History has a way of reprising itself in parallel, if not precise leitmotifs — why else would we study it? The travesty of Kabul airport in 2021, a botched U.S. withdrawal that almost certainly emboldened Vladimir Putin and encouraged his invasion of Ukraine, is a modern reflection of the 1975 Saigon evacuation. Both …
A Warning About Ukraine in the Lessons of Vietnam Continue Reading >>
Nine days before Russian President Vladimir Putin began his war of conquest in Ukraine, Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited Moscow. He summed up his meetings by repeating a phrase made famous by Egon Bahr, West Germany’s emissary to Moscow in the 1970s: “Without Russia, a peace order in Europe is not possible.” This line …
A Year after Germany’s “Sea Change,” Policy Change Remains Elusive Continue Reading >>
China’s so-called peace proposal in Ukraine demonstrates the degree to which Beijing and Moscow remain in full coordination. When combined with China’s possible arms transfers to Russia, and recent revelations of Chinese surveillance overflights within U.S. airspace, it becomes apparent that China believes the current war advances its interests — that is, that …
China’s ‘Peace Plan’ for Ukraine is a Trojan Horse for Beijing and Moscow Continue Reading >>
After seven months of ferocious combat, Bakhmut’s fall finally appears imminent. The city is strategically consequential. However, the predictable post-combat deluge of Western hand-wringing, alongside Russian propaganda, misses the actual combat dynamics of the war. Western audiences would do well to remember that this war remains one of movement, not of …
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference earlier this month, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz summarized his country’s approach to the war in Ukraine. “Despite all the pressure to take action,” he said, “caution must take priority over hasty decisions, unity over solo actions.” The line provided Scholz’s most explicit defense …
After Russia’s full-scale February 24th invasion of Ukraine, those sympathetic to the defenders began using Ukrainian names and pronunciations, ending the common Russian nomenclature. The long overdue shift is important because language is political. Commendable progress has been made, but as we approach the one-year mark of Russia’s intensified aggression, several other issues of …
Any peace in the Ukraine war that allows a future resumption of Russian aggression is worthless. Diplomacy, economics, and most important, military provisions should constrain Russia from embarking on another campaign of grinding brutality. We must think ahead. The potential transfer of 100 MQ-9 Reapers from American storage to Ukraine, …
After months of wrangling, Ukraine’s Western partners have finally made the reasonable choice and dispatched NATO-standard tanks to Kyiv’s forces. Yet the shadows of doubt cloud this success. The U.S. will not transport Abrams tanks from its stockpiles to Ukraine. Instead, it will order another 30-plus tanks directly from General …
Supplying an attacking and defending force has been an issue since the decade-long Trojan War. In more than 3,000 years, this has not changed. The U.S. continues to benefit from unrestricted resupply access in the Ukraine War. However, future Eurasian conflicts will not resemble Ukraine. The U.S. requires the capabilities …
