Tell the Truth, and speak from your pay-grade. Don't try to answer questions that would better be directed to the battalion commander or Gen. William Westmoreland or President Lyndon Johnson. If you are a squad leader, answer questions about what you know and do.

--Lieutenant Colonel Hal Moore

AFGHANISTAN / PAKISTAN TRIBAL AREAS

Dispute Over Timing of Afghan Vote Turns Messy - Pamela Constable, Washington Post

A deepening power struggle over the date for upcoming presidential elections is exposing the underside of politics in Afghanistan and raising questions about the viability of a crucial transition for this struggling, Western-backed democracy.

The conflict pits President Hamid Karzai, who hopes to win reelection after seven years in power, against an array of rivals eager to see him dethroned at any cost, and against members of an independent election commission whose desire to postpone the polling is supported by the United States, the United Nations and NATO.

More at The Washington Post and:

Afghan Election Commission Rejects Karzai Request for Early Election - VOA
Afghan Panel Rejects Karzai Decree for Early Elections - New York Times
Afghans: Country Not Safe Enough for Early Vote - Associated Press
Afghan Elections Set for August - BBC News

SUDAN

Obama Starts 'Urgent Review' of US Policy Toward Sudan - Jonathan Weisman, Wall Street Journal

President Barack Obama has launched a "high-level, urgent review" of US policy toward Sudan that will consider whether the US should re-examine joining the International Criminal Court, which the Bush administration had emphatically rejected, a senior White House official said Wednesday. A policy decision should be ready "within weeks."

Mr. Obama campaigned hard on toughening US policy toward Sudan and bringing an end to the fighting in Darfur, which he called genocide. As a senator, Mr. Obama visited Darfurian refugee camps in Chad in 2006 and identified the issue as a priority. The administration's reticent response Wednesday to the ICC's warrants for the arrest of Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir was not meant to convey any slackening of the president's position, but the president did not want to respond to developments in Sudan before a broader framework could be unveiled, the official said.

More at The Wall Street Journal.

Sudan Ousts Aid Groups After Court Pursues President - Stephanie McCrummen and Colum Lynch, Washington Post

Reacting swiftly to the International Criminal Court's decision to issue an arrest warrant for Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, the government of Sudan on Wednesday expelled at least 10 foreign aid groups that provide food, water, medical care and other assistance to more than a million displaced people in the western Darfur region, according to UN officials and aid workers.

The groups include Oxfam, Doctors Without Borders, CARE International and others that collectively handle 60 percent of humanitarian assistance in Darfur, where the largest relief effort in the world has reversed a dangerous rise in the level of malnutrition and disease among people stranded in refugee camps. Some groups were given 24 hours to leave; others were told that the safety of their staffs could no longer be guaranteed.

More at The Washington Post and:

ICC Charges Sudan President With War Crimes - Voice of America
Court Issues Arrest Warrant for Sudan’s Leader - New York Times
Sudan's President Wanted for War Crimes - Toronto Star
ICC Charges Sudan President with War Crimes - Los Angeles Times
Fears of New Slaughter After Sudan Charges - The Times
Bashir Defies Arrest Warrant - Washington Times
In Darfur, Street Protests over Bashir Arrest Warrant - Christian Science Monitor
Court Issues War Crimes Warrant for Sudan's Bashir - Associated Press
Warrant Issued for Sudanese Leader - Agence France-Presse
US Supports Accountability for Darfur Crimes - Voice of America
Sudan Expels Aid Groups After Arrest Warrant - Associated Press
Arrest Warrant Draws Sudan Scorn - BBC News
Hold the Handcuffs - Washington Post editorial
Fugitive al-Bashir - The Times editorial
Grounding Sudan's Killers - Washington Post opinion
A President, a Boy and Genocide - New York Times opinion

IRAN

Iran Looms Over Clinton’s Mideast Trip - Mark Landler, New York Times

Iran is not on Hillary Rodham Clinton’s itinerary in her first swing through the Middle East and Europe as secretary of state. But it is clearly, and constantly, on her mind.

