Lost at Sea – Robert Kaplan, New York Times
The ultimate strategic effect of the Iraq war has been to hasten the arrival of the Asian Century.
While the American government has been occupied in Mesopotamia, and our European allies continue to starve their defense programs, Asian militaries — in particular those of China, India, Japan and South Korea — have been quietly modernizing and in some cases enlarging. Asian dynamism is now military as well as economic.
The military trend that is hiding in plain sight is the loss of the Pacific Ocean as an American lake after 60 years of near-total dominance. A few years down the road, according to the security analysts at the private policy group Strategic Forecasting, Americans will not to the same extent be the prime deliverers of disaster relief in a place like the Indonesian archipelago, as we were in 2005. Our ships will share the waters (and the prestige) with new “big decks” from Australia, Japan and South Korea…
Middle East Volcano – Charles Krauthammer, Washington Post
On Sept. 6, something important happened in northern Syria. Problem is, no one knows exactly what. Except for those few who were involved, and they're not saying.
We do know that Israel carried out an airstrike. How do we know it was important? Because in Israel, where leaking is an art form, even the best-informed don't have a clue. They tell me they have never seen a better-kept secret.
Which suggests that whatever happened near Dayr az Zawr was no accidental intrusion into Syrian airspace, no dry run for an attack on Iran, no strike on some conventional target such as an Iranian Revolutionary Guard base or a weapons shipment on its way to Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Circumstantial evidence points to this being an attack on some nuclear facility provided by North Korea...
Israelis Have Unearthed a Deadlier Axis of Evil – Con Coughlin, London Daily Telegraph
… All that optimism seems wildly out of place following this week's revelation that the Israeli Air Force launched a daredevil attack on a remote region of northern Syria to destroy a top-secret military facility.
The precise nature of the target remains a matter of intense speculation, not least because the Israeli government has imposed a news black-out on the events of the night of September 6; and the Syrians, whose much-vaunted, Russian-built air defence systems failed to detect, let alone repel, the intruders, have been equally secretive.
But judging from the small scraps of information that have emerged, it would be fair to conclude that a new axis of evil is under construction, with Syria assuming Iraq's place. But unlike Iraq, Syria has well-documented links to the pariah regimes in North Korea and Teheran, and is cooperating with them on a range of projects, from the acquisition of long-range ballistic missiles to the development of chemical and nuclear weapons…
Afghanistan Six Years Later – Austin Bay, Washington Times
America's chit-chat class had lost patience with America's new war in Afghanistan. Television's hype-drenched talk shows claimed the Pentagon botched it. The gloomiest prognosticators (mostly from the political left) foresaw a Himalayan defeat, with U.S. soldiers outsmarted by wily, inspired "resistance fighters." As fighting raged and Afghan winter blizzards arrived, millions would starve.
A column of mine at the time argued for patience, perseverance and a little faith: "Afghan demographics — religious, tribal and ethnic fractures — create a politically fragmented society. It takes time to seed CIA and Special Forces teams among rural tribes, particularly in the Pushtun-dominated south. Developing personal relationships with tribal elders is a glacial process. Green Beret majors have to sit down and sip a lot of tea, as chieftains scrutinize promises of aid. Uncle Sugar wants my warriors now, but where will the Americans be in three years?" …
Ghostly Afghan Army – Toronto Star editorial
Afghan President Hamid Karzai worries that his country will "fall back into anarchy" if Canada pulls out its troops in 2009. That was his message to a group of Canadian journalists this week. It coincides with a blitz by Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government to shore up sagging public support to "finish the job" there.
But why should the departure of 2,300 Canadian troops from Kandahar region after a three-year stint trigger a crisis? Why isn't the Afghan National Army prepared to step in? When, if ever, will it be? If Karzai is so worried, why is it taking so long to build up the army? …
What Does Bin Laden Want? – Victor Davis Hanson, National Review
We’ve been arguing over al Qaeda’s aims since before 9/11. Some take Osama bin Laden’s specific complaints seriously. But we shouldn’t, as we learned this month from his latest rambling communiqué, which faulted America for seemingly everything — global warming, high interest rates, shaky home mortgages, and free-market democratic capitalism itself.
Remember that back in the 1990s, he declared war on America for three other reasons: We had troops in Saudi Arabia. The United Nations had imposed sanctions on Iraq. And America supported Israel. Now it apparently matters little that there are neither embargoes of Iraq nor American soldiers in Saudi Arabia…
The Soldier’s Burden – USA Today editorial
Anyone wondering why the debate over the Iraq war is so frustrating and likely to remain so need only look at the choice the U.S. Senate faced this week. Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., proposed an amendment that, on its face, no reasonable American could object to. Webb wanted to guarantee troops at least the same amount of time at home as they've spent on deployments. A year in Iraq, a year at home, and so on.
