The Unstoppable Force vs. The Immovable Object — Noah Feldman, Foreign Policy Could the United States really go to war with China? Are we on the brink of a new Cold War? The question isn’t as outlandish as it seemed only a few years ago. The United States is still the sole reigning superpower, but it is being challenged by the rising power of China, just as ancient Rome was challenged by Carthage, and Britain was challenged by Germany in the years before World War I. Should we therefore think of the United States and China as we once did about the United States and the Soviet Union, two gladiators doomed to an increasingly globalized combat until one side fades? Or are we entering a new period of diversified global economic cooperation in which the very idea of old-fashioned imperial power politics has become obsolete? Should we see the United States and China as more like France and Germany after World War II, adversaries wise enough to draw together in an increasingly close circle of cooperation that subsumes neighbors and substitutes economic exchange for geopolitical confrontation? Read more …. My Comment : To begin …. I doubt very much that we will ever see such a conflict in our lifetime. But if such a possibility does rear it’s ugly head …. in today’s climate I doubt very much that the U.S. would go to war against China. There is zero political will in Washington to even fathom such a possibility. On the flip side …. I cannot same about the Chinese …. and this is my biggest worry.
Capt. Richard Koll, left, and Airman First Class Mike Eulo monitored a drone aircraft after launching it in Iraq. U.S. Air Force/Master Sgt. Steve Horton Drone Strikes: A Candid, Chilling Conversation With Top U.S. Drone Pilot — David Wood, Huffington P ost He always watches for the kids. Peering through cameras and sensors from his computer station thousands of miles away, he absorbs the details of daily life in the villages below. He develops an eerie intimacy with his targets. Which house these kids belong to. When that mom goes out to market. Who visits and why. He tries to ensure innocents are nowhere near. Then he yells “Rifle!” and fires the missile, watching until “Splash,” the detonation of the missile warhead. Until the last few seconds, if kids suddenly do appear, he can yank the missile away. Bill “Sweet” Tart is a drone pilot, one of the most experienced in the U.S. military. A decorated Air Force colonel, he sat down for a frank chat with The Huffington Post’s David Wood, providing a rare glimpse into the secretive U.S. drone wars. Read more …. My Comment: A fascinating read for those who are interested in drones.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. © RIA Novosti. Mikhail Mokrushin Russia ‘Does Not Understand’ Uproar Over Syria Arms Sales — The Telegraph Russia’s foreign minister has said he did not understand the international uproar created by Moscow’s continuing weapons cooperation with regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. “I do not understand why the media is trying to create a sensation out of this,” said Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. “We have not hidden that we supply weapons to Syria under signed contracts, without violating any international agreements, or our own legislation.” Lavrov said during a joint press appearance in Sochi with visiting UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon that Russia only supplied defence weapons that could not alter the outcome of the 26-month conflict between Assad’s forces and the opposition. “We are first and foremost supplying defence weapons related to air defence,” Lavrov said in televised comments. Read more …. More News On Syrian Arms Sales To Syria Report: Russia sends advanced missiles to Syria, signaling commitment to Assad — Haaretz Russia Sends More Advanced Missiles to Aid Assad in Syria — New York Times Syria crisis: Russia ‘sends sophisticated weapons’ — BBC Russia sends advanced missiles to aid Assad in Syria — NBC Russia boosts its naval presence in Syria, sends regime new missiles — Christian Science Monitor Lavrov Plays Down Reports of New Missile Deliveries to Syria — RIA Novosti Russia sends warships, missiles to Syria — Washington Times Newest Russian arms shipment to Syria ‘destabilises’ area, Livni says — JTA
