When the Soviet Union dissolved in late 1991, the world seemed poised for a new, more peaceful era no longer haunted by the fear of a nuclear Armageddon. The principal successor state from the wreckage of the USSR was a noncommunist Russia that was intent on becoming...
Will Trump End Washington’s Proxy War in Ukraine?
Donald Trump’s election as president is fueling speculation that he will terminate U.S. financial and logistical support for Ukraine’s war effort against Russia. Trump himself has contributed to that speculation during his June 28, 2024 debate with President Biden...
Trump, Harris, and the ‘Lesser of Two Evils’
A distressing number of my relatives, friends, and acquaintances have found themselves reduced to making a “choice” between the “lesser of two evils” in most elections. That ugly situation seems to be especially true regarding U.S. presidential elections, and the...
Kamala’s Growing Flock of GOP Hawks
An especially notable feature of the 2024 presidential campaign has been the number of prominent Republicans who have endorsed Democratic Party nominee Kamala Harris. The latest convert is former congressman Mickey Edwards, a 6-term representative from Oklahoma, who...
Pro-War Lobby Attacks Russian Influencers
In recent weeks, there has been a surge of allegations that Moscow has long orchestrated an illegal campaign to influence U.S. public opinion. On September 4, 2024, the Justice Department charged two Russian media executives with an alleged scheme that authorities say...
Washington Needlessly Entangles Its Small Allies
America’s founders were extremely worried that the Republic might become entangled in quarrels that were, or should be, irrelevant to America’s own security and well-being. Several prominent founders, including George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, emphasized that...
The Republican Establishment’s Sterile Foreign Policy Perspective
Those Americans who might hope that the growing public opposition to continuing U.S. aid to Ukraine might signal a wave of fresh thinking about foreign policy in the Republican party are likely to be disappointed. Most members of the establishment cling to the idea...
Ukraine’s Attacks on Freedom of Expression Continue
U.S. officials routinely portray Ukraine as a democratic ally and the symbol of an existential fight between freedom and authoritarianism. That simplistic portrayal has intensified since Russia launched its large-scale attack in February 2022. The reality is that...
US Must Accept Spheres of Influence To Preserve Peace
U.S. leaders once understood and accepted that strong powers would insist on a security zone and broad sphere of influence in their immediate geographic region. An especially persistent feature of international affairs has been the existence of spheres of influence....
NATO’s New Burden-Sharing Objectives
From its founding in 1949 until the start of NATO’s proxy war against Russia in 2022, the principal troublesome issue for the Alliance was Washington’s repeated calls for greater burden-sharing on the part of its allies. Discontent on Washington’s part emerged early...


