America’s 38-day bombing campaign against Iran has diminished the Islamic Republic’s ability to threaten global security, but has not yet eliminated the threat altogether, Adm. Brad Cooper, the chief of Central Command, told lawmakers on Thursday. “It’s a very large country,” Cooper testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee. He acknowledged that Iran still possessed “a very moderate, if not small, capability” to conduct strikes on regional neighbors.Washington and Tehran remain locked in a month-long stalemate in the Strait of Hormuz, with no clear path forward as both sides have rejected proposed off-ramps from the crisis. Initially, Iran retaliated for the joint U.S.-Israeli attack on its territory by throttling traffic in the waterway — where roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil typically flows. The Iranians accomplished this in part through the mere threat of naval mine warfare, though some vessels were also attacked. The United States, in turn, imposed a blockade on all vessels entering or leaving Iranian ports. “The Iranian capability to stop commerce has been dramatically degraded through the straits,” the CENTCOM commander said. “But their voice is very loud, and those threats are clearly heard by the merchant industry and the insurance industry.”Cooper — who did not…

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Chinese President Xi Jinping issued a stark warning to President Donald Trump that Taiwan could trigger “clashes and even conflicts” between the world’s two superpowers, injecting a note of potential confrontation into an otherwise upbeat summit in Beijing.”President Xi stressed to President Trump that the Taiwan question is the most important issue in China-U.S. relations. If it is handled properly, the bilateral relationship will enjoy overall stability. Otherwise, the two countries will have clashes and even conflicts, putting the entire relationship in great jeopardy,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said following the meeting.The White House, however, downplayed the exchange, with a senior administration official telling Fox News Digital that “both sides reiterated their long-stated stance on the issue and everyone understands each other’s position.”Trump struck a notably warm tone in his public remarks, predicting a “fantastic future together” and praising Xi as “a great leader” as the two leaders opened talks focused heavily on trade, investment and economic cooperation.TRUMP HEADS TO BEIJING FOR HIGH-STAKES XI TALKS AS TAIWAN TENSIONS, TRADE DISPUTES TEST US STRENGTH “In fact, the longest relationship of our two countries that any president and president has had,” Trump…

The Defense Department’s $26.8 billion military construction request for fiscal 2027 is needed to build unaccompanied housing and protect installations to ensure the security of U.S. troops and their families in the short- and long-term, military logistics leaders said Thursday. The budget proposal, which includes $21.5 billion for barracks across the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Space Force, represents a “generational investment” that addresses a backlog of construction and repair priorities, according to Dale Marks, assistant secretary of defense for energy, installations and the environment. Marks said that the department in the past has prioritized operations over facilities and “the bill for that trade is now overdue.” “The degraded state of our installations is no longer a future problem. It is a direct and present threat to our ability to project power, defend the homeland and properly care for our service members,” Marks said before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies. The top priority for the services is barracks improvements and construction, according to military leaders. The request follows the formation last year of a Barracks Task Force that set requirements and standards for unaccompanied housing across the services. RELATEDThe Army’s budget…

CRKT is celebrating nearly 30 years of their flagship folding knife, the M16, with a couple of new variations releasing today alongside a major social media campaign and 4-part docuseries about the Kit Carson-designed classic. It’s hard to believe but the M16 has been around for more than 25 years – it’s old enough to vote, drink, and even rent a car. The first version released in 1999, and was an immediate hit. Although Carson, a career military man, envisioned the M16 as a tactical piece, the design spoke to users from all walks of life, and in the years since, as CRKTs lineup continues to grow with collaboration models from dozens of makers, the M16 grew along with it, with new variations getting added to the catalog regularly. The pocket clip is reversible here – and the lock is ambidextrous Including today! CRKT is bringing out a pair of new, Veff serrated tanto M16 models today. They’re in the -10 subcategory, which means they’re EDC-sized with 3.03-inch blades made of 8Cr14MoV. The only difference between the two is the color, either black or tan, and you’ll notice that both versions are equipped with the Crossbar Lock, which means that…

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NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Violent crime fell across the United States from 2024 to 2025, with murders falling by more than 18%, as well as declines in other major categories not seen in almost a century, according to the FBI.The numbers were part of the FBI’s figures on preliminary annual crime trends titled “First Look: 2025 Crime Data,” which the bureau said provides a faster, “early look” at annual crime trends before the finalized, comprehensive “Crime in the Nation” report is published later in the year.In addition to declining homicides, the report showed a decrease in robberies — which fell an estimated 18.5% — as well as rapes and aggravated assaults, both of which saw 7% drops.”The 2025 crime data in this report shows the single largest decrease in violent crime and murder since 1937 – as well as huge decreases across the board in terms of aggravated assault, rape, and robbery,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement.FBI DIRECTOR KASH PATEL FILES $250 MILLION LAWSUIT AGAINST THE ATLANTIC OVER ‘DEFAMATORY HIT PIECE’ “Over the last 14 months, we made major transformations at the FBI, and these results show those changes are working,” Patel said…

