Category: Security

This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.

The United States has launched extensive air strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen, aiming to curb their threat to shipping while also signaling a warning to Iran.

In a statement announcing his directive on March 15, US President Donald Trump also warned Iran to “immediately” end its support for the Houthis and vowed to hold Tehran “fully accountable” if it threatened Americans or shipping lanes.

On March 17, Trump turned up the heat, posting on his Truth Social platform that “the hundreds of attacks made by the Houthi, who are hated by the Yemeni people, emanate from, and are created by, Iran.”

“Any further attack or retaliation by the ‘Houthis’ will be met with great force, and there is no guarantee that the force will stop there,” he wrote.

The strikes come as Iran is weighing its response to a letter by Trump on direct talks over Tehran’s nuclear program, and possibly its regional activities and missile development.

Michael Horowitz, head of intelligence at the Bahrain-based Le Beck International consultancy, said he believes the attack on Houthi targets may well have something to do with Iran’s opposition to direct talks with the Trump administration.

“There is a message being sent in the type of weapons used, including sea-launched missiles,” he told RFE/RL. “Nuclear negotiations haven’t started, and Trump is threatening to use force if diplomacy doesn’t work. This is a way to show that he is serious.”

How Are The Attacks Different From Past Strikes?

Designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, the Houthis, who are formally known as the Ansarallah movement, seized power in Yemen in 2014 by toppling the internationally recognized, Saudi-backed government.

Soon after the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023, the Houthis began launching attacks on Israel and targeting ships in the Red Sea believed to be sailing to or from Israel. The group said this was in solidarity with the Palestinians.

The attacks stopped after a fragile cease-fire went into force in January, but the Houthis have threatened to resume their attacks if aid does not flow into Gaza.

Last year, US and British militaries carried out multiple air strikes against the Houthis, but the new wave of attacks seems to be different.

Horowitz said the administrations of former US President Joe Biden was focused on defensive and pre-emptive strikes, targeting weapon depots and weapons just before they were launched.

“Trump appears to have widened the scope of those strikes to include Houthi officials and offices. I would not discount that we’ll even see a campaign of targeted assassinations,” he added.

The Houthis have vowed to retaliate and claimed to have launched 18 drones and missiles against USS Harry S. Truman on March 16. The United States has not commented on the claim, but reports citing unnamed US officials say the drones were intercepted and the missiles did not reach the warship.

The Yemeni group claims US strikes have killed dozens of people, including children. But White House national-security adviser Mike Waltz said on March 16 that the United States “took out” multiple Houthi leaders.

How Has Iran Responded To The US Air Strikes?

The X account of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on March 16 posted a quote from the top Iranian decision-maker dating back to 2020, in which he insisted that the “nation of Yemen is definitely victorious.”

“The only path is that of resistance. That which has caused the US and its allies to panic today is the fact that the Muslim nations are standing firmly and that this resistance will prove to be effective,” the post read.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi criticized the Trump administration for demanding that Tehran cut ties with the Houthis, saying that US government “has no authorities or business dictating Iranian foreign policy.”

Meanwhile, Hossein Salami, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), rejected assertions that Iran influences the Houthis, insisting that Tehran “has no role” in the Houthis’ decision-making process.

The Houthi movement is a key member of the Iran-led “axis of resistance,” a network of non-state actors that has suffered major setbacks over the past year. The movement has particularly risen in stature as a defender of the Palestinian cause since it started hitting Israel and alleged Israeli-linked vessels.

Horowitz said the Houthis’ rising profile within the axis of resistance gives them some level of autonomy, but they are ultimately an Iranian proxy.

“They are still extremely dependent on Iran for weapons they use regularly so they will follow Iran’s lead in my opinion,” he added.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem issued a major warning on Wednesday to the people responsible for the increased swatting calls that have targeted conservative media figures. Noem warned that President Donald Trump’s administration will “hunt these cowards down.”

In a Wednesday post on X, formerly Twitter, Noem announced, “Under President Trump’s leadership, we will not sit idly by as conservative new media and their families are being targeted by false swatting.”

The secretary of the Department of Homeland Security explained that her department has the ability to trace people’s phone numbers and track the location information of individuals making swatting calls, which forces law enforcement officials to respond to false alarms at people’s residences.

“We will use it to hunt these cowards down,” Noem added. “This is an attack on our law enforcement and innocent families and we will prosecute it as such.”

