The Chief of the UK General Staff’s Perspective on the European Defense Challenge

08/01/2022
By William Leben The British Army’s main effort is now mobilisation to deter Russian aggression, and it must accept ‘ruthless prioritisation’ to this end, General Sir Patrick Sanders has said. Speaking at the Royal United Services Institute’s Land Warfare Conference in London, the British Chief of the General Staff (CGS) articulated his army’s…

The Evolving Japanese-Australian Defense Relationship

07/03/2022
By Graeme Dobell Australia is removing the qualifications from its quasi-alliance with Japan. The visit to Japan by Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles is another step in the fading of the qualifiers: ‘quasi alliance’, ‘small “a” ally’ and ‘alliance lite’. The qualifiers apply because this is a pact without a treaty—no formal pledge…

Why Prime Minister Albanese Must be Careful About NATO Commitments

06/27/2022
By Paul Dibb Prime Minister Albanese is attending the NATO Summit in Madrid on 28 June, along with the leaders of Japan and South Korea and representatives from Sweden and Finland. President Zelensky has also invited him to visit Ukraine after the NATO leader’s summit. There will clearly be expectations…

The 40th Anniversary of the Falklands War: ‘Global’ Britain and Reality

06/22/2022
By Kenneth Maxwell On 14 June 2022, the UK remembered the 40 year anniversary of the Falklands War. Looking back provides insights as well with regard to the state of "global" Britain. In the age of the Brexiters self-proclaimed “global Britain’ two very distinguished British historians, the late Michael Howard…

China’s Informal Empire in Latin America: The Challenge for the Biden Administration

06/18/2022
China has focused under the regime of President Xi on building out its global informal empire. By trade and investment, China has become a key player in Africa and Latin America. Its practices in doing so have a number of questionable dimensions, but instead of highlighting the reality of Chinese…

How Finland and Sweden Joining NATO Would Impact NATO

05/18/2022
According a recently posted video by The Wall Street Journal on May 16, 2022, the subject was addressed of how the two states joining NATO would impact the organization.  We have focused for several years on how the Nordic defense dynamics are part of the reshaping od direct defense…