John Beyrle, ambassador to Russia during the George W. Bush Administration, says letting New START expire would be “a pretty solid punch to the solar plexus of strategic stability.”
By Theresa Hitchens“New START matters to our security, to the security of the alliance, to the cohesion of the (NATO) alliance,” said Tom Countryman, former assistant secretary of State for international security and nonproliferation,
By Theresa Hitchens“Every day that goes by makes North Korea a more dangerous country,” John Bolton said at CSIS. “When does it become too late? Today is better than tomorrow. Tomorrow is better than the next day.”
By Colin ClarkSevere instability in the national security establishment raises questions not about the president’s policy judgements, but about the government’s ability to plan for and implement those decisions.
By Colin ClarkThe Trump administration has watered down U.S. global leadership to coercive deal-making. The dangerous contours of a world in crisis are now coming into stark relief.
By James KitfieldIn any post-New START nuclear buildup, Russia will “at least initially” have an edge over the US, says retired Lt. Gen. Frank Klotz, former head of Air Force Global Strike Command.
By Theresa HitchensTEL AVIV: The Syrian civil war may seem to be winding down, but Israel is increasingly anxious after Russia’s surprise announcement it will give Syria full control of sophisticated S-300 air defense systems that could threaten Israeli aircraft. That’s not just a theoretical concern, because Israel has been hitting targets linked to Iran and its…
By Arie EgoziCNO John Richardson said Monday that, essentially, the Persian Gulf deployment was business as usual. “The Abraham Lincoln Strike Group was planned to deploy for some time now,” he told the SeaAirSpace conference.
By Paul McLearyA White House 180-degree turn on nuclear arms control inflicts whiplash on experts. What is real here?
By Theresa Hitchens“For far too long, Russia has violated the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty with impunity,” a statement from the White House said. Moscow has refused to admit that it has for years been “covertly developing and fielding a prohibited missile system that poses a direct threat to our allies and troops abroad.”
By Paul McLearyShanahan spent much of his first formal (albeit off-camera) Pentagon pressroom briefing as SecDef emphasizing continuity with his ousted predecessor, Gen. Jim Mattis. He made a point of praising Mattis’s National Defense Strategy, America’s allies, and even the press – not exactly favorites of President Donald Trump.
By Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.WASHINGTON: After two years of reassuring US allies that Donald Trump’s America would not abandon them, Jim Mattis finally had enough. Even before Trump was sworn in as president, the announcement that he would pick Mattis as his Secretary of Defense was met with delighted relief “from the right, from the left, and from overseas.”…
By Paul McLearyRussian President Vladimir Putin warned the United States a new arms race would provoke a “quick and effective” Russian response and threatened NATO’s members. Democrat leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives predict an increased risk of “an unconstrained nuclear arms race.” Is it true? Has President Trump fired the first shot in a Cold…
By Matthew Costlow
Contrary to the president’s rhetoric, there is no forthcoming Trump buildup, and the new strategy emphasizing China and Russia is becoming ever more elusive and out of touch with fiscal reality. It is simply unaffordable at this point in time.
By Mackenzie Eaglen