Blogs

August: the most dangerous month?

Arguably, August is in the finals as potentially the most dangerous month of the year.  On August 4th a century ago, Britain went to war to honor an 1839 treaty immediately after the Kaiser’s army invaded that Belgium.  Fifty years ago, on the same date in 1964 (following an attack by North Vietnamese torpedo boats on a U.S. Navy destroyer two days before), a second incident occurred in the Tonkin Gulf.  Two Navy destroyers radioed that both were under torpedo attack.  No such attack took place.  But the incident was enough for the U.S. Congress to pass the Tonkin Gulf Resolution that began a decade of war in Vietnam, the [...]

By |2017-11-14T21:28:08+02:00August 19th, 2014|Blogs, Global Governance, Harlan Ullman., International Peace, & Security, Issues|0 Comments
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Peace, prosperity and stability through partnerships: a grand design for a 21st century strategic mindset

Most American presidents, from George Washington to George W. Bush, have been accused of and attacked for having the wrong strategy.  Of post-World War II presidents, Barack Obama has perhaps been most assailed for having no strategy.  His seeming reluctance to take a stand and stand up for it under pressure has likewise drawn harsh criticism. Leading from behind in Libya; demanding that Syrian President Bashar al Assad leave office; and drawing “red lines” to deter Assad’s use of chemical weapons are evidence used in the court of public opinion to prove presidential lack of spine.  But the world is a complicated and violent place.  Washington, Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt [...]

By |2017-11-14T21:28:09+02:00August 19th, 2014|America, Blogs, Global Governance, Harlan Ullman., Issues, Regions|0 Comments
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The great war redux

July 28th marks the centenary of the start of World War I---also known as the “Great War” and tragically and wrongly described by President Woodrow Wilson as the “war to end all wars.”  That war was neither great nor the end of war.  About eight million soldiers on all sides were killed and at least an equal number of civilians perished---many through disease and starvation. Last week, London’s Royal United Services Institute (RUSI---founded in 1831 by the Duke of Wellington as a permanent institution to study and analyze war) hosted a one-day conference on World War I.  The lens was the Western front focusing on British, French and German strategies [...]

By |2017-11-14T21:28:09+02:00July 23rd, 2014|Blogs, Democracy & Human Rights, Harlan Ullman., International Peace, & Security, Issues|0 Comments
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President Obama’s greatest (and possibly fatal) flaws

President Barack Obama and his administration are taking heavy fire over accusations of failing to lead in foreign policy.  Whether in Washington or global capitals, the White House is being vigorously condemned and chastised for indecision and for abdicating America’s role as the so-called indispensible power.   “Leading from behind” in Libya, failing to act after setting a “red line” in Syria over the use of chemical weapons, allowing Vladimir Putin free reign in annexing Crimea and dealing with civil war in Iraq are among the arguments citing Obama’s indecisiveness and ineffectiveness.  The result has been a perceived diminution of American power and influence and of Washington’s authority to command [...]

By |2017-11-14T21:28:09+02:00July 17th, 2014|America, Blogs, Harlan Ullman., Regions, Studies and Analysis|0 Comments
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The longest day and our finest hour

Two days hence marks the 70th anniversary of Operation Overlord (Neptune for the naval portion) and the Normandy invasion. Supreme Allied Commander U.S. General Dwight David Eisenhower’s orders were to occupy Europe and destroy the Nazi war machine.  D-Day marked the start of Ike’s crusade in Europe   Standing atop the Ponte du Hoc heights overlooking Omaha Beach where the U.S. Rangers valiantly assaulted German defenses was always more telling for me than visiting great battlefields from Yorktown to Waterloo and Agincourt.  Perhaps because World War II was as close as any conflict in history matching good against absolute evil, Normandy epitomized the ultimate allied victory in smashing the fiendish [...]

By |2017-11-14T21:28:09+02:00July 17th, 2014|Blogs, Democracy & Human Rights, Harlan Ullman., International Peace, & Security, Issues, Studies and Analysis|0 Comments
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