Doug Bandow

Why is everyone being so mean to Saudi Arabia? No doubt, the poor, beleaguered, misunderstood royals ask that question as they busy themselves squandering people’s wealth, imprisoning critics, attacking impoverished neighbors, and spreading Islamic fundamentalism. Life can be so unfair. Indeed, it is a travesty that even the Saudis’ supposed friends are critical. Only someone … Continue reading “Saudi Arabia Sets Global Standard for Tyranny, but Asks: Why Is Washington Picking on the Kingdom?”

Opposing war is a lonely task in Washington, D.C. Possessing the world’s largest and most powerful military encourages US administrations to use it. And use it they do – often. This attitude was captured by Madeleine Albright, then America’s UN ambassador, when she accosted Gen. Colin Powell: "What’s the point of having this superb military … Continue reading “Washington Should Put the American People First: No One Has the Right To Be a US Ally”

Joe Biden last week gave his maiden foreign policy speech as president. There was a stunning omission: No mention of Afghanistan. The Trump administration’s agreement with the Taliban provides for the withdrawal of U.S. troops by May 1. Is the president prepared to violate this pact even as he prepares to reenter the Joint Comprehensive … Continue reading “Is President Biden Going To Get Out of Afghanistan?”

Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced what is likely to be just the first reversal of many Trump administration policies, in this case Washington’s slavish subservience to the Saudi royal family. Indeed, Blinken’s immediate predecessor, Mike Pompeo, ended his disreputable tenure with a final, and highly dishonest, gift to Riyadh: designating Saudi Arabia’s Yemeni opponents … Continue reading “Biden Administration Ends US Involvement in War Against Yemen”

President Joe Biden dropped by the State Department yesterday to praise the State Department and promote his views. The president offered a little bit of everything, a complex mix of the good, the bad, and the ugly. Good was the return of essential decency to American policy. Biden does not hate immigrants, despise visitors, and … Continue reading “President Joe Biden Speaks on Foreign Policy: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly”

Dictators are supposed to be clever, smart, and effective. Otherwise, how could they rule over millions of people? Yet Vladimir Putin recently demonstrated the opposite. Rather than sweeping away all opposition, his factotums exhibited serial incompetence, failing to kill Alexie Navalny and then confessing their efforts. Next they arrested Navalny on his return to Russia, … Continue reading “Everybody Wants Action on Putin and Russia: But To Do What?”

Foreign policy tends to be complicated and messy. International issues create an explosive imbroglio mixing economic, political, and security controversies. Human rights upsets almost every calculation since America’s friends can be even crueler than its foes. The Trump administration cared not at all about humanitarian issues. Political prisoners were only convenient weapons, useful against adversaries … Continue reading “When Hawks Advocate a Human Rights-Oriented Foreign Policy, You Know It Isn’t About Human Rights”

One of Washington’s most dubious military commitments is the Persian Gulf. Concerned about the West’s heavy reliance on oil and Israel’s security, successive administrations turned the Middle East into a potential American war zone beginning in the 1970s. A half century later the case for U.S. involvement has dissipated. Rather than make Americans safe and … Continue reading “Time for the US To Stop Worrying About the Persian Gulf”

The Beer Belly Putsch, as the January 6 takeover of the Capitol has been called, created shock waves across the nation’s capital and around the world. It was never as serious as some observers suggested: the president had no coup plan and most of the ragtag protesters appeared to be little more than accidental tourists, … Continue reading “America Adrift and Aflame: Fix the US Before the World”

Jake Sullivan, President Joe Biden’s newly appointed National Security Adviser, began issuing orders to Russia two days before his installation. Sullivan urged Moscow to release Alexei Navalny, the opposition leader arrested on his return to Russia on Sunday. Insisted Sullivan: "The Kremlin’s attacks on Mr. Navalny are not just a violation of human rights, but … Continue reading “As Joe Biden Takes Over, Washington Is in Desperate Need of a Little Foreign Policy Humility”