© General Joseph Votel, commander of US Central Command
General Joseph Votel, commander of US Central Command
The US is seeking to contain Iran's rising influence in the Middle East and fend off challenges to Washington's hegemony posed by Russia and China, the top general commanding US forces in the region told Congress.
General Joseph Votel, head of the US Central Command (CENTCOM),
briefed the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) on Tuesday on the efforts against Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) and the wars in Syria, Afghanistan, and Yemen. All of which fall under the purview of CENTCOM, "the only geographic combatant command executing active combat operations," Votel pointed out.
The US has partitioned the globe into six combatant commands. Under this arrangement, CENTCOM's area of responsibility extends from the Libyan border with Egypt to Pakistan's border with India, and from Kazakhstan's border with Russia to Sudan.
Comment: So "the Party" in both China and the U.S. censor views on social media. That's the real issue here. Freedom of speech is curtailed to varying degrees all over the planet. It's a problem we haven't solved yet - in the east or the west. As for the upcoming decision to allow Xi to be president for life, that's not such a big deal. If a leader does a good job and retains the support of his people, it would serve his nation better for him to stay in office for as long as possible. The danger, of course, is that he will become a tyrant. So far, Xi hasn't given any indication that he is a tyrant. We have to agree with Sarah Sanders here: if that's what China wants to do, that's China's decision.