According to The Post Millennial, multiple conservative influencers and media personalities have been swatted over the past several weeks. Some of the individuals targeted by swatting calls include InfoWars host Owen Shroyer, InfoWars host Chase Geiser, influencer Mike Engleman, radio host Joe Pags, influencer Gunther Eagleman, journalist Walter Curt, and journalist and podcaster Nick Sortor.

READ MORE: Video: News host swatted after co-worker ‘brutally murdered’ in Austin 

Last week, Sortor tweeted that his father and sister had been swatted in an attempt to target his family.

“A dozen cops attempted to kick my dad’s door in at gunpoint,” Sortor wrote. “This is literal f-cking terrorism. And the FBI should treat it as such. Before calling in the swat, this dumbsh-t sent my sister an email calling me a Nazi, of course. So the motive is clear.”

Meanwhile, Shroyer shared pictures on Wednesday of the recent swatting attempt that targeted him.

Last week, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) director Kash Patel said the FBI was “aware” of the “dangerous trend” and warned that his team was working to investigate and hold individuals accountable for the “alarming rise in ‘Swatting’ incidents targeting media figures.”

“This isn’t about politics—weaponizing law enforcement against ANY American is not only morally reprehensible but also endangers lives, including those of our officers,” Patel said. “That will not be tolerated. We are fully committed to working with local law enforcement to crack down on these crimes.”

According to Fox News, federal lawmakers introduced bipartisan legislation in January to enforce “strict penalties” for individuals who make swatting calls. The outlet noted that the legislation would implement a penalty of up to 20 years in prison if a person was killed or seriously injured due to a swatting incident.

A fire at the New Jersey residence of a Bayer executive is currently being investigated as arson exactly three months after UnitedHealthcare CEO Brain Thompson was assassinated in Manhattan.

In a statement obtained by WVTM, the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office said a fire was reported “at an occupied residence on East Lane in Madison” at roughly 7:30 a.m. on March 4.

“The fire was quickly extinguished by the Madison Fire Department,” the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office stated. “The structure sustained no significant damage and there were no reported injuries. The victim will not be identified.”

In a statement to CNN, Bayer, a global pharmaceutical and biotechnology company, confirmed that the fire took place “at the private home of one of Bayer’s U.S. executives.”

“The family is safe and unharmed. The safety and security of our employees are of utmost importance to Bayer,” the pharmaceutical company added. “The incident is under active investigation. The company is cooperating fully with the investigation. We appreciate the quick response of local law enforcement.”

READ MORE: CEO assassination suspect’s family speaks out after his arrest

According to WVTM, the Morris County Prosecutors Office confirmed that the case of the recent fire at the Bayer executive’s home is an “active and ongoing arson investigation.”

WVTM reported that the investigation is currently being coordinated by at least eight different agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the New York Police Department, the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office Arson/Environmental Crimes Unit, the Madison Police Department, the New Jersey Transit Police, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Police Department, the Morris County Sheriff’s Office CSI Unit, and the New Jersey State Fire Marshal’s Office K-9 Unit.

The arson incident at the home of a Bayer executive comes after a hooded gunman fired multiple shots outside the home of State Accident Insurance Fund CEO Chip Terhune in February. The incident also comes exactly three months after 26-year-old Luigi Mangione allegedly assassinated Thompson in Manhattan. 

This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.

More than 300 people were reported killed after Israel launched deadly air strikes in the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, and southern Syria in what it said were targeted attacks against extremists planning terror assaults, reigniting tensions that threatened to engulf the region in a new, bloody conflict.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he instructed the military to take “strong action” against Iran-backed Hamas — deemed a terrorist organization by the United States and EU — in response to the Islamist group’s refusal to release all remaining hostages and its rejection of new cease-fire proposals.

“Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.

The strikes represent the biggest escalation in the conflict since the cease-fire was reached in mid-January.

Citing medical officials under the control of Hamas, several media outlets reported that the death toll across the Gaza Strip had reached at least 326 people from the attacks.

The information could not independently be confirmed.

The United Nations’ Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory called the strikes “unconscionable” and demanded an immediate reinstatement of the ceasefire.

“People in Gaza have endured unimaginable suffering. An end to hostilities, sustained humanitarian assistance, release of the hostages and the restoration of basic services and people’s livelihoods, are the only way forward,” Muhannad Hadi said in his statement.

