Brian M Downing and the world at war. Timely, thoughtful, and nonpartisan analysis of military matters. @BrianMDowning1.
Brian M Downing The effort to oust the Assad government is all but over. The US and Turkey are still occupying swathes of the north and east, Idlib remains in rebel hands for now, but Damascus has clearly won. Nonetheless, the US has imposed stricter sanctions on Syria. Foreign countries Read More …
Brian M Downing The Civil War continues to be contested a century and a half after Lee handed his sword to Grant. A sterner president might have treated harshly, though not unjustly, with the defeated generals and politicians. Very harshly. The gallows would have suited many. They were traitors to Read More …
Brian M Downing [The arguments here were written down well before recent developments in our cities.] Generational shift A cultural revolution has been underway for several years. In recent weeks it’s taken on a powerful and sweeping form. The beliefs of many people, liberal and conservative, are being denounced. It’s Read More …
Brian M Downing The military is a powerful national institution that traditionally stays out of politics. Generals and admirals respect institutional norms almost as much as they do the Constitution. One of the norms says to avoid criticizing presidents, especially while on active duty. There’ve been notable exceptions. MacArthur had Read More …
Brian M Downing After several nights of protest and more importantly violence, the president has deployed military forces to Washington, DC and set the stage for sending troops to various cities as well. The move runs the risk of bringing greater violence but it may also put an end to Read More …
Brian M Downing An important development in the Libyan conflict took place this week. Russia withdrew its Wagner mercenaries from the western region and deployed fighter jets to the east. The interpretation here is that Putin and Erdogan have struck a bargain: the west remains under the Tripoli government under Read More …
Brian M Downing Libya is divided between a western region based in Tripoli and an east based in Benghazi. Each side has considerable foreign support – diplomatic and military. Last year the warlord of eastern Libya, Khalifa Haftar, launched an offensive to take the western capital, Tripoli. The capital’s defenders, Read More …
Brian M Downing Over the last century the United States has played crucial roles in world politics. In World War Two the US supplied the arms, oil, troops, and leadership that defeated Imperial Japan and the Third Reich. America’s respect and relative power in the world reached apogee in 1945. Read More …
Brian M Downing The crown prince Mohammed bin Salman’s unexpected rise to power brought hope to outsiders who wanted the kingdom to liberalize, for its own good. Inside the kingdom, especially within the ranks, there were expectations of professionalizing the senior officer corps and turning the army into a capable Read More …
Brian M Downing Word came this week that the Saudi cadet who killed three American servicemen in Pensacola in January had ties to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Someone with deep hatred for the US and almost certainly for Saudi Arabia, or at least its monarchy, got through the Read More …