After three days of meetings in Egypt, Israel and the West Bank, Mrs. Clinton said she was struck by the depth of fear about Iran and the extent to which officials say it meddles in their affairs.

More at The New York Times.

'Israel Mulling Iran Military Action' - Hillary Leila Krieger, Jerusalem Post

Israel is seriously considering taking unilateral military action to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, according to a report by top US political figures and experts released Wednesday.

The report also says Israel's time frame for action is growing shorter, not only because of Iranian advances, but because Teheran might soon acquire upgraded air defenses and disperse its nuclear program to additional locations.

The report, "Preventing a Cascade of Instability," was put out by the Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP). It also argues that international sanctions against Iran need to be intensified urgently for the engagement the Obama administration is planning with Teheran to be effective.

More at The Jerusalem Post.

Iranian Leaders Fault Obama, Warn Israel Again - Thomas Erdbrink, Washington Post

Iranian leaders said Wednesday that President Obama follows the "crooked ways" of his predecessor, repeated earlier warnings that Iranian missiles could reach Israel and reiterated that the Holocaust was "a lie."

Iran's president and other officials have at times appeared to welcome Obama's proposal for greater dialogue, but the remarks Wednesday suggested that Iranian positions on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and other issues would pose obstacles. The comments were also a reminder that Iran's complex leadership structure brings together clerics and political leaders with views that sometimes differ sharply.

More at The Washington Post and:

Clinton Criticizes Iran as a Threat in the Mideast - Associated Press
Iran Denounces US During Gaza Meeting - Voice of America
Iran: Israeli Nuclear Sites Within Missile Range - Associated Press
Iran Urges World Muslim 'Resistance' Against Israel - Agence France-Presse
Abbas Warns Iran Not to Interfere - Washington Times

IRAQ

US Forces in Iraq Remain Focused - Richard Tomkins, Washington Times

US and Iraqi soldiers scouring the palm groves here for extremists' weapons caches during a recent patrol seemed to take in stride the announcement that the majority of US troops will be withdrawn from Iraq within 18 months.

About five months into a 12-month deployment, the decision won't speed up their departure. Most are also of the opinion that Iraqi security forces are increasingly capable of going it alone - and will be even more so when August 2010 rolls around.

Iraqis expressed confidence in their own abilities and the prospects of increasing stability. But they did so with the caveat with which they pepper all plans and hopes.

More at The Washington Times.

MORE NEWS AND OPINION

Afghanistan / Pakistan Tribal Areas

No Surprise if US Requests More Australian Troops - The Australian
Another Karzai Forges Afghan Business Empire - New York Times
Blast Hits US Base in Afghanistan - Associated Press

Iraq

Suicide Bomber Kills 3 in Baghdad - Associated Press
Bomb Kills 10 in Cattle Market South of Baghdad - Associated Press

The Long War

Terrorist Group Recruits in Midwest - Associated Press

US Department of Defense

Budget to Reflect Key Defense Priorities, OMB Director Says - AFPS
Obama vs. Pentagon Waste - Washington Times editorial

United States

Foreign Ties of Intelligence Nominee Questioned - Washington Times
Intelligence Failure - National Review editorial
Obama to Order Overhaul of US Government Spending Process - Voice of America
Task Force Urges Broad Role for Nuclear Labs - Washington Times

United Kingdom

Brown Brings Message of Optimism to US Congress - The Times
Brown Urges US Congress for Help to Save the World - Daily Telegraph
British Prime Minister Addresses US Congress - Voice of America
UK PM Says US Bond 'Unbreakable' - BBC News
Brown Tells Congress To 'Seize This Moment' - Washington Post
Brown Urges Bold Effort to Shape an Expansion - New York Times

Australia

Defence on Standby for Victorian Bushfire Emergency - The Australian

Africa

Obama Prolongs US Sanctions on Zimbabwe - Daily Telegraph
LRA Man 'Captured in Congo Park' - BBC News

