The war in Ukraine is a complicated tangle of three wars in one. It is a civil war between Ukraine’s European leaning west and its Russian leaning east. It is a war between Ukraine and Russia. And it is a war between Russia and NATO. Ben Abelow’s book, How the West Brought War to Ukraine, … Continue reading “Richard Sakwa Explains How We Ended Up In a New Cold War”
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Who Lost the Peace Dividend After the End of the Cold War?
The end of the first Cold War in the late 80s gave Americans a unique historical chance to stop worrying about nuclear war and get a well-deserved Peace Dividend. Instead, not only they lost it, but the talk about the inevitable nuclear WW3 became a routine discussion subject in the government, public, and media circles. … Continue reading “Who Lost the Peace Dividend After the End of the Cold War?”
Remote Warfare and Expendable People
In war, people die for absurd reasons or often no reason at all. They die due to accidents of birth, the misfortune of being born in the wrong place — Cambodia or Gaza, Afghanistan or Ukraine — at the wrong time. They die due to happenstance, choosing to shelter indoors when they should have taken … Continue reading “Remote Warfare and Expendable People”
Europe Exposed: Is the EU a Direct Partner in the Israeli Genocide in Gaza?
Europe stayed silent when Israel began pounding the besieged Gaza Strip with the kind of ferocity that could only lead to a genocide. In fact, Europe remained silent when the word ‘genocide’ quickly replaced the earlier reference to the ‘Israel-Hamas war’, starting on October 7. Those familiar with Europe’s political discourse and action regarding Israel … Continue reading “Europe Exposed: Is the EU a Direct Partner in the Israeli Genocide in Gaza?”
USA Keeps Fighting for Iran
According to neoconservative theoreticians David Wurmser and Richard Perle, George W. Bush’s Iraq War II (supported by Senator Biden) was supposed to weaken Iran and Syria and therefore Hezbollah’s threat to Israel. Instead, the war empowered Iran as the U.S. put their best friends from the Hakim family’s Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq … Continue reading “USA Keeps Fighting for Iran”
Smearing Ceasefire Protesters, Pelosi Combines Devotion to Israel With Cold-War Mania
Sometimes there’s a thin line between vile demagoguery and pure idiocy. Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi straddled both during a Sunday appearance on CNN, when she smeared protesters who’ve been demanding a ceasefire to end Israel’s slaughter of Palestinian people in Gaza. “The former House speaker said, without offering evidence, that she believed some protesters are connected … Continue reading “Smearing Ceasefire Protesters, Pelosi Combines Devotion to Israel With Cold-War Mania”
Biden Doctrine: ‘If It’s Broke Don’t Fix It!’
Last week President Biden was asked by a reporter about US attacks on Yemen: Reporter: “Are the airstrikes in Yemen working?” Biden: “Well, when you say working, are they stopping the Houthis? No. Are they gonna continue? Yes.” The exchange perfectly defines the Biden Administration’s foreign policy: “Is our policy working? No. But keep it up, man!” … Continue reading “Biden Doctrine: ‘If It’s Broke Don’t Fix It!’”
Responding Is Not a Foreign Policy
On January 28, the event the U.S. had expected and long dreaded happened. Drones launched by what President Biden called “radical Iran-backed militant groups” struck a U.S. outpost in Jordan on the border with Iraq, killing three American service members and injuring 34 more. There have been more than 150 attacks by Iran-backed militias on … Continue reading “Responding Is Not a Foreign Policy”
Iraq Weekly Roundup: Nine Killed
US Military Projection in Latin America and the Caribbean Intensifies
Upon assuming the US presidency, Joe Biden asserted in his first major foreign policy address, “America is back!” For Latin America and the Caribbean, this has meant an “aggressive expansion” of the US military in the region. In just the last year, US Marines and special forces landed in Peru in May 2023, brought in … Continue reading “US Military Projection in Latin America and the Caribbean Intensifies”