For eight long years we have seen United States interests subordinated to those of Iran. The Obama administration took the early position that Iran was a natural partner for the United States in the Middle East. Hence the withdrawal of US troops for Iran and the turning of that nation into an Iranian dependency. Through the actions of an Iranian agent of influence, Ben Rhodes, Obama’s national security council entered into a broad agreement with Iran that not only provided Iran with vast amounts of cash and nuclear technology but which obligated the United States to actually defend Iran’s nuclear infrastructure against military and cyber attacks.

If you want to understand just how the US “moderate rebels” failed so impressively in Syria, imagine that their presence conflicted with Iranian desires to turn Syria into a client state to match the one they already have in Lebanon. Suddenly, it makes much sense.

In the last months of the Obama administration, Iranian-trained, -supplied, and -led “rebels” in Yemen twice fired anti-ship missiles at a US Navy warship. All the while the Iranians have kept up a program of harassing and impeding US Navy ships in the Persian Gulf and, in one instance, actually taking two Navy vessels captive.

In recent weeks, the Obama administration has assisted Iran in its flagrant violation of the terms of the agreement it signed.

Those days seem to be numbered.

Today during the White House press briefing, National Security Adviser Michael Flynn read a prepared statement:

NatSec Adviser Flynn puts Iran "on notice" – details on why are here – but no word on what being put on notice means. pic.twitter.com/1DuP1tp4wT

— Kim Dozier (@KimDozier) February 1, 2017

This comes a day after the UN Security Council, at the insistence of US Ambassador Nikki Haley, held an emergency meeting to discuss Iran’s blatant violation of a UNSC resolution that prohibits Iran from having ballistic missile technology.

This is significant. Mike Flynn has has long experience dealing with Iran’s mischief making in the Persian Gulf and Middle East. Ditto for Secretary of Defense James Mattis. Neither are big fans of the mullahs and neither think the Obama strategy of placating Iran was particularly wise.

At a minimum, from the focus of Flynn’s message on Yemen, we can probably anticipate that firing missiles at other nation’s warships in the Persian Gulf has ceased to be an inspired evolutionary strategy. We may see a clamping down on the black market supplying Iran with ballistic missile components. In fact, that may already be underway.