That hardly seems too much to ask. Nearly 3,800 U.S. servicemembers have lost their lives in Iraq, and thousands are physically or psychologically maimed. Some soldiers are on their fourth tours; some year-long deployments have been stretched to 15 months. Rates of suicide and divorce are up. Official Pentagon policy, abandoned because of war demands, is for troops to spend twice as long at home as on deployments.
Despite all this, the amendment lost. Defense Secretary Robert Gates argued that it would hamper the generals' ability to fight the war.
Which side is right? Both, and that is the problem…
The West Needs France to Rejoin Nato - Denis MacShane, London Daily Telegraph
… France outside Nato makes the concept of a common European defence policy difficult - if not impossible. France in Nato can take the lead, with Britain, in the long overdue rationalisation of Europe's military policy, profile and procurement.
The fear that France in Nato means subordination to Washington is unfounded. Proud Nato nations such as Germany, Italy and Spain have all had no compunction in refusing to heed Washington's call for armed support. Nato is based on a democratic alliance of the willing, not the obedient.
Two objections will have to be overcome: the first from the unthinking Left who will cry horror at France rejoining Nato. They should learn from Spain, where Socialist Felipe Gonzalez won a referendum on Spain's joining Nato. The second comes from sovereignist Tories who will object to any augmentation of European military power…
Unfinished Victory in Lebanon – Christian Science Monitor editorial
A summer-long battle ended in the Middle East two weeks ago, when Lebanon's Army finished up its combat with Islamic militants in a large Palestinian camp. Bravo for Lebanon, but now the volatile aftermath – a 40,000-strong refugee crisis and lingering threats – needs fixing.
Lebanon's politicians, however, are focused on presidential elections that formally begin next week. After yet another political assassination, in a Sept. 19 bombing, the process is expected to be turbulent.
Meanwhile this small and democratic country is still vulnerable to rogue armed groups. It took the Army three months to flush Fatah al-Islam militants out of Nahr el-Bared, one of 12 Palestinian refugee camps scattered throughout Lebanon. And it's an open secret that similar militant groups are still hiding in other camps, which altogether house about 200,000 Palestinians. Because the Army hasn't entered them for decades, these camps are havens for all sorts of foreign jihadis, criminals, and even, conceivably, assassins…
Mocking the Powerless and the Powerful – New York Times editorial
A trail of blood leads from the genocide in Darfur back to the highest levels of government in Khartoum. So Sudan’s announcement earlier this month that it would form its own committee to investigate human rights violations in Darfur never inspired tremendous hope. Khartoum’s choice to lead the committee, however, was even more cynical than we could have imagined and a deliberate slap in the face to the United Nations and the International Criminal Court.
Ahmad Harun — whose appointment was announced while the United Nations secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, was in Sudan for talks on the crisis — is one of only two people the court has charged so far with war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur…
Gordon Brown to Shun Summit Over Mugabe – London Daily Telegraph leader
Gordon Brown's refusal to attend the EU-Africa summit in Lisbon this December if Robert Mugabe is among the delegates is a deft piece of political manoeuvring.
By distancing himself from Brussels, he wins favour with a Eurosceptic electorate. And, faced with egregious political and economic thuggery in Zimbabwe, he can claim the moral high ground. Britain is at last seen taking a lead in confronting one of the world's most disgraceful regimes.
Look a little deeper, however, and the Prime Minister's words seem distinctly less heroic…
Iran Doesn’t Love New York – Washington Times editorial
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's planned wreath-laying visit to Ground Zero is an egregious insult to Americans in general and in particular to the family members and victims killed during the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
The New York Police Department commendably rejected Mr. Ahmadinejad's request to access the site, where a 1,776-foot structure called Freedom Tower is being constructed to commemorate those who lost their lives during the horrific bloodshed. The New York Police Department and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey — the law enforcement branch that owns the site — had wisely decided during a Sept. 6 meeting that no foreign dignitaries, including Mr. Ahmadinejad, would be allowed to enter the construction site while in town for a meeting of the U.N. General Assembly.
However, the chain link fence and surrounding sidewalk above the construction pit is a public area, and Mr. Ahmadinejad has indicated that he hopes on Monday to lay a remembrance wreath there to commemorate those killed in the attacks. If he does intrude that area, the question is whether he'd be mourning the 2,752 innocent victims killed in the attacks or glorifying the 19 hijackers who died while committing their heinous crime. Either way his presence would offend America…
Columbia University: Ahmadinejad Yes, ROTC No – William Kristol, Weekly Standard
Two days ago, Columbia University announced that next Monday, September 24, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will speak and participate in a question and answer session with university faculty and students at Columbia. According to the university statement, "This opportunity for faculty and students to engage the President of Iran came about after Ambassador Mohammad Khazaee at the Iranian Mission to the United Nations initiated contact with Columbia through a member of the faculty, Richard Bulliet, who is a specialist on Iran."
