Category: Blogs

Rasmussen: NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan could be speeded up

By Ian Traynor, Guardian

From Ian Traynor, Guardian:  The retreat of western forces from Afghanistan could come sooner than expected, the head of Nato has said as he conceded that the recent Taliban strategy of "green on blue" killings had been successful in sapping morale. In an interview with the Guardian Nato’s secretary-general, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, responded to pressure […]

Russia tells NATO to stay away from Syria

By Gabriela Baczynska, Reuters

From Gabriela Baczynska, Reuters:  Russia told NATO and world powers on Tuesday they should not seek ways to intervene in Syria’s civil war or set up buffer zones between rebels and government forces. Moscow further called for restraint between NATO-member Turkey and Syria, where violence along their shared border has strained relations between the former […]

Top News: Gheriany Says Constituent Assembly to Complete Draft in November

By Egypt Source

The head of the Constituent Assembly said Monday that the body would complete a draft of the new constitution in early or mid-November, adding that if a court dissolves it before then, the next assembly could use its work as a starting point. 

Will France impede NATO’s Smart Defense Initiative?

By Leo Michel, New Atlanticist

From Leo Michel, New Atlanticist:  Is “smart defense”—NATO’s effort to promote greater cooperation among the allies in military capabilities and training— a “Trojan Horse” at the service of the “war machine of the American defense industry?”

European navies can support U.S. strategic rebalance

By Michael Hannan, Armed Forces Journal

From Michael Hannan, Armed Forces Journal:  The U.S. admires certain nations for their willingness to be involved in crises and contingency operations, but we rarely challenge them to lead.

White House confirms cyberattack

By Tim Mak, Politico

From Tim Mak, Politico:  The White House confirmed but sought to downplay a report by a conservative website on Sunday that it had been the victim of a cyberattack, volunteering to POLITICO that no harm had been done. The Washington Free Beacon reported that Chinese hackers had attacked a computer system in the White House […]

Who Is Really Leading the EU?

By Ulrike Guérot, World Politics Review

From Ulrike Guérot, World Politics Review:  Throughout the European Union’s sovereign debt crisis, the conventional wisdom has portrayed Germany as leading the EU, in particular by imposing its economic policy preferences on the eurozone.

The US Needs to Discuss Implications of Iran War

By Fallon Hagel Hamilton Pickering and Zinni

War with Iran is not inevitable, but U.S. national security would be seriously threatened by a nuclear-armed Iran. Particularly given the recent speeches at the U.N. General Assembly, military action is being discussed intensely. Public discussion of military action, however, is often reduced to rhetoric and partisan politics. We propose a nonpartisan, reasoned debate about […]

Women: Another Casualty of Egypt’s Draft Constitution

By Nancy Messieh

Punching Above Their Weight

By Michael Hannan

The U.S. admires certain nations for their willingness to be involved in crises and contingency operations, but we rarely challenge them to lead. We must change this — by helping carefully selected nations to improve their ability to participate in and ultimately take charge of regional security efforts, and by championing them as fuller partners […]