Conn Hallinan

Conn Hallinan writes for Foreign Policy in Focus.

Cyber War: Reality or Hype?

During his confirmation hearings this past June, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta warned the Senate, "The next Pearl Harbor we confront could very well be a cyber attack that cripples our grid, our security systems, our financial systems, our governmental systems." The use of Pearl Harbor provided powerful imagery: a mighty fleet reduced to smoking ruin, an … Continue reading “Cyber War: Reality or Hype?”

The Price of the Libya Intervention: Surface to Air Missiles for All

"In 1979, when Soviet troops swept into Afghanistan, an angry Jimmy Carter organized an unofficial alliance to give the Soviets ‘their Vietnam’ (which Afghanistan became)." — New York Times, 11/9/11 The writer of the above paragraph is Marvin Kalb, a former network correspondent, Harvard professor emeritus, co-author "Haunting Legacy: Vietnam and the American Presidency from Ford … Continue reading “The Price of the Libya Intervention: Surface to Air Missiles for All”

Light at End of Afghan Tunnel Recedes

“Now we can see [success in Vietnam] clearly, like the light at the end of a tunnel.” – Gen. Henri Navarre, commander French forces in Vietnam, May 20, 1953 “A new phase is starting … we have reached an important point when the end begins to come into view … there is a light at … Continue reading “Light at End of Afghan Tunnel Recedes”

Shadow Warriors: Movin’ On Up

For decades the U.S. military has waged clandestine war on virtually every continent on the globe, but for the first time, high-ranking Special Operations Forces (SOF) officers are moving out of the shadows and into the command mainstream. Their emergence suggests the U.S. is embarking on a military sea change that will replace massive deployments, … Continue reading “Shadow Warriors: Movin’ On Up”

The New Face of War

The assassination of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden did more than knock off U.S. Public Enemy Number One. It formalized a new kind of warfare, where sovereignty is irrelevant, armies tangential, and decisions are secret. It is, in the words of counterinsurgency expert John Nagl, “an astounding change in the nature of warfare.” This type … Continue reading “The New Face of War”