'China and North Korea take note' as US challenged by Iran and Russia

Joe Biden 'is struggling to keep his head above water' as the US 'ignores' threats from Iran and continues to be challenged by Russia - while North Korea and China are 'taking notes', experts have warned.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards confirmed yesterday that their forces launched ballistic missiles close to the US consulate in Erbil, northern Iraq - a move condemned as 'reckless' by the US State Department.

Former military intelligence officer Colonel (Ret) Jonathan Sweet and foreign policy expert Mark Toth labelled the US response 'as perfunctory as it was lacking', saying it is just the latest example of the Biden administration's inaction in the region.

Iran's so-called 'Axis of Resistance' - including Lebanon's Hezbollah and Yemen's Houthi rebels - has been increasing their attacks on Israel and commercial shipping routes, prompting the US and UK to launch devastating strikes by air and sea.

But the experts told MailOnline: 'For all the US military might put on display throughout the Middle East, Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden right now, Iran and their proxies have not been deterred.'

Meanwhile, as the war in Ukraine approaches its third year, Vladimir Putin's rhetoric has become more aggressive, threatening Ukraine's statehood and warning that Russia would 'never' abandon the gains it has made.

With the prospect of being drawn further into the Ukraine war effort or any Middle East conflagration deeply unpopular among voters in an election year, Toth and Sweet say the White House is 'taking the path of least resistance' and avoiding the inevitable.

'Neither Russia nor Iran has any intention of standing down,' Toth and Sweet said. 'Kicking the can down the road only makes the problem worse. That is the Biden dilemma - pay the political cost of kinetic intervention now or in American lives later.'

They said that the Biden administration is becoming increasingly overwhelmed by 'a trifecta of regional conflicts that his National Security Strategy was not designed to support.'

The Biden administration has emphasized de-escalation as its key aim in the Middle East, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken making four trips to Israel and the wider region since the war erupted following the October 7 attacks by Hamas.

Each time, Biden officials have been keen to highlight their focus on de-escalation, preventing the Israel-Hamas war from erupting into a wider conflict.

But as Hezbollah ramp up their attacks from across Israel's northern border, and the Houthi rebels mount attacks on ships in the Red Sea, many analysts are saying it is too late and a regional conflict has already begun.

The US President last week said the United States had delivered a private message to Iran about Iran-backed Houthis responsible for attacking commercial shipping in the Red Sea.

'We delivered it privately and we're confident we're well-prepared,' Biden told reporters, in an apparent

With such strong words repeated regularly, Toth and Sweet say 'Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Al Khamenei continues to kinetically call President Joe Biden's bluff across the Mideast.'

'The Biden Administration does not want a direct confrontation with Iran, but that seems to be the calculated direction Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is taking them.

'Khamenei continues to up the ante - and the White House and Biden's national security team keep ignoring it.'

The US is also working to pour cold water over potential threats in the Far East, after the election of William Lai in Taiwan prompted fury from China, who the incumbent president has called for independence from.

In response, Biden bluntly reiterated the US position by saying 'we do not support independence', in an apparent effort to prevent escalation and keep dialogue going between Taipei and Beijing.

Toth and Sweet describe it as an attempt 'to appease' Chinese President Xi Jinping and labelled his response 'self-defeating'.

Meanwhile in Europe, the governments of Estonia, Sweden and the UK have warned that the prospect of large-scale war is on the horizon.

Alarm bells have sounded over leaked German intelligence documents, which reveal the path to a war with Putin using Belarus as a launching pad for invasion.

At last night's World Economic Forum, President Zelensky told Western leaders: 'Strengthen our economy and we will strengthen your security.'

Biden's efforts to deliver $106billion aid package to Kyiv have been stalled by Republicans in Congress, which his administration said it is working to solve as quickly as possible.

But as the war with Russia drags on with limited Ukrainian gains, donor fatigue appears to be setting in for many policymakers.

After he secured a landslide in the first Republican primary this week, a return to the White House is looking increasingly likely for Donald Trump, whose previous comments have stoked fears that he could slash funding for Ukraine.

'Domestic politics are coming into play,' Toth and Sweet said, adding that 'the White House appears to be on the path of least resistance' amid the presidential election cycle.

'In doing so, Washington risks appearing as willing to throw its partners - and service members deployed in the Middle East and East Africa, under the bus to avoid any direct military intervention for the next 10 months,' they warned.

'Zelensky and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are in the fight for their country's very survival - not some election cycle. Both are prepared to go it alone without the US - Netanyahu told Biden so much concerning the threat.

'Without US support, Ukraine and Israel can drag the US into the very wars Biden is trying to avoid.

'Biden is struggling to keep his head above water - and other foes including China and North Korea are taking notes.'