Israel’s military said the Gaza strikes targeted mid-level Hamas commanders and leaders and the group’s infrastructure.

Along with the strikes against Hamas in Gaza, the Israeli military said it conducted air strikes in southern Lebanon and southern Syria as well.

It said it was prepared to continue attacks against Hamas for as long as necessary and would expand the campaign beyond air strikes. Israeli tanks and soldiers operated extensively in Gaza during the previous retaliatory action.

The White House was consulted by Israel in its latest strikes on Gaza, a White House spokeswoman told Fox News.

“As President [Donald] Trump has made it clear — Hamas, the Houthis [in Yemen], Iran, all those who seek to terrorize not just Israel, but also the United States of America, will see a price to pay. All hell will break loose,” press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox.

Trump on March 5 warned Hamas that there would be “hell to pay” if it does not immediately release all hostages after the White House confirmed that it had conducted secret talks with the extremist group.

Reuters quoted a senior Hamas official as saying that Israel is “unilaterally ending” the Gaza cease-fire agreement and that the action put the fate of the remaining Israeli hostages in jeopardy.

The violence comes amid disputes between Israel and Hamas over ways to maintain the three-phase cease-fire that began on January 19, including the exchange of remaining hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

Two weeks ago, Israel cut off all food, medicine, fuel, electricity and other supplies to the territory’s around 2 million people to pressure Hamas to accept a new proposal to extend the cease-fire.

Much of Hamas’s leadership was killed during Israel’s retaliatory campaign in Gaza following the extremist group’s bloody cross-border attack in Israel on October 7, 2023.

The Hamas-led militants’ attack on settlements in southern Israel killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, with 251 hostages being taken to Gaza. Some two dozen remain in Hamas control.

Israel struck back by launching a devastating war in the Palestinian enclave that has killed tens of thousands of people, according to local authorities, and displaced most of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents.

Following the cease-fire agreement – which led to the release of numbers of hostages and prisoners — the Israeli military has often conducted attacks against Hamas as well as strikes against Hezbollah locations in southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah has also been designated a terrorist organization by the United States, while the EU has deemed its armed wing but not its political section as a terror group. Much of its leadership was also killed during Israel’s 14-month war against the group prior to a US-brokered cease-fire in November.

In the renewed attacks, Israel said it struck two Hezbollah leaders in the southern Lebanese town of Yohmor. It said the men were “observation operatives.”

The military said other, unspecified strikes were carried out against Hezbollah sites in Lebanon.

In Syria, Israel has seized a buffer zone in the south after the collapse the brutal autocratic regime of Bashar al-Assad in December. It described the move as a preemptive measure against the former Islamist insurgents who overthrew Assad and now control Syria.

On March 17, Syrian authorities said Israeli strikes hit a residential area in the southern city of Daraa, killing three people. The report could not be verified.

Israeli said it was targeting military command centers and weapons sites in southern Syria belonging to remnants of Assad’s forces and that they posed a threat to Israel.

Assad fled Syria and in December and was reported to be in Russia, which along with Iran, was a major backer of his regime. Assad assumed power in 2000 upon the death of his father, Hafez al-Assad.

An outbreak of a deadly strain of the bird flu was confirmed last week at a poultry farm in Mississippi, marking the first time an outbreak of the new bird flu strain had been confirmed in a commercial flock of poultry since 2017.

According to a March 13 report, the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) confirmed that the deadly H7N9 strain of the bird flu was “detected in a commercial broiler breeder chicken flock in Mississippi.”

In a recent press release, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service explained that the detection of the H7N9 bird flu strain was the “first HPAI H7 case in commercial poultry in the United States since 2017.”

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service stated, “The flock of roughly 46,000 birds was experiencing high mortality, and samples tested at the Mississippi Veterinary Research & Diagnostic Laboratory, a member of the National Animal Health Laboratory Network, were presumptive positive for HPAI then confirmed at APHIS’ National Veterinary Services Laboratories.” 

According to the State of Mississippi Board of Animal Health, the poultry farm in Noxubee, Mississippi, has been “quarantined,” and the poultry farm has been “depopulated” to prevent any additional spread of the deadly disease. The State of Mississippi Board of Animal Health confirmed that none of the birds from the affected flock entered the food system.

