Emerging Alliances, Part VI

07/26/2011
Criminalized States and Terrorist-Criminal Pipelines By Douglas Farah The FARC, Venezuela and Iran 07/26/2011 - While the transnational trafficking and financial operations of the Sinaloa cartel are important, the FARC alliances and actions offer an important look at the use of non-state criminal/terrorist armed groups by a criminalized state. The…

Moving from the F-16 to the F-35A: Reducing the Complexity of the Flight Line

07/25/2011
An Interview with Joel Malone F-35As at Edwards AFB June 2011 (Credit: Lockheed Martin) 07/25/2011 - The shift from the F-16 to the F-35A for the USAF will provide significant capability to improve operational performance and operational tempo.  In an interview with Joel Malone, the shift was discussed and analyzed.…

The Need for a Reinvigorated “Revolt of the Admirals”

07/25/2011
The Future Naval Service Posture and the Need for a Reinvigorated Revolt of the Admirals By Vince Martinez Here we go again… 07/25/2011 - It seems we are in familiar territory again—collectively diving head first into a looming post-war era of demobilization, retrofit and reset.  Coupled with a decreasing defense…

Emerging Alliances, Part V

07/22/2011
07/22/2011 Criminalized States and Terrorist-Criminal Pipelines By Douglas Farah The Changing Landscape of West Africa and Latin America 07/18/2011 - While the commodities for weapons trade was lucrative to the participants and costly in terms of human life and the financing of criminal and terrorist organizations, recent developments in the…

The 21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force (EMTF): A Unique Global Insertion Force

07/22/2011
07/22/2011: In late June 2011, Second Line of Defense visited McGuire Air Force Base and was briefed on the 621st Contingency Response Wing resident to the 21st Expeditionary Mobility Task Force.  This unique asset operates globally to create airfields on demand to support the USAF’s ability to insert force worldwide…

Former Soviet Bloc Challenges State Department Internet Freedom Campaign

07/22/2011
By Dr. Richard Weitz 07/22/2011 - Although Iran’s recent announcement that it wanted to create its own national Internet separate from the rest of cyberspace represents the most visible threat to an open and free global Internet, the State Department’s Internet Freedom agenda faces major challenges in the former Soviet…