On Feb. 25, 2014 — two bloody years ago if you live in eastern Ukraine — Vladimir Putin’s Russia invaded Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula. Since then, the Kremlin has cleverly pursued its “creeping war of aggression” and its death toll — Russian and Ukrainian alike — continues to mount. Ukraine gets the worst of it, suffering […]
Austin Bay
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South Korea learns a difficult lesson
The latest closure of the jointly-administered South Korea-North Korea Kaesong Industrial Region illustrates the limitations of over-reliance on “soft power” — in this case, Seoul’s well-intentioned economic and diplomatic power — when confronting a vicious dictatorship that relies on “hard power” military might and terror for survival and prestige. That describes the North Korean regime […]
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African leaders push for third terms
In late December 2015, Rwandan President Paul Kagame confirmed that he will seek a third presidential term. In doing so, Kagame became the latest member of sub-Saharan Africa’s “Third Term President Club.” If this notional “club” sounds like a joke, it is not. The “Club” represents the near-permanent retention of personal and near-authoritarian political power. […]
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Japan losing patience with N. Korea
North Korea’s nuclear extortion drama, the repeated threat of nuclear attack followed by demands for food and financial aid, has exhausted South Korean and Japanese diplomatic patience. Last year, Japan indicated that North Korea should expect more than expressions of anger the next time it put a ballistic missile on a launch pad in preparation […]
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S. Sudan’s president undermines peace deal
South Sudan’s civil war began on the night of December 15, 2013, when a firefight erupted between soldiers serving in the presidential garrison in the capital city, Juba. “Between” is an important word. The battle pitted soldiers from the Dinka tribe (largest in South Sudan) against soldiers in the Nuer tribe (second largest). The government, […]
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Desert Storm showcased U.S. military power
Twenty-five years ago this week, in the early hours of January 17, 1991, the remarkable Persian Gulf War political coalition assembled, and led by U.S. President George H.W. Bush, moved “from Shield to Storm.” The “Shield” was Operation Desert Shield, code name for the hastily organized political and military response to Saddam Hussein’s August 2, […]
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Peace getting more difficult to find
President Barack Obama has a penchant for declaring peace. For example, his second inaugural, delivered in Jan. 2013: “A decade of war is now ending,” he said. “An economic recovery has begun.” That speech echoed remarks he made on Jan. 5, 2012. Prepping for the presidential election, the president asserted, “Even as our troops continue […]
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The aftermath of al-Nimr’s execution
Saudi Arabia’s Jan. 2 execution of Shiite cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr ignited a diplomatic battle with Iran. The Saudis hoped it would. Iran’s attack on the Saudi embassy in Tehran generated global headlines and reminded Americans of revolutionary Iran’s 1979 seizure of the U.S. embassy. Now the Saudis have a chance to spotlight Iran’s increasingly […]
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Bergdahl must face military justice
U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl will stand trial on charges of desertion and misbehavior before the enemy. U.S. Army Gen. Robert Abrams’ decision to try Bergdahl on these serious charges has raised a media firestorm. That is understandable for two reasons. Military law is not just a disciplinary constraint but also a tool in preparing […]
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U.S. Muslims can help fight terrorism
The old proverb speaks to the difficulty of finding the rare and concealed amid the normal and visibly numerous: Within the haystack, the needle hides. The terrorist couple who murdered 14 people in San Bernardino, California, were radical religious murderers hiding among loyal, law-abiding Americans. Forget the needle. Tashfeen Malik and her husband, Syed Rizwan […]