Addressing the recent outbreak in Mississippi, Woah stated, “The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), in conjunction with state animal health and wildlife officials, is conducting a comprehensive epidemiological investigation and enhanced surveillance in response to the detection.”

READ MORE: First US bird flu death reported amid deadly illness outbreak

Dr. Myles Druckman, global medical director for the International SOS in California, told Fox News that H7N9 was initially described as a “novel reassortant” of three different bird flu strains.

“Since its discovery, it has infected more than 1,500 people and about 40% of the infected people died as a result,” Druckman said. “Symptoms typically develop within five days following exposure to the virus and can last up to 10 days.”

Druckman told Fox News that common symptoms of the H7N9 strain include a cough and a fever, which can lead to pneumonia or shortness of breath. The doctor explained that most people infected with the H7N9 strain “experience severe respiratory illness.”

“This specific strain of influenza is typically found in people who have had contact with poultry or infected birds,” Druckman added. “To avoid exposure to H7N9, do not go to any live animal markets, handle birds (even if they appear healthy) or touch any surfaces that may be contaminated by bird droppings.”

This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.

Ukraine’s armed forces are increasingly using ground drones to gain an edge on the battlefield. These unmanned vehicles are used for various military operations including reconnaissance, direct attacks, mine-laying, ammunition delivery, and medical evacuations.

In a workshop run by Ukrainian specialists, engineers continuously improve these unmanned vehicles, addressing mobility and power issues. The rapid advancement of drone warfare suggests that in the next six to 12 months, the landscape of military technology could change dramatically, making it a race to see which side adapts faster.

This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.

Only two weeks after a European Union summit where the bloc’s leaders pledged to spend billions on defense in a “watershed moment for Europe,” they are returning to Brussels for another meeting on March 20-21. This time, the EU’s leaders aim to solidify plans for strengthening Europe’s defense autonomy amid ongoing doubts about the US commitment to protecting European nations and sustaining military support for Ukraine.

In the runup to the summit, the bloc’s foreign ministers on March 17 talked about EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas’s latest proposal to find money for Kyiv. And on March 19, the European Commission is set to unveil a white paper on the future of European defense. The paper is expected to come up with ideas on how to create a proper integrated European defense market and to flesh out the proposal, made in the European Commission’s ReArm Europe plan, where the EU executive would generate up to 800 billion euros ($872 billion) for defense spending over the next four years.

As always in Brussels, there are doubts about how credible all this really is. Diplomats I have spoken to agree that it’s a good first step, but, as one senior EU official told me, “The devil is always in the details, and there are plenty of devils here.”

Looking closer, it does seem that the 800 billion figure is very ambitious with lots of big ifs. If — and how quickly — this proposal can be translated into new weapons and ammunition. And if any of those weapons will make it to Ukraine.

The facts are clear. The EU defense commissioner, Andrius Kubilius, noted in the European Parliament last week that Europe currently has a defense shortfall of at least 500 billion euros, and is lacking “thousands of tanks and armored vehicles.”

European Union Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, also addressing the Strasbourg chamber, noted that, on average, EU countries contributed just short of 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) on defense. Washington is pushing for 5 percent, whereas NATO, according to sources within the military alliance, is toying with the idea of making 3.7 percent the official target at its official Hague summit in June.

Still, even if there is a substantial and rapid increase in defense spending, privately European diplomats say it could take a decade for Europe to carry out major military operations without US help. In Europe at the moment, intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance are almost all exclusively provided by the United States.

Rearming Europe?

ReArm Europe aims to address the EU’s dependency on the United States by making EU nations increase their defense budgets. But will they? Of the 800 billion euros Von der Leyen is hoping to generate, 650 billion euros could be raised by relaxing defense spending regulations for EU member states over the next four years. This proposal would permit each member state to allocate an additional 1.5 percent of their GDP toward military expenditures. While this extra fiscal space is welcomed, few believe all capitals will use it.

The remaining 150 billion euros are a loan scheme secured against unused EU budget funds that 20 countries in the bloc, without triple-A credit ratings, can use. These loans should finance purchases from European defense producers, although it’s not clear if all the components in such equipment need to be from EU countries, or if they could come from non-EU states such as Norway, Switzerland, and Turkey.

