Countering Threats From Russia, Iran, North Korea, and Radical Islamist Terrorists

From The Daily Signal.com (Sept. 25):

Russia

The Trump administration has enhanced NATO’s capabilities while pushing back against Russian aggression. It has introduced multiple rounds of sanctions on Russia, closed the Russian consulates in San Francisco and Seattle, and expelled 60 Russian diplomats and spies from U.S. soil. It has sold Javelin missiles and patrol boats to Ukraine and Javelin and Stinger missiles to Georgia to deter Russian aggression.

The administration has also pushed back against Nord Stream 2, a proposed natural gas pipeline directly connecting Russia to Germany that would undermine Europe’s energy security, and has increased U.S. exports of liquefied natural gas to Europe and championed energy alternatives like the Southern Gas Corridor to reduce Europe’s reliance on Russian gas.

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Iran

Policy toward Iran has also been largely successful, with the current administration returning to the historical framework of U.S.-Iran policy that the Obama administration abandoned in its pursuit of a nuclear deal.

The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action front-loaded sanctions relief for Iran and removed key restrictions on Iran’s uranium enrichment program after 10 to 15 years.

The Obama administration rewarded Iran for what could be temporary and easily reversible concessions and handed it a better deal on uranium enrichment than previous administrations gave to such U.S. allies as South Korea, Taiwan, and the United Arab Emirates.

After the U.S. withdrew from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on May 8, 2018, the Trump administration launched a “maximum pressure” strategy to force Iran to return to the negotiating table and agree to a more restrictive deal.

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North Korea

Regrettably, less progress has been made on North Korea. In dealing with Pyongyang, the Trump administration has repeated some of the failings of previous administrations while making new mistakes of its own.

Since assuming power in 2011, Kim Jong Un has exponentially increased testing of nuclear weapons and the missiles to deliver them against the U.S. and its allies. The international community has responded by imposing stronger measures on North Korea in response to its serial violations of United Nations resolutions and international law.

The U.N. Security Council toughened sanctions against Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile programs and for the first time constrained North Korea’s trade with other nations.

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Radical Islamic Terrorism

On counterterrorism, the Trump administration’s policies have not marked a radical break from previous administrations. However, some of the changes that have been made are welcome course corrections.

The administration oversaw the destruction of the caliphate in Iraq and Syria, loosening Obama-era tactical restrictions imposed on the U.S. military in order to hasten the downfall of ISIS. This has caused both the flow of ISIS foreign fighters and the ability of ISIS to launch terrorist attacks around the world to be reduced.

Precipitous withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria threatens long-term U.S. security interests in the region, which include not only the permanent defeat of ISIS, but ensuring the security of regional allies, minimizing Iranian influence, preventing a new wave of refugees, and creating positive conditions for the return of refugees who have already fled Syria. [read more]