Brian M Downing and the world at war. Timely, thoughtful, and nonpartisan analysis of military matters. @BrianMDowning1.
Brian M Downing The Persian Gulf principality of Qatar, despite its small population and size, has used its spectacular oil and gas wealth to become an important actor both in the Persian Gulf and throughout the Middle East. It has avoided becoming a client-state to the US, Saudi Arabia, or Iran and in Read More …
Brian M Downing Sectarian tensions are high, probably as high as they’ve been in many centuries. This stems in part from the Iranian Revolution of 1979 when the Sunni monarchies shuddered at Khomeini’s call for uprisings. More proximately, tensions stem from the Arab Spring when the same monarchs misinterpreted broad-based Read More …
Brian M Downing The new administration has taken several bold steps regarding the Middle East. The executive order on immigration from seven Muslim countries caused an uproar, though that’s far less important than its imprecision and questionable constitutionality. The plan to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem Read More …
Brian M Downing This week’s assassination of the Russian ambassador to Turkey has highlighted the international complexities and domestic consequences of the Syrian civil war. The assassin, a young policeman, denounced Russia’s role in the battle of Aleppo and added praise for jihad, presumably against Russia and its regional partners. Read More …
Negotiation and escalation in the Syrian civil war after Aleppo Brian M Downing The war in Syria is entering its sixth year. Various rebel groups, backed by Sunni powers, had the upper hand until Hisbollah, Iran, and Russia intervened on the government side. Over the last year government forces developed a tactic Read More …
The House of Saud comes down on ISIL Brian M Downing Saudi Arabia was jolted by three ISIL bombings earlier this week. One of them shook the Mosque of the Prophet in Medina – a centerpiece of the Kingdom which confers prestige from much of the Islamic world. The bombing calls into Read More …
Secretary of State Kerry and Foreign Minister Lavrov have come to a tentative agreement on a ceasefire in Syria which will allow humanitarian aid to reach hapless civilians. The timing is unclear, as are the likely effectiveness and duration. Optimism in recent days has faded. Whatever comes of it will shed Read More …
The war in Syria is a stalemate and disaster. Civilian casualties are appalling, cities lie in ruins, and people flee the desolation by the tens of thousand. The former country is a training ground for jihadis and terrorists from Morocco to China. Preliminary talks are underway but any agreement is months away, at Read More …
Brian M Downing Wars bring formidable changes to countries, even if they are fortunate enough not to have fighting on their own soil. The US was transformed by the Second World War and Vietnam, both politically and culturally, in the course of only a few years. The Middle East was Read More …
Brian M Downing As the Iranian nuclear talks neared preliminary agreement, and as the Houthis drove into southern Yemen, world leaders and commentators warned that Iran is on the rise in the Middle East. This, they continued, had to be stopped by imposing tougher sanctions and opposing the Houthis, perhaps Read More …