Twice last week, Iranian military vessels maneuvered dangerously close to American warships in international waters. The editors of the New York Post explain Tehran’s confidence that it won’t face anything worse than warning shots:
[A]s Iran well knows, the administration isn’t about to do anything that might endanger the nuclear deal and expose the futility of the president’s insistence that Iran will become “a member of the family of nations.”
And it’s not just Iran: in other corners of the world, Russian and Chinese jets this year have been buzzing U.S. ships in a clear-cut test of Washington’s resolve—a test this president is flunking. . . .
[Similarly], there have been no repercussions for Iran’s post-deal tests of nuclear-capable ballistic missiles, in clear violation of UN sanctions. . . .
So the stakes will only keep rising. If Iran managed to snag $1.7 billion for five American captives, imagine how much the mullahs will demand when they take a billion-dollar battleship hostage.
Read more on New York Post: http://nypost.com/2016/08/28/why-americas-foes-feel-safe-playing-chicken-with-the-navy/