Fresh off of hosting some of the largest war games in NATO history in Norway, we are now flexing our military muscles in the face of Russia's Pacific Fleet.

The US Navy sent a guided-missile destroyer Wednesday to challenge Russia in the Sea of Japan.

The USS McCambell "sailed in the vicinity of Peter the Great Bay to challenge Russia's excessive maritime claims and uphold the rights, freedoms, and lawful uses of the sea enjoyed by the United States and other nations," US Pacific Fleet spokesperson US Navy Lt. Rachel McMarr told CNN.

The Russian Navy's Pacific Fleet is headquartered in the eastern port city of Vladivostok, located in Peter the Great Bay, the largest gulf in the East Sea/Sea of Japan.

This is old news, but with a brand new opponent. We've been doing this for a long time with China.
A month ago the NY Times described it as a 'game of chicken'.

From a distance, the Chinese warship warned the American destroyer that it was on a “dangerous course” in the South China Sea. Then it raced up alongside, getting perilously close. For a few tense minutes, a collision seemed imminent.

The American vessel, the Decatur, blasted its whistle. The Chinese took no notice. Instead, the crew prepared to throw overboard large, shock-absorbing fenders to protect their ship. They were “trying to push us out of the way,” one of the American sailors said.

Only a sharp starboard turn by the Decatur avoided a disaster in the calm equatorial waters that early morning in September — one that could have badly damaged both vessels, killed members of both crews and thrust two nuclear powers into an international crisis, according to a senior American official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the encounter in detail.

If you think that's a little insane, and that both sides would see the light, well...this was from a few days ago.

China said on Saturday it had deployed its naval forces to warn off a US warship sailing through disputed waters in the South China Sea.
A statement released by the Southern Theatre Command said the guided-missile cruiser USS Chancellorsville had entered the waters around the Paracel Islands on Wednesday without the approval of the Chinese government.

Here's an idea: Instead of being the globe's police force, how about letting the locals settle these territorial disputes.