United States and Canada

Cyber war on Iran may continue

By AFP

Alleged Canadian spy caused ‘massive security breach’ of shared Western intelligence

By Philip Dorling, the Sydney Morning Herald

From Philip Dorling, the Sydney Morning Herald:  An alleged Canadian spy compromised Australian intelligence information in an espionage case that has sent shock waves through Western security agencies.

How Obama lost Europe

By Mark Leonard, Foreign Policy

From Mark Leonard, Foreign Policy:  [President Barack] Obama’s stellar personal ratings in Europe hide the fact that the Western alliance has never loomed smaller in the imagination of policymakers on either side of the Atlantic.

Diplomat: Russia stopped Assad from using chemical weapons two weeks ago

By Samia Nakhoul, Reuters

From Samia Nakhoul, Reuters:  Increasingly under pressure by rebels intent on unseating him, Bashar al-Assad has considered using chemical weapons against his enemies but Washington and Moscow have formed an unlikely alliance to force him to abandon such plans.

U.S. to offer multinational command training for senior European officers

By Steven Beardsley, Stars and Stripes

From Steven Beardsley, Stars and Stripes:  After years of training Europe’s soldiers in on-the-ground tactics, U.S. Army Europe is focusing several echelons higher, training Europe’s senior leaders in the concepts of multinational command.

U.S. increasing efforts to block flow of weapons and oil from Iran to Syria

By Adam Entous, Julian E. Barnes, and Nour Malas, the Wall Street Journal

From Adam Entous, Julian E. Barnes, and Nour Malas, the Wall Street Journal:  The U.S. has been mounting a secret but limited effort to speed the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad without using force, scrambling spies and diplomats to block arms and oil shipments from Iran and passing intelligence to front-line allies.

Obama administration ‘ready to accelerate’ efforts to remove Assad

By Eric Schmitt and Helene Cooper, the New York Times

From Eric Schmitt and Helene Cooper, the New York Times:  The Obama administration has for now abandoned efforts for a diplomatic settlement to the conflict in Syria, and instead it is increasing aid to the rebels

Russian envoy: Missile defense ‘remains a stumbling block in our relations with the alliance’

By ITAR-TASS

From ITAR-TASS:   "The missile defence system in Europe remains a stumbling block in our relations with the alliance. Finding mutually acceptable solutions to this problem is still possible, although the window of opportunity has been shrinking steadily. We have offered NATO a variety of formulas for joint action in this area, but until now we […]

Clinton: ‘I don’t think any country believes that it should act unilaterally’ in Syria

By CBS News

From CBS News:  Excerpts from Secretary of State Hillary Clinton interview with Margaret Brennan