AFP 2018 / US NAVY
The US Navy’s guided missile destroyer McCampbell entered the Sea of Japan to challenge Russia’s maritime claims in the area, US Navy spokesperson Rachel McMarr stressed on December 5.
“McCampbell sailed in the vicinity of Peter the Great Bay to challenge Russia’s excessive maritime claims and uphold the rights, freedoms and lawful uses of the sea enjoyed by the United States and other nations,” McMarr said.
Peter the Great Bay is the largest part of the Sea of Japan as well as home of the Russian Navy’s Pacific Fleet.
The strange thing is that the US Navy and mainstream media outlets show this as some kind of “success” in the standoff against Russia. Are they sure? It’s hard to image that a similar “victorious report” may have released by the US Navy in 1960-1980s. The statemen is just humiliating for the US naval power, especially amid the current crisis on the international scene.
How did the US reacted to the November 25 incident between a Ukrainian naval group and Russian coastal guards in the Black Sea? [Let’s ingore what side staged the provocation] Did the US Navy deploy its forces in the Black Sea or at least close to a small Russian naval group involved in the operation in Syria? Did the US Navy at least showcase a US nuclear submarine near Russian northern borders demonstrating a weakness of Russian naval forces in their heart? No, the US Navy chose an indecisive direction near the long Russian naval defense line in order to sail “in the vicinity” of it.
All what we have is speculations in mainstream media outlets that the US has started making preparations to sail a warship into the Black Sea in order to respond to the ‘Russian agression’.
“The US military has requested that the State Department notify Turkey of its possible plans to sail a warship into the Black Sea, three US officials tell CNN, a move they said is a response to Russia’s actions against Ukraine in the Kerch Strait, which connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov,” CNN wrote on December 5.
Western diplomats and media would welcome warmly a showcase of the US naval power near Russian borders [live-fire drills for example or another kind of formal demonstration of the US capabilities of striking Russian military targets]. But, the guided missile destroyer McCampbell challenged, from neutral waters, “Russia’s excessive maritime claims and uphold the rights, freedoms and lawful uses of the sea”.
There are several explanations of this situation.
- The spokesperson of the US Navy is just an “Idiot” and was not able to express the real meaning of the move.
- Russian “GRU” infiltrated the US Navy and is able to stage global provocations undermining the US global dominance in the media and naval spheres.
- The Washington establishment feels “gulty” for its inability to impact the slow collapse of the influence of the Poroshenko regime within Ukraine and is sending a signal to “Ukrainian partners”.
The third explanation is even worser sad for supporters of the Washington establishment narrative. The fate of the Poroshenko was in fact predetermined when Mr President made his bet in the “global standoff”. So, there was no need to publicly humilate the US Navy to send any kidn of signals. If one continues speculations in this direction, this may be described as a part of the wider “anti-Trump” propaganda effort designed to show that he cannot ‘deter’ the Russians or all of these versions can be partly true simultaneously.
