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"When Doundou Chefou first took up arms as a youth a decade ago, it was for the same reason as many other ethnic Fulani herders along the Niger-Mali border: to protect his livestock."

"The UH-60s won’t have an impact for at least several years on an intense war that has already cost at least $700 billion since 2001."

"The U.S. is abdicating its role as a diplomatic powerbroker to Russia in Syria."

American Foreign Service Association’s advance copy of the AFSA President’s Views column for the December edition of "The Foreign Service Journal".

NATO allies and their partner forces have agreed to increase the size of the Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan from 13,000 to 16,000 troops.

"Iran has trained and deployed thousands of Shiite Afghans as shock troops in Syria’s sectarian war."

President Trump said that during the APEC Summit in Vietnam he had “two or three very short conversations” with Russian President Putin, centering on the situation in Syria.

“As Islamic State is pushed out of urban centers, finding targets is more difficult.”

“Several years after pulling back, American troops will head outside the wire to battle the Taliban and turn up the air war.”

"After months of lobbying NATO allies to increase their troop contributions and support to the war in Afghanistan, the alliance came up short Thursday."

"For the American-led mission to succeed, more international forces, chiefly from NATO members, would also be required."

"Filipino troops guarding the ruins of a city freed from Islamic militants last month said American training and intelligence gave them an edge against the 1,000 insurgents."

"The NATO alliance will meet in Brussels on Thursday to review next steps in the Afghanistan conflict and brainstorm ways to deal with the 16-year-old security crisis."

“Weakening State cedes diplomacy to U.S. adversaries, say current and former officials.”

"The moves came as tensions with Russia remain the highest they have been in the nearly three decades since the end of the Cold War."

The war of words between Iran and Saudi Arabia is escalating in the media and on the ground after the launch of a ballistic missile from Yemen which hit near the airport in Riyadh.

"One presidential trip will not solve these problems, but President Trump can begin to set the stage for a more robust and effective U.S. approach."

"The stakes are highest, and the current dilemmas most acute, in Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Yemen and Jordan."

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Taliban bases in Pakistan pose a “big challenge” to efforts aimed at bringing peace and stability to Afghanistan.

"Top to bottom, the Army is changing the way it educates soldiers."

"In rebel-held Syria, access to the weapons you need to wage an insurgency are just a tap away thanks to an encrypted messaging app."

"Mattis called the European Center of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats that Finland established earlier this year 'an institution fit for our times'.”

"As the Islamic State group loses its remaining strongholds in Iraq and Syria, Defense Secretary Mattis is facing a growing chorus of questions from NATO allies."

“We’ve seen this movie before, and it doesn’t end well.”

“After the truck attack in Manhattan, there’s no excuse for a limited imagination when it comes to safer streets.”