2014-07-03 In a recent piece by Admiral James "Ace" Lyons, former Commander of the US Pacific Fleet, focused on what he sees as a Kurdish opportunity. There is no question that modern-day Iraq is a fractured state. This should come as no surprise, since its basic historical foundation was always weak. It…
2014-07-01 By Robbin Laird The response to Russia’s seizure of Crimea has been disbelief, denial or condemnation. The reality is that the Russians are a nationalistic power whose leader sees the post-Soviet order as illegitimate as many Germans saw the Versailles settlement after World War I. Clearly, Putin understands that…
Clearly, European and American equities are in play in the Middle East. The Iraq crisis is highly interactive with developments in the region. Yet there has been little real discussion of how the US and Europe can address the crisis and to ensure that their equities are protected, until remedial…
2014-06-25 By Harald Malmgren The Russian seizure of Crimea, and its nearby gas and oil fields, shocked Western Europe and the US. Subsequent ongoing violent political upheaval in Eastern Ukraine with parallel threat of Russian military intervention dramatically heightened attention of many governments. Potential for violence that might disrupt energy…
2014-06-23 By Richard Weitz The most recent Defense Department report on Chinese military power describes a comprehensive and unrelenting buildup of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). The sheer magnitude of this buildup should, if continued, propel China to superpower status in a few decades. This buildup occurs despite Beijing’s improved…
2014-06-30 The Russians have re-entered Iraq with the delivery of Sukhois to assist the current Iraq government to fight back against insurgents. This move is limited, but allows them to play a card linking them more effectively with the current Iraq regime, Syria and Iran. According to the Moscow Times:…
2014-06-30 The French Air Force has replaced the Mirage 2000 that crashed in Niger earlier this month with another aircraft, bringing its fighter aircraft detachment for Mali up to full strength again. The new Mirage 2000, from Escadron de Chasse 1/33 ‘Navarre’, arrived at Base Aerienne 172 at N’Djamena International…
2014-06-24 Last week, one of our SLD colleagues received this message from an American in Iraq about the situation at that time. Huge stockpiles of US armor, weapons, heavy artillery, mortars, armored vehicles, tanks, the entire main weapons depot and the main helicopter base, have been captured, mostly intact, by…
