Service & Sacrifice: On the Brink of World War III
A snapshot of the burdens brave U.S. troops and military families are shouldering around the world.
U.S. Army soldiers launch the Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) in the Northern Territory of Australia as part of an exercise held on July 27, 2023.
Europe
A series of escalations involving Russia and Ukraine is pushing civilization to the brink of World War III.
This is not hyperbole. On Thursday, Ukraine claimed that Russia launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) at the city of Dnipro. While the alleged ICBM was not armed with a nuclear warhead, it would mark the first time in human history that such a weapon has ever been used in war.
As of this writing, the U.S. government was disputing Ukraine’s ICBM claim, saying that “an initial U.S. assessment indicated the strike was carried out with an intermediate-range ballistic missile,” according to The Associated Press. The Kremlin had not yet commented as of early Thursday afternoon.
Either way, events are clearly spinning out of control on a continent where more than 100,000 U.S. service members are stationed. Earlier this week, the Biden administration announced that Ukraine would be permitted to use long-range American-made ATACMS missiles for attacks inside Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin previously said that any attack by Ukraine involving weapons provided by a nuclear-powered nation would mean Russia is at war with NATO, which is the very definition of World War III. The dictator then officially updated Russia’s nuclear doctrine this week to reflect that chilling policy.
Adding to the chaos, British-French Storm Shadow missiles were reportedly fired into Russia by Ukraine this week. At least two crucial underwater telecommunications cables linking European countries were also cut under suspicious circumstances, with Russia and China emerging as prime suspects. In another bizarre twist, soldiers from North Korea are now reportedly battling Ukrainian troops inside Russia.
Earlier this week on Fox News, President-Elect Donald Trump’s nominee for National Security Advisor, Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL), might have summed the situation up best.
“No one knows where this is going,” he said.
https://twitter.com/VCorps/status/1859295688556687550
Earlier this week, the U.S. Army released the above pictures of a recent military training exercise held alongside troops from Poland. We should pray fervently that in the coming months, these soldiers and hundreds of thousands more like them are not in trenches while fighting World War III. In my humble opinion, the world is closer to the doomsday scenario of conventional and possibly even nuclear war than we’ve been since the Cold War and perhaps even World War II.
Lord, we humbly ask You to please shield our troops from danger and give world leaders the wisdom to prevent a devastating conflict that could mark the end of civilization.
Middle East
Outgoing Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is warning Iran-backed Houthi terrorists that there will be an increased U.S. military response to their ongoing attacks against military and commercial ships in the Middle East.
“We have been conducting attacks on the Houthis’ capabilities in an effort to defend ourselves throughout,” Austin said Wednesday in Laos. “And you’ve seen multiple attacks in some cases throughout the weeks. We’ll continue to do that to take away as much capability from the Houthis as we can.”
Just last week, the Houthis attacked two American guided-missile destroyers as they sailed between Yemen and Djibouti. Multiple U.S. airstrikes were launched in response, and Austin said the terrorist group should expect even more.
“They have to be held accountable for this unlawful and dangerous activity, and they will be,” he said. “Again, you’ll see us increasingly place — use all the elements that are available to us in our national power to really begin to dial this down — dial it back.”
Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Cole (DDG 67) transits through the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. pic.twitter.com/rpORoZ6bAj
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) November 18, 2024
What comes next for the approximately 3,400 combined U.S. troops battling ISIS terrorists in Iraq and Syria? That will surely be one of the most important questions facing the incoming Trump administration.
Newsweek spoke to the head of an Iraqi militia group that’s been involved in attacks against the U.S. and Israel. While one can never trust the words of anyone connected to terrorism, Sheikh Mohammed al-Tamimi said he hopes hopeful Trump will begin withdrawing the remaining American troops from Iraq.
One reason al-Tamimi cited for his apparent optimism is “knowing that his thinking is different from the Biden administration and that he does not think about wars as much as he thinks about the economy and his support for both America and the region here in the Middle East,” according to Newsweek.
While we all want our brave men and women in uniform to be home instead of in harm’s way, the stakes in the Middle East are high. Please pray for these deployed American heroes, as well as their families here at home.
Coming Home
A U.S. Navy medical unit is back home after spending the last eight months caring for deployed American service members in Erbil, Iraq.
A U.S. Navy commander is welcomed home from her deployment to the Middle East at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina on November 16, 2024.
Welcome home, heroes! Thank you for spending so much time away from your loved ones in one of the world’s most dangerous places. Have a very Happy Thanksgiving!
Tom Sileo is a contributing senior editor of The Stream. He is the author of I Have Your Back, Be Bold and co-author of Three Wise Men, Brothers Forever, 8 Seconds of Courage and Fire in My Eyes. Follow Tom on X @TSileo and The Stream at @Streamdotorg.