The problem here is that it is still a loan and many of the countries, notably in southern Europe, that need to increase their defense spending are heavily indebted. Also, some northern EU states are questioning the logic of this proposal, with the Dutch parliament recently and narrowly passing a nonbinding resolution to reject the ReArm Europe plan with the argument that it just gets the bloc into even more debt.

Then there is the third part of Von der Leyen’s proposal, which would allow member states to use for defense the more than 300 billion euros funds left in the EU budget that normally would go to the bloc’s poorer regions for infrastructure investment. The issue here, once again, is that it is voluntary. And that means that while it can’t be blocked by Russia-friendly countries such as Hungary and Slovakia, as it doesn’t require unanimity, some countries just won’t bother, unless they’re forced.

Bonds And Bazookas

Then there is Germany. The incoming chancellor, Friedrich Merz, has promised a real “spending bazooka,” which includes a proposal that defense spending above 1 percent of GDP be exempted from the restrictions of Germany’s constitutional debt brake. At the moment, the brake limits the structural budget deficit to 0.35 percent of GDP, except in emergencies.

This could unlock a German defense splurge of billions and is something that is generally welcomed in Brussels. Not quite so much in other European capitals, where there are fears Germany will spend most of it on its own domestic firms and create something of an unfair advantage.

This could, in turn, potentially trigger renewed calls from southern European states for Brussels to issue joint eurobonds, especially for defense investment. A similar thing was done to combat the Continent-wide recession after the coronavirus pandemic. Issuing joint bonds is anathema for most northerners, notably the Netherlands and Germany, but with Berlin clearly indicating that splurging on defense is a must, the proposal may eventually fly.

Military Mobility And The Danish Model

Eurobonds, or “defense bonds” as they are now being rebranded, are likely to make it into the European Commission’s white paper on the future of European defense. But the things to really look out for here are some of the nitty-gritty proposals on military mobility. It may not seem like the most urgent thing, but EU officials are pointing out how important it is to be able to quickly move military equipment from one EU member state to another.

As it stands now, that wouldn’t be easy. There are no harmonized rules across the bloc on, for example, moving military vehicles from one EU country to another in the event of an emergency. Initiatives such as strengthening bridges, railways, and roads to be able to carry heavier military loads are also suggested in the paper.

Another aspect likely to be included is the idea to integrate Ukraine’s defense market into the EU market as the country slowly but steadily is moving toward membership of the union. This is seen by many European diplomats as a real win for the EU, as Ukraine now in fact boasts perhaps the Continent’s most capable army and is “ahead of the curve compared to the rest of us on things like military drones,” as one EU official familiar with the matter told me.

The document will, in this respect, also promote the so-called Danish model of supporting Ukraine. This approach involves EU member states directly procuring defense equipment manufactured in Ukraine or establishing joint ventures with Ukrainian defense companies. The idea of training Ukrainian soldiers in Ukraine and not only in the EU is also being put forward.

Helping Ukraine

But these plans are all for the future, and the question remains what Brussels can do for Ukraine right now. Kyiv has indicated that it may need as much as 33 billion euros of additional military support this year. With the United States possibly not contributing much to this, the EU needs to find most of that cash urgently.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas put forward a new plan to EU member states last week, seen by RFE/RL, which proposes a voluntary scheme that encourages participating states to “deliver military support to Ukraine in 2025 with a provisional value of at least 20 billion euros and potentially reaching 40 billion euros pending Ukrainian needs.”

The text gives a deadline of April 30 for those participating to declare how they plan to meet their respective contributions and states that payments should be committed no later than June 30 to ensure deliveries by the end of this year.

The plan says this money should mainly go to large-caliber artillery ammunition, air-defense systems, missiles, drones, fighter jets, and training of Ukrainian troops. It should also support other contributions from member states, for example, sending troops to Ukraine in the event of a peace deal.

The paper still suggests countries should contribute based on their economic weight, meaning gross national income (GNI). This idea has previously angered France, which claims that trackers of military support for Ukraine such as the Kiel Institute for the World Economy are wrong, and that Paris does many things in secret and is also willing to send actual boots on the ground in Ukraine to safeguard a potential future cease-fire.

Looking Ahead

On March 19, the European Commission will come up with an action plan on how to help the steel industry in the European Union. This would normally not trigger too much interest, but now it’s a different story as the United States on March 12 announced it was slapping a 25 percent tariff on steel (as well as aluminum) imports from the bloc. The bloc will roll out countermeasures in April, but the fear is that a full-scale transatlantic trade war will break out, causing severe damage to many sectors of the EU’s economy.

