Brett Wilkins

November 30, 2021

Slamming the Saudi-led coalition’s war crimes in Yemen – which are often perpetrated with U.S.-supplied weaponry – 47 advocacy groups on Monday published a joint letter to congressional lawmakers urging them to block the Biden administration’s “wrongful” planned $650 million arms sale to the repressive Middle Eastern monarchy. At issue is the proposed sale of […]

Gilbert Doctorow

November 30, 2021

In the past couple of weeks, nearly every one of my peers in the community of analysts – Russia watchers has weighed in on Russia’s possible plans to invade Ukraine. We have been given detailed breakdowns of the forces and equipment which Russia has moved into the border region with Ukraine, and we have heard […]

Daniel Larison

November 29, 2021

The top official in the Biden administration working on the Middle East gets something important very wrong. Brett McGurk said this last week: And when it came to military force for behavior change, that is a pretty fuzzy objective for a military force. When it comes to military force to prevent a country from obtaining […]

Paul Antonopoulos

November 26, 2021

Kiev’s aggressive rhetoric about using the American-made Javelin anti-tank missile systems in Donbass, as well as accusations of Russia’s invasion plans, creates an explosive situation and encourages the escalation of conflict. Kyrylo Budanov, the head of the Ukrainian military intelligence service, also claimed that Kiev’s forces used the American Javelin system in Donbass for the […]

Walt Zlotow

November 25, 2021

Two weeks from yesterday marks 80 years since the Congress last issued a declaration of war as required by Article 1, Section 8, Clause 11 of the Constitution: The Congress shall have power to declare war. Invoked to launch or defend against wars 3 times in the 19th and twice in the 20th century, that […]

Daniel Larison

November 24, 2021

Walter Russell Mead tries his hand at being a conspiracy theorist: Our adversaries – and some of our allies as well as several American policy makers and commentators – believe that a polarized America is locked into decline and retreat. This is not, the revisionist powers feel, a good reason to offer Mr. Biden help […]

Lucas Leiroz

November 24, 2021

Once again, NATO is conducting a rather dangerous maneuvers in Eastern Europe with the aim of provoking Russia. Latvia is the new military drill arena for the Western Alliance, with the country receiving troops from across the Atlantic for a military event called the Winter Shield. This event is annual and provides the opportunity for […]

Daniel Larison

November 23, 2021

NBC News reports on the bankrupt “Plan B” options being considered by the Biden administration if nuclear talks in Vienna aren’t successful: As Iran and world powers prepare to resume negotiations next week on reviving a nuclear deal, the U.S. and its allies are already debating a list of “Plan B” options if the negotiations […]

Yves Engler

November 19, 2021

A friend in Montreal, whose partner is a teacher, recently messaged me: "My wife, who sat through the Grade 4 virtual Remembrance Day activity organized by the school board described what it was like: The students watched two soldiers walk around a military base giving a tour. This included tanks. … A student asked if […]

Daniel Larison

November 19, 2021

Richard Haass dismisses negotiations in Vienna to salvage the nuclear deal, and then makes this assertion: And even if they do [succeed], any agreement will not resolve Iran’s push for regional primacy – or for nuclear weapons. If Iran were seeking “regional primacy,” it lacks the power projection and resources to achieve it. Then again, […]