Rogue states Russia, Iran and China joined naval drills alongside South Africa Saturday, as tensions mount between several countries in the block of nations and the US. The week‑long exercise, which began Friday off the Cape Town coast and is being led by China, comes just days after the US seized a Russian‑flagged oil tanker north of Europe in the Atlantic Ocean. China, Russia and South Africa are longtime members of BRICS — the 10-country economic alliance formed in 2009 that sees itself as a counterforce to US dominance — while Iran joined in 2024.