Syria Conflict: BBC Shown ‘Signs Of Chemical Attack’ — BBC The BBC has been shown evidence apparently corroborating reports of a chemical attack in Syria last month. A BBC correspondent who visited the northern town of Saraqeb was told by eyewitnesses that government helicopters had dropped at least two devices containing poisonous gas. The government has vehemently denied claims it has used chemical agents. The US had warned that such a development would be a “red line” for possible intervention. President Barack Obama said he had seen evidence of chemical weapons being used in Syria – but it was important to get more specific information about what happened. Read more …. More News On The BBC Being Shown ‘Signs Of A Chemical Attack’ In Syria Syria crisis: ‘Strong evidence’ of chemical attacks, in Saraqeb — BBC How to investigate chemical weapons allegations — BBC Syria’s chemical weapons stockpile and human impact — BBC Syria gas attack claims: Evidence ‘compelling’, says expert — BBC ‘Signs of chemical attack’ in Syria — Times of Israel Witnesses: Syria used chemical weapons — UPI Syrians Allege Chemical Attack: ‘Suffocating Smell’ — Newser
Navy Adm. William H. McRaven, commander of U.S. Special Operations Command Special Operations Forces Look for Right Mix of Hard and Soft Power — Sandra I. Erwin The U.S. Special Operations Command is hosting its annual gathering of top brass, civilian leaders and private-industry suppliers this week near its headquarters in Tampa, Fla., amid debate over the proper role of commando forces as instruments of national security. SOCOM Commander Navy Adm. William McRaven has been leading a messaging campaign to try to convince Washington policy makers that special operations forces in the post-Afghanistan era should spend more time advising and training foreign allies, rather than engaged in combat directly. Read more …. MILITARY AND INTELLIGENCE NEWS BRIEFS Timeline: America and Russia’s Long History of Espionage — RIA Novosti A look at how Russia, US still spy on each other — AP Russia calls ‘spy’ case provocation, but Boston fallout could be factor — CNN Report: Syria Already Has Advanced Russian Missiles — Arutz Sheva Russia to Showcase T-90S Tank at Arms Show in Peru — RIA Novosti Russian Navy to receive new invisible ships — Pravda Russian Perspectives on Spacepower — ISN Australian military, industry meet over problem projects — UPI Germany will not buy Euro Hawk drones – govt source — Reuters French Minister of Defence confirms 11 FREMM Frigates and 6 Barracuda Submarines will be built — Navy Recognition Togo, Senegal and Libya order French patrol boats — Defense Web India, China to order 100 naval ships each by 2032 — IBN Live Afghan Air Force graduates first female pilot in 30 years — Washington Times Efforts to Build East Asia Antimissile Framework Stymied by Distrust — Global Security Newswire Iranian ship pulls up for a closer look at U.S.-led exercise in Gulf — Washington Times USAF Missileers: Ready, Willing and Able — Battleland/Time Navy launches unmanned aircraft from carrier — AP USS Stennis undergoing 14 months of maintenance — Kitsap Sun U.S. Army “fences off” military diplomacy from sequester — The E-Ring/Foreign Policy Report: U.S. military too reliant on foreign suppliers — Stars and Stripes/Dayton Daily News Lawmakers force Pentagon to buy tanks, keep ships and planes it doesn’t need — Washington Times/Washington Guardian Portsmouth shipyard workers spared from furlough, but 2,000 Maine workers still face unpaid leave — Bangor Daily News Defense Employees Lose 20 Percent of Pay to Sequestration — US Department of Defense Military scales back July 4th celebrations — Stars and Stripes Lockheed Names New F-16/F-22 Program Head — Defense News Hagel orders retraining of sex-assault prevention officers; Army sergeant investigated — Washington Post Military sexual assault: Another prevention coordinator faces charges — MSNBC Soldier in sexual assault office accused of abuse — AP Rape culture in the US military — Belen Fernandez, Al Jazeera Heads of Benghazi review board say they’ll testify — AP Ambassador Stevens twice said no to military offers of more security, U.S. officials say — McClatchy News Denying American soldiers the faith of their fathers — Rob Maness, Washington Times US military deaths in Afghanistan at 2,085 — AP