Saudi Arabia conducted covert strikes on Iran during the Middle East war. Neither Riyadh nor Tehran has officially acknowledged the attacks. According to a report published by Reuters on Wednesday,  the Royal Saudi Air Force launched “numerous, unpublicized” attacks on Iran in late March. One unnamed official described the strikes as tit-for-tat retaliation “for when Saudi [Arabia] was hit.” The report cited several sources familiar with the incident. Retaliatory strikes were also launched from Kuwait into ​Iraq, multiple sources familiar with the matter said. Sources also told Reuters that Saudi Arabia informed Iran in advance, and that the strikes were followed by intense diplomacy and threats of further retaliation. The backchannel contact reportedly helped produce an informal de-escalation deal that brought the attacks to a halt. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirites both host major US military bases and have long relied on Washington’s security umbrella. Both countries have repeatedly come under missile and drone attacks as Iran retaliated against the US-Israeli campaign launched in late February. –RT The UAE has adopted a more hawkish tone recently. It has been condemning the strikes on its territory as a dangerous escalation and asserting its “right to respond,” as well as largely freezing public diplomacy…

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! Musician Kid Rock responded to criticism of his recent flights with the U.S. military, saying his commitment to the U.S. Armed Forces is about boosting morale, not personal perks.Rock, whose full name is Robert Ritchie, joined the “Will Cain Country” podcast to discuss the “noise” regarding his recent flights with the U.S. military and share the origin of his decades-long journey to support service members.”It really started with the bombing of the USS Cole,” Rock said. “They were playing my music when that ship got towed out of the harbor and 17 sailors lost their lives. So, we ended up playing a show in Virginia and giving all that money to those families.”The USS Cole was attacked by al Qaeda suicide bombers in 2000. Rock said his patriotism took a new form after meeting those sailors.KID ROCK, HEGSETH DIVIDE FANS AFTER CRITICS QUESTION PATRIOTIC HELICOPTER RIDE “That really started just a whole ‘nother level of not just patriotism, but really doing my part to try and help out and go wherever the military called,” he said.Rock described his work supporting troops as some of the “toughest work” he’s ever done, but also…

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! FIRST ON FOX: North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper is facing renewed accusations of being “soft on crime” after critics pointed to the January murder of a teacher by a career criminal who had been released after a Cooper-appointed judge reduced his charges and allowed him back on the streets.Cooper is running for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., who is retiring, setting up what is expected to be one of the most competitive races this midterm cycle. Democrats view North Carolina as a key pickup opportunity as Cooper faces Republican candidate Michael Whatley, a former Republican National Committee chairman.Ever since the killing of Iryna Zarutska by a career criminal last summer, Cooper and North Carolina’s criminal justice system have faced mounting scrutiny from critics who argue repeat offenders are too often cycled back onto the streets.”Roy Cooper is a soft-on-crime lunatic who lets monsters out of prison instead of fighting to keep North Carolinians safe,” Republican National Committee Spokesperson Emma Hall said. “Cooper’s record has deadly consequences, and he owes every victim and their family an apology for his failure to keep dangerous criminals off the…

KYIV, Ukraine — The U.S. State Department and Ukraine’s ambassador in Washington have outlined a memorandum that would route Ukrainian drone technology into joint ventures on American soil in an attempt to inject Kyiv’s combat experience into the military’s equipment supply chains.The draft agreement would open a legal channel for Kyiv to sell its weapons to the U.S. for the first time since it effectively banned arms exports to maintain its own forces at the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, CBS News first reported.The memorandum, drawn between the State Department and Ukrainian Ambassador Olha Stefanishyna, would integrate Ukrainian producers into joint ventures and tech-transfer arrangements with American firms.The development caps two weeks in which Kyiv adopted an export framework dubbed “Drone Deals,” launched a procurement coalition with multiple European partners and watched Washington lift a 1997 import ban – all while signing four bilateral export contracts and pursuing roughly 20 more across the Middle East and partner countries, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this week.Zelenskyy touted the new framework at a May 13 summit in Bucharest, Romania, with delegates from NATO’s nine eastern-flank members and their Nordic allies, as seen in a clip of the event posted on X.“I…