Brian M Downing and the world at war. Timely, thoughtful, and nonpartisan analysis of military matters. @BrianMDowning1.
Brian M Downing Vladimir Putin has had a bad week. His vaunted air defense system in Syria brought down an Israeli F-16, but the IDF responded with retaliatory strikes that crippled the system, destroying perhaps one-third of it. Beyond the military significance of this, Russian military hardware isn’t looking attractive Read More …
A review of Ahmed S Hashim, Insurgency and Counter-Insurgency in Iraq by Brian M Downing Analyzing an ongoing war is dicey. Most historians gladly and often wisely leave it to pundits and think-tank analysts until the years have made it less dangerous to their careers. Amid the grinding war in Iraq, Read More …
Brian M Downing In all recorded history, China has had the strongest economy in the world, with the exception of the previous two centuries. The West’s preeminence seems timeless and preordained in much of the world, but in China it’s an historical fluke, one that will be made plain to Read More …
Brian M Downing America assumed the role of world leader after 1945, when European countries were in ruins and no longer able to maintain their empires. The US has held onto that position despite failed wars in Asia and the 2008 economic collapse. American elites, think tanks, and much of Read More …
Brian M Downing If you’re looking for insight on Terry Jones and his mission of burning the Koran and getting the Islamic world to despise us even more than it already does, I recommend HL Mencken. The caustic essayist of the early twentieth century was a great writer and a Read More …
Brian M Downing Diplomacy has known the Message to Garcia, the Willy-Nicky correspondence, the Zimmerman telegram, and the Zinoviev letter. Now we have President Trump’s tweet claiming Pakistan has been duplicitous in the Afghan war: “The United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over Read More …
Brian M Downing (Part I) Common ground Political and economic forces will push the Gulf states closer to Russia and China. The Gulf states and Russia want to keep oil prices as high as possible, and indeed they have already collaborated on production limits that have helped raise world prices Read More …
Brian M Downing Protests in Iran are in their fifth day and so far 14 people have been killed. The demonstrations changed from bread and butter issues to calls for an end to theocracy. The lifting of sanctions, partial though it was, brought expectations of more jobs, higher incomes, and Read More …
Brian M Downing The United States has naval and air force bases across the Gulf – in Kuwait, the Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, and to an uncertain extent, Saudi Arabia. Iran was once a staunch US ally but after the Shah’s downfall and failure at rapprochement, it’s now firmly aligned Read More …
Brian M Downing Great powers have come and gone from Afghanistan. None have gotten what they expected. In the 19th century, Anglo-Russian rivalry centered in the Balkans and the Crimea, but Moscow’s expansion into Central Asia threatened British India, or at least seemed to. Officers from both empires parleyed with Read More …