A suspect allegedly armed with a handgun was arrested after a standoff with police officials in a “barricade incident” near the Central Intelligence Agency’s headquarters in McLean, Virginia, on Wednesday. The barricade incident prompted law enforcement officials to deploy a SWAT team to the scene as multiple agencies responded to the situation.

At 11:15 a.m. on Wednesday, the Fairfax County Police Department tweeted, “Dolley Madison Blvd is shut down in both directions between Georgetown Pk and Savile Ln in McLean for a barricade incident at @CIA HQ. Our Special Operations Division is on scene assisting. Please follow police direction.”

During Wednesday’s barricade incident, a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) spokesperson released a statement obtained by Fox News, saying, “There is an ongoing incident that law enforcement is currently responding to outside CIA Headquarters.”

Fox 5 reported that the suspect surrendered to Fairfax County Police Department negotiators and was arrested after five hours of a standoff with law enforcement officials.

“The barricade incident has been resolved,” the Fairfax County Police Department tweeted at 3:28 p.m. “The suspect surrendered to FCPD negotiators and is in custody.”

READ MORE: Videos: Armed suspect arrested after SWAT standoff

According to Fox 5, the law enforcement agencies that responded to Wednesday’s barricade incident included a SWAT team, as well as various Fairfax County and Arlington County officials. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) also responded to Wednesday’s incident.

In a statement obtained by ABC News, the FBI Washington Field Office said, “Members of the FBI Washington Field Office’s National Capital Response Squad and other FBI resources have been deployed to assist our law enforcement partners in response to an incident outside CIA Headquarters.”

Sources told ABC News that the suspect involved in the barricade incident was armed with what appeared to be a handgun outside the CIA headquarters. The sources claimed that the man pointed the firearm at his head at one point during the standoff with police officials.

Pictures shared on X, formerly Twitter, show a SWAT team and SWAT vehicles, as well as other law enforcement officials, responding to the incident outside the CIA headquarters on Wednesday.

BREAKING: An armed man allegedly pointed a gun at CIA HQ in Virginia, prompting a SWAT response. Authorities confirmed a barricade incident but shared few details.

No shots were fired, and no injuries reported as law enforcement secures the scene.

Follow: @MeritStreet pic.twitter.com/rezdCl3SCz

— Merit Street (@MeritStreet) March 19, 2025

The SWAT Team can also be seen in a video from the scene that has been shared on social media.

Developing: Huge police presence near CIA HQ.

Local FOX reports that there was a “barricade incident.”

Multiple roads shut down.pic.twitter.com/9RjGU6iqKK

— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) March 19, 2025

A new report published by the Ministry of National Defense of Taiwan warns that support from the United States is essential to the country’s deterrence against an attack from China.

According to The Wall Street Journal, the Ministry of National Defense of Taiwan recently released the Quadrennial Defense Review, emphasizing the need for support from the United States with regard to reconnaissance and intelligence support, U.S. support for long-range precision strikes, and continued purchases of U.S. military hardware.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the Quadrennial Defense Review, which outlines various policies during the first year of each new presidential administration, said, “The U.S. is a crucial strategic partner, working closely with us on military cooperation and helping to boost our self-defense capabilities.”

According to The Wall Street Journal, this year’s Quadrennial Defense Review marked the first time the Ministry of National Defense of Taiwan dedicated an entire section of the document to the relationship between Taiwan and the U.S. military.

READ MORE: 59 Chinese warplanes fly near Taiwan as punishment for ‘separatism’

The recent Quadrennial Defense Review indicates that Taiwan’s military’s strategy of deterring China in multiple ways remains largely the same, according to The Wall Street Journal. However, the outlet noted that the Quadrennial Defense Review suggested that China’s capabilities, such as advances in the use of drone warfare and cyber warfare, have changed.

The Wall Street Journal reported that Lin Ying-yu, a defense expert and a teacher at Tamkang University, suggested that the unprecedented section in the Quadrennial Defense Review regarding the relationship between Taiwan and the U.S. military could mean “exchanges with the U.S. is an essential area we’re going to keep strengthening in the future.”

Lin added, “The QDR is not just for the Taiwanese people, it’s also meant to be read by the outside world about how much the Taiwan-U.S. cooperation is deepening.”