Americas

Bill in Senate Spurs Debate Over Easing Ban on Cuba - New York Times
Cuba Receives More Cash From Abroad - Wall Street Journal
Venezuela's Hugo Chavez Seizes Unit of US Firm Cargill - Los Angeles Times
Venezuela: Chávez Targets Mills in Price-Control Move - Wall Street Journal
Obama Overtures Seek to Help a Spiraling Mexico - Christian Science Monitor
20 killed in Riot at Ciudad Juarez Prison - Los Angeles Times
Colombia Extradites Reputed Top Narco - Associated Press
Latin American Engagement Requires New Thinking, Mullen Says - AFPS

Asia Pacific

China Boosts Military Spending - Voice of America
China Sees Smaller Defense Boost Amid Economy Woes - Associated Press
China 'Ready to Talk' to Taiwan - The Times
China Offers to Start Peace Talks with Taiwan - Daily Telegraph
50 Years After Revolt, Clampdown on Tibetans - New York Times
China Vows Openness - Washington Post
China Outlines Ambitious Plan for Stimulus - New York Times
South Korean Official: North's Missile Launch 'Not Imminent' - Voice of America
US Changing its Mission in Korea - Associated Press
The Peril Brewing in Pyongyang - The Australian opinion

Europe

Medvedev: Russia Needs New Top People - Associated Press
Beware of Doing Deals With Putin - Wall Street Journal opinion
State Security Raids Ukraine's National Gas Company - Washington Post
Ukraine's Leaders Feud Over Gas Shipments - Associated Press

Middle East

Clinton Criticizes Israel's Plans to Demolish Arab Homes - Voice of America
Clinton Criticizes Israel's Eviction, Demolition Plans - Washington Post
Clinton Criticizes Israel Plan to Raze Palestinian Homes - Los Angeles Times
US to Press Netanyahu to Curb Settler Activity - Wall Street Journal
Jordan Could be Part of Two-state Deal - The Australian
Palestinians Ask How Much will Change - Christian Science Monitor
US Courts Syria as Linchpin - Christian Science Monitor
Syria is Key - Washington Times opinion

South Asia

Pakistan Hunts for Sri Lankan Cricket Team Attackers - Voice of America
Sri Lankan Cricket Team Returns Home to Emotional Welcome - VOA
Pakistanis Question How Cricket Ambush Could Occur - Associated Press
Is Pakistan Unraveling? - Christian Science Monitor
Pakistan 'Greater Threat than Afghanistan' - Daily Telegraph
The Jihadist Monster Has Turned on Itself - The Australian opinion
Pakistan Is Steadfast Against Terror - Wall Street Journal opinion
Pakistan Badlands Must be Tamed - The Times opinion

BOOKS

The Battle for Peace: A Frontline Vision of America's Power and Purpose - Anthony Zinni and Tony Koltz

The intellectual complement to Zinni and Clancy's bestselling Battle Ready (2004), a narrative memoir salted with specific policy recommendations, this volume provides the former US Central Command chief's analysis of America's current global position. Zinni begins by asserting that America's status as "the most powerful nation in the history of the planet" has created a de facto empire. The US has no choice: if it fails to take the lead, nothing significant happens. At the same time, Americans must recognize that, in a global age, there can be no zero-sum games.

The Unforgiving Minute: A Soldier's Education - Craig Mullaney

The Unforgiving Minute is the ultimate's soldier's book - universal in its raw emotion and its understanding of the larger issues of life and death. Mullaney, a master storyteller, plunges the depths of self-doubt, endurance, and courage. The result: a riveting, suspenseful human story, beautifully told. This is a book written under fire - a lyrical, spellbinding tale of war, love, and courage. The Unforgiving Minute is the Three Cups of Tea of soldiering.

Great Powers: America and the World after Bush - Thomas P.M. Barnett

In civilian and military circles alike, The Pentagon’s New Map became one of the most talked about books of 2004. “A combination of Tom Friedman on globalization and Carl von Clausewitz on war, [it is] the red-hot book among the nation’s admirals and generals,” wrote David Ignatius in The Washington Post. Barnett’s second book, Blueprint for Action, demonstrated how to put the first book’s principles to work. Now, in Great Powers, Barnett delivers his most sweeping - and important - book of all.

