Blog Posts

“More than 16 years after 9/11 spurred a broad fight against terrorism, some Americans say it’s time to look at how the country is deploying its forces.”

Continue on for the introduction and a link to this important ISW report by Lieutenant General James M. Dubik (U.S. Army, Ret.) and Nic Vincent.

In a special report, Reuters has pieced together what happened in Inn Din in the days leading up to the killing of the 10 Rohingya – eight men and two high school students in their late teens.

“It was self-defense. Obviously, we are not getting engaged in the Syrian civil war,” Mattis said.

"No U.S. military members were injured in the clash. One SDF member was wounded."

"The soldiers will fan out across the country in small teams, taking pressure off U.S. units that trained Afghan troops for years on an ad hoc basis, to varying degrees of success."

Continue on for the table of contents and a link to the latest edition of "Special Warfare Magazine".

“You hit us, we will respond aggressively. We will defend ourselves.”

"Over the past year, he has learned to play a different role: acting as a check on an impulsive president."

What this column is about: Dezinformatsiya, the Russian word that gave birth, in the 1980s, to the English neologism “disinformation.”

Former U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel believes the situation in Afghanistan is “worse than it’s ever been,” saying the U.S. will eventually need to leave the country.

"While some will scoff at that formulation, they should know that battlefields impose a different set of values than those of the civilian world."

“Security Force Assistance Brigades, or SFABs, are a great concept, but even the best ideas have limitations and room for improvement.”

"The Islamic State footprint on Iraq’s environment may be unprecedented and permanent, with a toxic legacy."

"The Taliban was and remains an insurgency.  It must be dealt with as an insurgency by focusing on the human terrain."

Russia will try to parlay its military successes into a diplomatic bargain that offers the Kremlin implicit control of Syria’s political destiny.

"The regional impact of Turkey’s actions are far-ranging, but largely play into the hands of the Moscow-Tehran-Damascus axis."

"Life in the city looked settled and as quiet as could be. Beneath the surface, though, Hue was beginning to boil."

"By the most obvious metrics, the conflict has seen a spike in violence during the past two weeks, already half a year after President Trump declared his “fight and win” strategy."

"The U.S. officers advising the South Vietnamese Army repeatedly warned Washington that the war was misguided."

A top U.S. commander says he has seen improvement in Afghan forces' capabilities in the fight against Taliban extremists in Helmand Province since the American military returned.

"After 16 years of war in Afghanistan, experts have stopped asking what victory looks like and are beginning to consider the spectrum of possible defeats."

"Years of war, TV spots depicting the struggles of wounded warriors, and curbs on military advertising budgets have left the armed forces with an image problem."

"NATO’s Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan remains undeterred by Taliban activity as it heads into 2018, officials said."

'The possibility of a military conflict between two NATO allies is unprecedented but, after years of deteriorating relations between Turkey and the United States, not unthinkable."