Global Hotspots

Trump Has Just Raised the Stakes With Moscow and Tehran in Three Risky Moves

By Patrick Smith

President Trump made three big moves on Syria and Iran this week. They crisscross and contradict one another, but the administration’s game plan in the Middle East just got a lot clearer.
Here’s the Enormous Economic Leverage China Has Over North Korea

By Greg Wright, The Conversation

North Korea got the world’s attention – and President Donald Trump’s – when it said on July 4 that it had successfully launched an intercontinental ballistic missile for the first time. The weapon,...
Trump’s Fly-by-Night Mideast ‘Policy’ Embraces the Saudi’s New Crown Prince

By Patrick Smith

It’s not likely that President Trump knew what he was getting into when he embraced the Saudis as the rightful leaders of the Islamic world and the war on terror during his visit to Riyadh last month...
Russia’s Top Troll Strikes Again: Putin Offers Comey Political Asylum

By Rob Garver

While much of the world looks at the turmoil in Washington, DC with apprehension and dread, at least somebody watching the expanding investigation of President Trump and his associates is enjoying...
Here’s How the US Could Cripple North Korea’s Economy

By Rob Garver

Punishing North Korea economically for its misdeeds may be simpler than many believe, according to a new report from a Washington non-profit.

Time for Trump to Face It: From Now on, Every Week Is ‘Russia Week’

By Rob Garver

The Trump administration’s efforts to keep Russian interference in last year’s election out of the headlines are being overwhelmed by events, as another week ostensibly dedicated to a different issue...
Putin’s Just Trolling the World Now on Trump and the US Election

By Rob Garver

Russian President Vladimir Putin conceded for the first time that perhaps computer hackers from his country actually had worked to undermine Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election.
Here’s One Credible Reason to Doubt the Russia-Kushner Story

By Rob Garver

Following the Washington Post report on Friday that top White House adviser Jared Kushner had approached the Russian ambassador to the US about opening a secret line of communications between Moscow...
How Trump Really Could Make a Difference in the Middle East

By Liz Peek

Two presidents, two trips to the Middle East in their first year in office. That is where the similarities end. I was in Cairo for President Obama’s much-celebrated speech in 2009 as a guest of...
Trump the Diplomat? Will He Charm or Harm US Relations?

By Patrick Smith

Whoever put together President Trump’s first foreign tour has a good grasp of the grand gesture. When he departs Friday, his main stops are Saudi Arabia, Israel, and the Vatican, making Trump the...

Obama to Announce Withdrawal of 34,000 Troops from Aghanistan

By Reuters

President Barack Obama will announce in his State of the Union address on Tuesday that 34,000 troops – about half the U.S. force in Afghanistan – will return by early 2014, a senior administration...
China's Provocative Blunder in the Pacific

By Patrick Smith

China is now making East Asia as unsafe as it possibly can. Tokyo and Beijing are not that far from blows over a few forsaken rocks in the East China Sea. Is Beijing behaving badly because it wants...
Death by Drones: Are They Worth the Cost?

By David Francis

The Obama administration’s policy to target Americans with drones has the left crying foul. Are drones worth the cost, strategically, morally and financially?
Hagel’s Neo-Liberal Views Irk GOP Traditionalists

By Maureen Mackey, The Fiscal Times

As far back as the mid-1990s, Republican Senator John McCain --Vietnam War hero, established himself as a top GOP spokesman on issues of national security. He staked his claim as a soldier who had...
Pentagon Sent to Budget Boot Camp to Cut 8 Percent

By David Francis

With deep sequestration cuts coming, the Pentagon faces a new reality where the endless supply of cash is no more.

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