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Commanders Series

Apr 23, 2012

Fighting and Rebuilding in Helmand and Nimruz Provinces Revisited: A Commander’s View

By Jason Harmala

The commander of International Security Assistance Force, Regional Command Southwest (RC-SW), Major General John A. Toolan Jr., joined the Atlantic Council on April 23 for a conversation moderated by Barry Pavel, director of the Council’s Program on International Security.

Afghanistan International Security Assistance Force

New Atlanticist

Apr 19, 2012

Lost in Space: NASA’s Sixty-three Million Dollar Russian Taxi Rides

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

The Space Shuttle Discovery flying piggyback on a Boeing 747 for its “Last Hurrah” flight around the Washington Monument and the White House was a grim reminder of misplaced and misspent priorities. The storied 30-year space shuttle program, which began with the launch of Columbia, April 12, 1981, ended last July, when Atlantis landed back […]

Afghanistan

New Atlanticist

Apr 18, 2012

The Kabul Blame Game

By Derek Reveron

Last weekend’s attacks in Afghanistan demonstrates that the Haqqani Network remains committed to conducting attacks, Afghan security forces are effective, and blame game politics are alive and well. Consider President Karzai’s statement: “The fact terrorists were able to enter Kabul and other provinces was an intelligence failure for us and especially for NATO.” In retort, […]

Afghanistan NATO

New Atlanticist

Apr 17, 2012

Siachen: Ten Questions

By Maleeha Lodhi

It was in April twenty-eight years ago that the seeds of the Siachen conflict were sown. This April nature struck a cruel blow when an avalanche hit the area, burying 139 Pakistani soldiers and civilian workers. The tragedy is a poignant reminder of the need to settle a long-standing, costly dispute. Because facts have been […]

India Pakistan

New Atlanticist

Apr 17, 2012

Demilitarization of the Siachen Conflict Zone: Challenges and Prospects

By Gurmeet Kanwal

The death of 124 Pakistani soldiers and 14 civilians in an avalanche in the Siachen conflict zone has once again brought to the fore the dangers of the continued deployment by India and Pakistan to safeguard the Actual Ground Position Line, despite the fact that an informal cease-fire has been holding up quite well since […]

Pakistan

New Atlanticist

Apr 16, 2012

Cheapening NATO’s Security Promise Weakens It

By James Joyner

After an incident last week in which two Syrians were killed by Assad regime forces while attempting to flee to safety in Turkey, Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan declared that “NATO has a responsibility to protect Turkish borders.”

Afghanistan NATO

New Atlanticist

Apr 13, 2012

Loose Lips Sink Ships

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

The U.S. high command in Afghanistan has evidently decided to inform Taliban chieftain Mullah Omar of military action plans before U.S. and allied forces leave in 2014 — if not sooner.

Afghanistan Pakistan

New Atlanticist

Apr 11, 2012

Will We Need NATO After Afghanistan?

By Stanley Sloan

Despite the Obama administration’s re-focusing US security commitments on Asia, we will need NATO after Afghanistan. Some historical perspective might help.  When the Clinton Administration took office, it, too, sought to reorient American foreign policy toward Asia.  It was the economy, stupid, and the future of American economic interests was to be found on the […]

Afghanistan NATO

New Atlanticist

Apr 5, 2012

Who Will Bear the Cost of NATO’s Exit from Afghanistan? Ask Afghan Women

By Ahmad Waheed Andrea Barbara Baumann and Geety Samadi

In the run-up to NATO’s 2012 Chicago summit, Alliance members look ever more determined to leave Afghanistan sooner rather than later. In spite of the flurry of media reports, recent security incidents involving members of both the Afghan and the American security forces can be considered tragic exceptions. They nevertheless fuel the argument that little […]

Afghanistan NATO

New Atlanticist

Mar 27, 2012

Modern Military Atrocity: The Case of Robert Bales

By Don Snow

The alleged rampage of Staff Sergeant Robert Bales in an Afghan village that ended with 17 dead Afghan civilians has caught the public attention because the acts attributed to the 38-year-old father of two were so brutal, ghastly, and repulsive. They are a textbook case of war crimes–more specifically crimes against humanity–and are, as such […]

Afghanistan

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