or U.S. personnel in the region “there will be severe consequences.”
“We will not hesitate to act in self defense. Let there be no confusion. The United States does not want to see further escalation. We believe this should be the end of the direct exchange of fire between Israel and Iran,” U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the council.
Israel also warned Iran against any such action, and Israel has shown, recently, great determination and a willingness to hit Iran directly. Israel’s envoy to the UN called for “crippling” sanctions against the Islamic Republic:
In their reply, Iran is, once again, having their mouths write checks their butts can’t cash.
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Iran’s tone is beginning to sound very familiar:
Iran could, without doubt, do a lot of damage in the region. They could, for example, seriously hinder, if not prevent, shipping through the Straits of Hormuz – for a while. In 1988, we put alarge portion of Iran’s navy on the bottom of the ocean , and while our military is not now what it was then, we could still do tremendous damage to Iran’s navy, really only a coastal defense force, in a matter of hours. Iran’s air force of mostly Vietnam-era aircraft isn’t liable to be much help, either.
But there’s a problem.
See Related: WATCH: IDF Speaks After Israel’s Massive Air Strikes on ‘Iran and Its Proxies’
The problem for the United States, at the moment, is sitting at the Resolute Desk – when he’s not on a lounge chair on the beach. The question is this: What would Joe Biden do in response to an aggressive move by Iran? Say, and attack on US forces in the area? Maybe an attack on one of our naval vessels? We have a pretty good idea how Israel would respond, as they have been responding to Iran-sponsored aggression forever, and since October 7th, 2023, with tremendous resolve.
But the United States? Under a commander-in-chief who barely knows what day it is?
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The problem here may well come to a head next week. Iran surely remembers the first Trump administration, and unless they are even more insane than we think, they will be looking with apprehension at the second Trump term, which is looking more and more likely by the day – almost by the hour. Which begs the question, what will Iran do if the Trump/Vance ticket wins? They may well perceive the weeks between Election Day and Inauguration Day as a window of opportunity in which to take a few cheap shots at American forces before Donald Trump re-enters the White House.
If that should happen, well, then when Trump is back in office, things for the mullahs would probably get interesting indeed. This is why, in the end, they will probably content themselves with blowing hot air, of which their part of the world already has a surfeit.