The Accidental Guerrilla: Fighting Small Wars in the Midst of a Big One - David Kilcullen

A remarkably fresh perspective on the War on Terror. Kilcullen takes us "on the ground" to uncover the face of modern warfare, illuminating both the big global war (the "War on Terrorism") and its relation to the associated "small wars" across the globe: Iraq, Afghanistan, the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Chechnya, Pakistan and North Africa.

The Gamble: General David Petraeus and the American Military Adventure in Iraq, 2006-2008 - Thomas Ricks

Thomas E. Ricks uses hundreds of hours of exclusive interviews with top officers in Iraq and extraordinary on-the-ground reportage to document the inside story of the Iraq War since late 2005 as only he can, examining the events that took place as the military was forced to reckon with itself, the surge was launched, and a very different war began.

Why Vietnam Matters: An Eyewitness Account of Lessons Not Learned - Rufus Phillips

Phillips details how the legendary Edward G. Lansdale helped the South Vietnamese gain and consolidate their independence between 1954 and 1956, and how this later changed to a reliance on American conventional warfare with its highly destructive firepower. He reasons that our failure to understand the Communists, our South Vietnamese allies, or even ourselves took us down the wrong road. In summing up US errors in Vietnam, Phillips draws parallels with the American experience in Iraq and Afghanistan and suggests changes in the US approach. Known for his intellectual integrity and firsthand, long-term knowledge of what went on in Vietnam, the author offers lessons for today in this trenchant account.

Baghdad at Sunrise: A Brigade Commander's War in Iraq - Peter Mansoor

This is a unique contribution to the burgeoning literature on the Iraq war, analyzing the day-to-day performance of a US brigade in Baghdad during 2004-2005. Mansoor uses a broad spectrum of sources to address the military, political and cultural aspects of an operation undertaken with almost no relevant preparation, which tested officers and men to their limits and generated mistakes and misjudgments on a daily basis. The critique is balanced, perceptive and merciless - and Mansoor was the brigade commander. Military history is replete with command memoirs. Most are more or less self-exculpatory. Even the honest ones rarely achieve this level of analysis. The effect is like watching a surgeon perform an operation on himself. Mansoor has been simultaneously a soldier and a scholar, able to synergize directly his military and academic experiences.

The Strongest Tribe: War, Politics, and the Endgame in Iraq - Bing West

From a universally respected combat journalist, a gripping history based on five years of front-line reporting about how the war was turned around - and the choice now facing America. We interpret reality through the clouded prism of our own experience, so it is unsurprising that Bing West sees Iraq through the lens of Vietnam. He served as a Marine officer there, and he thinks politicians and the media caused the American public to turn against a war that could have been won. Now a correspondent for the Atlantic, West has made 15 reporting trips to Iraq over the last six years and is almost as personally invested in the current conflict as he was in Vietnam; this book, his third on Iraq, is his attempt to ensure that the "endgame" in Iraq turns out better than in his last war.

Tell Me How This Ends: General David Petraeus and the Search for a Way Out of Iraq - Linda Robinson

After a series of disastrous missteps in its conduct of the war, the White House in 2006 appointed General David Petraeus as the Commanding General of the coalition forces. Tell Me How This Ends is an inside account of his attempt to turn around a failing war. Linda Robinson conducted extensive interviews with Petraeus and his subordinate commanders and spent weeks with key US and Iraqi divisions. The result is the only book that ties together military operations in Iraq and the internecine political drama that is at the heart of the civil war. Replete with dramatic battles, behind-doors confrontations, and astute analysis, the book tells the full story of the Iraq War’s endgame, and lays out the options that will be facing the next president.

