News & commentary by Dave Maxwell. Edited and published by Ahyoung Shin.
1. Critics, allies wonder what Trump's trying to achieve with troop cuts
2. Trump is right to withdraw troops from Germany - as long as he sends them east
3. Trump administration says it won't carry out a nuclear weapons test 'at this time'
4. Trump's national security adviser lays out stinging critique of threat posed by China
5. The tide is turning toward trusted 5G vendors
6. Japan to consider strike capability to replace missile defence system
7. White supremacist terrorism 'on the rise and spreading,' State Dept. says in new report
8. Is the US ready for the rising tide of mercenaries?
9. 'Coming back and biting us': US sees virus resurgence
10. Pompeo says China's Africa lending creates unsustainable debt burdens
11. Trump confirms plan to slash U.S. troop presence in Germany; some 'probably' will relocate to Poland
12. Army special forces conducting 15-day training in northern Taiwan
13. The growing White supremacist menace- COVID-19 has been a boon for far-right extremists
14. ROC(K) solid preparedness: Resistance operations concept in the shadow of Russia
15. Congress wants to know SOCOM's plan to counter new threats, Reform command culture
16. A brief history of Antifa: Part II
17. Reimagining policing in America-A Complete Institutional Overhaul
18. No such thing as a perfect partner: The Challenges of "By, With, and Through"
1. Critics, allies wonder what Trump's trying to achieve with troop cuts
defenseone.com · by Katie Bo Williams
Concur. What effect are we trying to achieve? Inquiring minds want to know.
Is "punishing an ally" more important than protecting our national interests and preserving strategic flexibility and agility that our forward bases and forward stationed forces provide?
I would argue that the proposed withdrawal is in contravention to the national Security Strategy and National Defense Strategy. A repositioning of some troops to Poland would be in keeping with the strategies but bringing forward stationed troops back to CONUS is not in accordance with our strategies.
2. Trump is right to withdraw troops from Germany - as long as he sends them east
The Washington Post · by Marc A. Thiessen · June 24, 2020
Another view.
3. Trump administration says it won't carry out a nuclear weapons test 'at this time'
CNN · by Kylie Atwood
Cooler heads prevail?
4. Trump's national security adviser lays out stinging critique of threat posed by China
washingtontimes.com · by Bill Gertz
A lay down of the NSA's analysis of the Chinese threat. But I think we overlook his concluding statement which I think need to be emphasized and succinctly sums up the issues. He says we want good relations with China but on the current terms that China offers.
Here is my summary assessment of China:
China seeks to export its authoritarian political system around the world in order to dominate regions, co-opt or coerce international organizations, create economic conditions favorable to China alone, and displace democratic institutions.
We see this play out in China's concepts of Unrestricted Warfare and China's three warfares of psychological warfare, legal warfare or lawfare, and media or public opinion warfare. Along with selected hybrid military activities these combine to form a Chinese concept of political warfare.
5. The tide is turning toward trusted 5G vendors
state.gov · by Michael R. Pompeo, Secretary of State · June 24, 2020
6. Japan to consider strike capability to replace missile defence system
reuters · by Tim Kelly
Maybe Japan could partner with South Korea on its Kill Chain missile defense concept. (Note sarcasm though I wish there could be that kind of collaboration).
7. White supremacist terrorism 'on the rise and spreading,' State Dept. says in new report
ABCNews.com · by Conor Finnegan · June 24, 2020
8. Is the US ready for the rising tide of mercenaries?
pri.org · by Laicie Heeley
It is a brave new world. Who should have a monopoly on violence?
Sean McFate is one of the leading researchers and experts on Private Military Corporations.
9. 'Coming back and biting us': US sees virus resurgence
AP · by NICK PERRY and KEN MORITSUGU · June 24, 2020
We are in for some tough times ahead I am afraid. Practical, proven, public health procedures versus the anti-science tribe.
10. Pompeo says China's Africa lending creates unsustainable debt burdens
reuters · June 24, 2020
China’s debt trap strategy?
11. Trump confirms plan to slash U.S. troop presence in Germany; some 'probably' will relocate to Poland
The Washington Post · by Anne Gearan · June 24, 2020
Yes, US Troops in Poland probably makes sense (I will leave that to the experts on the European Theater). A fundamental question for me is do we have better strategic flexibility and agility with more forces stationed in CONUS with less overseas forward presence and access to bases? What is the best way to distribute and apportion forces to best support US national security?
