Brian M Downing and the world at war. Timely, thoughtful, and nonpartisan analysis of military matters. @BrianMDowning1.
Brian M Downing Candidate Trump made plain his opposition to the 2015 JCPOA, better known as the Iran nuclear deal. In recent weeks President Trump was on the path toward decertification, stiffer sanctions, and bolder confrontation. However, he faced opposition from his own cabinet and even from retired Israeli generals Read More …
Brian M Downing King Salman of Saudi Arabia visited his counterpart in Russia last week – a further sign that events and alignments move quickly in the world. Such a visit was improbable two years ago when Putin sent his military to Syria against Saudi-backed rebels, and unthinkable thirty years Read More …
Brian M Downing The Middle East has been unstable for most of the past hundred years, but it’s more so today. Some reasons are long-term, others more recent. Long-term reasons include hostilities between the Shia and Sunni sects, artificial boundaries drawn by Britain and France after the Great War, the Read More …
Brian M Downing Fifty years ago, shortly after Israeli paratroopers took control of Jerusalem in the Six Day War, the army’s chief rabbi asked the presiding general to blow up Muslim shrines atop the Temple Mount. This, in the rabbi’s estimation, would clear the way for rebuilding the Temple where it Read More …
Brian M Downing Most of the fighting in the long Syrian civil war has been in the eastern and north-central regions. That’s where most major cities and supply lines are. There are signs, however, that fighting is shifting to the sparsely-populated east. The US is apparently committing to open-ended operations Read More …
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 A review essay of Efraim Karsh’s Islamic Imperialism: A History. (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2006). Pp. x + 276; $30.00 (cloth). I long for the vanished gardens of Cordoba. However, before the gardens must come the fighting. Prince Feisal, in Lawrence of Arabia How are Read More …
Brian M Downing The term “regime change” once had great attraction. A troubled land would be put on the right path, with American help, and democracy and prosperity would follow. But the ousters of Saddam Hussein and Muammar Qaddafi brought anarchy and havens for Islamist militants, and the idea fell into Read More …
Brian M Downing Israel and Russia have a sound working relationship. Antisemitism has permeated Russia for centuries. The Soviet Union restricted Jewish emigration for many years and only relented after protracted US pressure. Nonetheless, many Israelis retain fondness for their former country and respect Russia for liberating Nazi camps, including 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 …