The War Within: A Secret White House History 2006-2008 - Bob Woodward

Woodward interviewed key players, obtained dozens of never-before-published documents, and had nearly three hours of exclusive interviews with President Bush. The result is a stunning, firsthand history of the years from mid-2006, when the White House realizes the Iraq strategy is not working, through the decision to surge another 30,000 US troops in 2007, and into mid-2008, when the war becomes a fault line in the presidential election. As violence in Iraq reaches unnerving levels in 2006, a second front in the war rages at the highest levels of the Bush administration. In his fourth book on President George W. Bush, Bob Woodward takes readers deep inside the tensions, secret debates, unofficial backchannels, distrust and determination within the White House, the Pentagon, the State Department, the intelligence agencies and the US military headquarters in Iraq. With unparalleled intimacy and detail, this gripping account of a president at war describes a period of distress and uncertainty within the US government from 2006 through mid-2008. The White House launches a secret strategy review that excludes the military. General George Casey, the commander in Iraq, believes that President Bush does not understand the war and eventually concludes he has lost the president's confidence. The Joint Chiefs of Staff also conduct a secret strategy review that goes nowhere. On the verge of revolt, they worry that the military will be blamed for a failure in Iraq.

We Are Soldiers Still: A Journey Back to the Battlefields of Vietnam - Harold Moore and Joe Galloway

In their stunning follow-up to the classic bestseller We Were Soldiers Once... and Young, Lt. Gen. Hal Moore and Joe Galloway return to Vietnam and reflect on how the war changed them, their men, their enemies, and both countries - often with surprising results. It would be a monumental task for Moore and Galloway to top their classic 1992 memoir. But they come close in this sterling sequel, which tells the backstory of two of the Vietnam War's bloodiest battles (in which Moore participated as a lieutenant colonel), their first book and a 1993 ABC-TV documentary that brought them back to the battlefield. Moore's strong first-person voice reviews the basics of the November 1965 battles, part of the 34-day Battle of the Ia Drang Valley. Among other things, Moore and Galloway (who covered the battle for UPI) offer portraits of two former enemy commanders, generals Nguyen Huu An and Chu Huy Man, whom the authors met - and bonded with - nearly three decades after the battle. This book proves again that Moore is an exceptionally thoughtful, compassionate and courageous leader (he was one of a handful of army officers who studied the history of the Vietnam wars before he arrived) and a strong voice for reconciliation and for honoring the men with whom he served.

In a Time of War: The Proud and Perilous Journey of West Point' Class of 2002 - Bill Murphy

The West Point cadets Murphy follows through their baptism by fire are an admirable sample of young American men and women: intelligent, ambitious and intensely patriotic. Most come from career military families and hold conservative opinions. Murphy describes their four years at West Point with respect even when discussing their love lives and marriages. All yearn for battle, and most get their wish. The book's best passages describe the confusion of moving to Iraq or Afghanistan and fighting insurgents, for which they lack both training and equipment. All feel something is not right but concentrate on the job at hand; some inevitably die or are grievously wounded.

Iraq and the Evolution of American Strategy - Steven Metz

Today the US military is more nimble, mobile, and focused on rapid responses against smaller powers than ever before. One could argue that the Gulf War and the postwar standoff with Saddam Hussein hastened needed military transformation and strategic reassessments in the post–Cold War era. But the preoccupation with Iraq also mired the United States in the Middle East and led to a bloody occupation. What will American strategy look like after US troops leave Iraq? Metz concludes that the United States has a long-standing, continuing problem “developing sound assumptions when the opponent operates within a different psychological and cultural framework.” He sees a pattern of misjudgments about Saddam and Iraq based on Western cultural and historical bias and a pervasive faith in the superiority of America’s worldview and institutions. This myopia contributed to America being caught off guard by Saddam’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990, then underestimating his longevity, and finally miscalculating the likelihood of a stable and democratic Iraq after he was toppled. With lessons for all readers concerned about America’s role in the world, Dr. Metz’s important new work will especially appeal to scholars and students of strategy and international security studies, as well as to military professionals and DOD civilians. With a foreword by Colin S. Gray.