12. Army special forces conducting 15-day training in northern Taiwan
focustaiwan.tw · June 21, 2020
It is good to see Taiwan emphasizing its Special Forces. As I have mentioned I would love to see a new US Special Forces Detachment Taiwan as we had in the 1950/1960s.
And one of the things I would focus on is developing a Taiwanese Resistance Operating Concept along the lines of the one developed in Europe (https://ndupress.ndu.edu/Media/News/News-Article-View/Article/2217669/rock-solid-preparedness-resistance-operations-concept-in-the-shadow-of-russia/). It would not only have practical application in an invasion by the PLA, it could play a role in "unconventional deterrence" which would be better than having a war. (See Robert Jones' article here: https://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/deterring-competition-short-war-are-gray-zones-ardennes-our-modern-maginot-line). If an invading force/occupier believes the population cannot be pacified it might deter an invasion.
Of course, this reporting may be the Taiwanese information operations effort to support unconventional deterrence.
13. The growing White supremacist menace- COVID-19 has been a boon for far-right extremists
Foreign Affairs · by Rebecca Ulam Weiner · June 23, 2020
More food for thought.
14. ROC(K) solid preparedness: Resistance operations concept in the shadow of Russia
ndupress.ndu.edu · June 11, 2020
This concept should be studied and considered for implementation in certain countries around the world that are threatened with potential invasion. Of course, the concept must be adapted for the unique conditions in each country and region.
There is also another threat that requires resistance and that is the cyber threat. A country might not face the threat of physical invasion, but it can be threatened and undermined through cyber operations. We have to learn how to defend ourselves and our nations in cyber space.
I have given this some thought to "cyber resistanc" here: https://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/the-cyber-underground-%E2%80%93-resistance-to-active-measures-and-propaganda-%E2%80%9Cthe-disruptors%E2%80%9D-mot-0.
15. Congress wants to know SOCOM's plan to counter new threats, Reform command culture
airforcemag.com · by Alyk Russell Kenlan · June 23, 2020
Interesting title and text. The discussion is on command culture, not SOF culture. Is that a subtle message?
16. A brief history of Antifa: Part II
gatestoneinstitute.org · by Soeren Kern · June 23, 2020
And another view on antifa.
17. Reimagining policing in America-A Complete Institutional Overhaul
smallwarsjournal · by Lieutenant Colonel Lemar Farhad · June 25, 2020
A new concept to train, develop, supervise, improve, and monitor our police officers. Although the authors using military concepts this is not about militarization of police.
18. No such thing as a perfect partner: The Challenges of "By, With, and Through"
ndupress.ndu.edu · June 11, 2020
"Through, with, and by" has become one of the most overused and perhaps misused terms. We should remember where it came from and how it was meant to be applied by COL Mark Boyatt who actually coined the term in 1994-1995. (See his book Special Forces: A Unique National Asset "through, with and by" https://www.amazon.com/Special-Forces-Unique-National-through/dp/1478770821)
COL Boyatt coined the term to describe one of the fundamental operational methods of Special Forces in particular in the execution of the unconventional warfare mission.
Yes, there are no perfect partners (which of course has to include ourselves as American partners - we are far from perfect). But despite the "imperfectness" of all partners there are ways to ensure we can work together to achieve mutual objectives. Here are two points that I think should be emphasized: https://maxoki161.blogspot.com/2018/07/eight-points-of-special-warfare.html
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"It is customary in democratic countries to deplore expenditure on armaments as conflicting with the requirements of the social services. There is a tendency to forget that the most important social service that a government can do for its people is to keep them alive and free."
- John Cotesworth Slessor, 1897-1979, British Air Force Marshall
"What a society gets in its armed forces is exactly what it asks for, no more and no less. What it asks for tends to be a reflection of what it is. When a country looks at its fighting forces it is looking at a mirror: if the mirror is a true one the face that it sees will be its own."
- General Sir John Hackett, The Profession of Arms
"A generation which ignores history has no past and no future."
- Robert Heinlein
"History is the witness that testifies to the passing of time; it illuminates reality, vitalizes memory, provides guidance in daily life and brings us tidings of antiquity."
- Cicero
"History is a vast early warning system."
- Norman Cousins