Provocations began in 2003, accelerated in 2007, and then reached a peak in 2014 when American Victoria Nuland overthrew the elected government of Ukraine with US dollars, media, other assets...and the full backing of the US State Department and USAID.
Most of the media celebrated this. One outlier journalist wrote the following article a decade ago:
“Having masterminded the coup in February against the democratically elected government in Kiev, Washington's planned seizure of Russia's historic, legitimate warm-water naval base in Crimea failed. The Russians defended themselves, as they have done against every threat and invasion from the west for almost a century.
“But Nato's military encirclement has accelerated, along with US-orchestrated attacks on ethnic Russians in Ukraine. If Putin can be provoked into coming to their aid, his pre-ordained "pariah" role will justify a Nato-run guerrilla war that is likely to spill into Russia itself.” #JohnPilger https://theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/may/13/ukraine-us-war-russia-john-pilger…
"The erosion of fatherhood and their role as spiritual leaders disrupts the transmission of faith. Western [Christian] civilization is sustained not by markets or constitutions, but by moral and spiritual inheritance handed down within families.
"The path forward is clear: we must stop neutralizing male vocation and once again preach sacrifice, duty, and spiritual headship without embarrassment. That requires rejecting the narrative that fathers are incidental to this journey and that their natural authority is a threat rather than a gift. If we internalize that story, we should not be surprised when faith, family, and inheritance continue to fracture."
-- Daisy Inglese
The Strait of Hormuz is just another example of an old familiar tactic. Familiar, that is, to those who study it. Do not forget the ways the Muslims used the tactic of Anti-Access and Area Denial on March 18, 1915.
"The great Turkish Naval Victory in the Dardanelles 111 years ago is one of the most striking examples of this. During the First World War, the Turks, who collapsed economically, had a weak navy and were militarily backward. They won a great victory against the Royal Navy Mediterranean Expeditionary Force, the most powerful navy in the world at the time, by using the advantage of mines, coastal artillery and geography.
"This fight was not only a military success but also a triumph of strategic thinking. The Dardanelles naval battle is therefore considered one of the most historically powerful examples of the A2/AD doctrine. This event is not merely the result of a war; it is also a major turning point that affects the course of the world war and international political ...
"Trump is demanding that China and America’s allies enter the war and help turn the tide. [H]e is also talking about using military force to open the Strait of Hormuz and conquer Kharg Island. Of course, no country wants to join a losing war, especially on the side of the two most ruthless and heartless states in the international system. As for opening the Strait of Hormuz with US military power, that would be a fool’s errand as would an amphibious assault on Kharg Island."
Professor John Mearsheimer