A fact sheet published in February by the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs states, “As a leading democracy and a technological powerhouse, Taiwan is a key U.S. partner in the Indo-Pacific. Though the United States does not have diplomatic relations with Taiwan, we have a robust unofficial relationship. The United States and Taiwan share similar values, deep commercial and economic links, and strong people-to-people ties, which form the bedrock of our friendship and serve as the impetus for expanding U.S. engagement with Taiwan.”

This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.

China, Russia, and Iran demanded an end to Washington’s “illegal, unilateral sanctions” on Tehran, after three-party talks on the Iranian nuclear issue in Beijing on March 14.

But a leading sanctions expert involved in past nuclear talks with Iran says lifting sanctions as a precursor to negotiations is neither likely nor advisable.

The meeting included Chinese Deputy Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, and Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi.

“We conducted in-depth exchanges of views on the nuclear issue and the lifting of sanctions. We emphasized the necessity of ending all illegal unilateral sanctions,” Ma said after the talks concluded.

“The relevant parties should work to eliminate the root causes of the current situation and abandon sanctions, pressure, and threats of the use of force,” he added.

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who welcomed the Iranian and Russian diplomats ahead of the meeting, was set to have his own meeting with them later during the day.

The Iranian position has been that it will not negotiate with the Trump as long as his “maximum pressure” campaign is in force and sanctions in place.

“I don’t think there’s any likelihood the Trump administration is going to drop sanctions against Iran just to talk. I wouldn’t advise him to,” said Richard Nephew, the lead sanctions expert for the US negotiating team that clinched a landmark nuclear deal with Iran in 2015.

“At the end of the day, that’s a concession for a talk, as opposed to a concession for actual action,” he added.

Tehran and Moscow have strengthened relations in recent years as Iran’s disputes with the United States have mounted. Both nations have had close ties to China.

Moscow, which is engaged in efforts to normalize relations with Washington, has offered to mediate talks between the United States and the Islamic republic.

Both China and Russia have benefited from Iran’s stand-off with the United States. China has been buying Iranian oil at a sharp discount while Russia has been using Iranian drones against Ukraine. But if tension with the United States spirals, it may have consequences that both Moscow and Beijing would want to avoid.

“I’m not sure that the Russians or the Chinese each have an interest in a deal. I think they have an interest in not having a bigger crisis,” Nephew said.

This week, the three countries conducted naval drills in the Gulf of Oman near the strategic Strait of Hormuz in a show of force in the tense Middle East, with participating ships stopping at Iran’s Chabahar Port.

Attention on Iran’s nuclear issues has intensified in recent days after US President Donald Trump said he had sent a letter to Tehran urging a resumption of nuclear talks and warning of possible military action if Iran refused.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry on March 13 said it would conduct a “thorough assessment” before responding to Trump’s letter.

“The letter was received last night and is currently being reviewed,” spokesman Esmail Baqaei was quoted by the official IRNA news agency, adding: “A decision on how to respond will be made after a thorough assessment.”

Trump, during his first term, quit the nuclear deal, which had imposed curbs on Iran’s nuclear program in return for sanctions relief. Trump said the accord was not strong enough to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, and he accused Tehran of fomenting extremist violence in the region — a charge denied by Iran.

China, Russia, Britain, France, and Germany had also signed the nuclear deal with Iran in 2015.

Following the US withdrawal in 2018, Tehran eventually started expanding its nuclear program, while efforts to reach a new accord through indirect talks have failed. Tehran claims its nuclear program is strictly for peaceful purposes.

Iran has floated the possibility of resuming indirect talks, but Nephew dismissed its viability.

“To be clear, I think indirect talks have been a disaster. It has been both a strategic mistake…as well as something that actually limits the possibility of negotiations being successful,” he said, adding that Trump’s letter was unlikely to change the Iranian position.

Meanwhile, the foreign ministers from the Group of Seven (G7) nations — the United States, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan — labeled Iran the “principal source of regional instability” in a joint statement on March 14.

They said Tehran “must never be allowed” to develop and acquire nuclear weapons, adding, “Iran must now change course, de-escalate and choose diplomacy.”

The United States said on March 13 that it was sanctioning Iranian Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad and a number of Hong Kong-flagged ships that are part of a shadow fleet “on which Iran depends to deliver its oil” to China. Tehran blasted the move, calling it “‘hypocrisy.”