So at the request of the Iranian government, Columbia University will host the president of a terrorist regime which is right now responsible for the deaths of American soldiers on the field of battle. Indeed, this distinguished guest, who is so honoring Columbia by his presence, will be introduced by no one less than the president of Columbia, Lee Bollinger…
Labor Iraq Troop Policy is a Big Con - Dennis Shanahan, The Australian
… Indeed, under a Labor government there is a greater chance there will be more Australian troops exposed to more dangerous situations in the Iraq-Afghanistan military theatres.
Mr Rudd says Labor will withdraw the 550 "combat" troops from Australia's 1575-strong force in and around Iraq, leaving more than 1000 personnel. But Labor wants to replace the "combat" troops with hundreds of "training" troops outside Iraq but stationed in the Middle East.
Labor's policy is deceptive and contradictory because it is attempting to say different things to different audiences…
Outsourcing Foreign Policy – Rosa Brooks, Los Angeles Times
… Erik Prince, CEO of Blackwater USA (which describes itself as "the most comprehensive professional military, law enforcement, security, peacekeeping and stability operations company in the world") has seen the ad. So have Jerry Hoffman, CEO of ArmorGroup, and Herb Lanese, CEO of DynCorp. The ad has also made its way to CACI, Haliburton and its subsidiary, Kellogg Brown & Root, and the rest of the corporations that make money doing the things we used to assume only the U.S. government did -- such as fight our wars, protect our diplomats, interrogate suspected terrorists and engage in nation-building.
This week's fatal Baghdad shooting involving Blackwater employees drew fresh attention to U.S. reliance on private security contractors. (The incident, which sparked angry protests from the Iraqi government, left 11 Iraqis dead.) But despite the renewed controversy, most media coverage of the role of private contractors has focused on relatively mundane issues -- the legal vacuum in which contractors operate in Iraq, for instance -- and missed the true blockbuster story: the wholesale privatization of war and U.S. foreign policy…
Iraq Needs Contractors – Timothy Hsia, Los Angeles Times
From the time a soldier wakes up until he goes to sleep, he interacts with civilian contractors. Most of the focus has been on personal security detachments, or PSDs -- the bodyguards, like Blackwater. But by some estimates there are as many of 180,000 contractors, and PSDs make up only a small fraction of them. The majority of the jobs are service support for the troops and are filled by non-Americans. The effect of these civilians in the Iraq war has yet to be fully examined, and the legacy of their role will affect how our nation fights its future wars.
The trash being sifted and sorted out of a soldier's garbage bin is conducted by civilians working for Toifor Co. When he walks to the morale, welfare and recreation facilities, he is greeted by more civilians who run the gym. As he leaves the gym, he can see civilians stacking up the bottled water. When the soldier turns in his laundry, it is to an East Asian civilian who prides himself on his English and customer service. The soldier has the luxury of a hot shower because Indonesian civilians ensure that there is a ready supply of water. When he enters the dining facility, he is greeted by Ugandan security guards who work for EOD Technology. These Ugandans make roughly $1,000 a month, meager by U.S. standards but considered a small fortune in their country. They also provide security at the forward operating bases -- the largest camps -- because there is not enough U.S. military manpower to do so…
Preemptive Appeasement - Daniel Mandel, Weekly Standard
Two Weeks ago, Judge Simon Cardon de Lichtbuer of the Brussels civil court ruled that he lacked authority to overturn a decision by the city's mayor, Freddy Thielemans, to ban a demonstration planned for September 11 under the slogan of 'Stop the Islamization of Europe.' The rally had been called to protest what its British, Danish and German organizers call the "creeping" Islamization of European society.
Provocative in their assertion of Islam's incompatibility with democracy, the rally organizers nonetheless would have been violating no known law. Yet Thielemans (who had approved a September 9 rally by a group of conspiracy theorists who claim that the September 11 attacks were orchestrated by the Bush administration) neither liked them nor the possibility of a violent reaction from what he termed "Muslims," "peace activists" and "democrats."
This is but the latest manifestation of a disturbing European malaise--preemptive cringe before the threat of violence from Muslim extremists. It is no secret that Muslim extremists in Europe are very much likely to offer violence in response to conduct deemed hostile to Islam…
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