Josh Block

We are men and women of principles. Iranians do not sneak attack adversaries while engaged in dialogue. Only when attacked do we powerfully respond. We have intelligence on Israeli plans to strike infrastructure. Once again: ZERO restraint if our infrastructure is attacked.

More comments on DG Grossi interview: The puzzle mentioned in the Grossi interview transcript below refers to a nuclear weapon and the officials were Iranian. It should be noted that Iran had already done considerable work on advanced centrifuges by 2015. Its plans to develop and deploy its advanced centrifuges were well known as part of the 2015 nuclear deal, and there were agreed upon plans (see our website) about how many Iran would be deploying now and through 2030 (a lot) under those 2015 rules. And inspectors conversant in centrifuges judged in 2025 that the IR-6 was its likely best model based on work Iran had already accomplished. So, the difference between 2015 and now is a matter of degree, not some quantum jump. If the JCPOA had continued, Iran would have had today a fully functioning advanced centrifuge manufacturing complex primed to make thousands of them a year. I feel far more secure knowing that thousands of gas centrifuges are now a gleam in Iran’s eye rather than watching them being deployed legitimately, protected by the JCPOA. While knowledge cannot be eliminated, its use can be thwarted, and Israel and the United States have done so with regard to Iran’s centrifuges. So, the task before us now is simpler, ensuring that Iran does not start over.

This shows the massive scale of the illegal reclamation by the Chinese government on Panganiban Reef (Mischief Reef), located well within our Exclusive Economic Zone. Whenever our aircraft pass through the area during Maritime Domain Awareness flights, China has the audacity to challenge us claiming that they have “indisputable sovereignty” in this area—and in some instances, like the one shown here, they have even launched flares toward our aircraft. It is worth noting that China first illegally occupied Panganiban Reef, initially claiming they were only building a shelter for fishermen. Today, it stands as one of the largest Chinese military installations in the entire South China Sea. We should not forget that the reef lies only about 120 nautical miles from the coastline of Palawan, yet more than 600 nautical miles away from China.