Brian M Downing and the world at war. Timely, thoughtful, and nonpartisan analysis of military matters. @BrianMDowning1.
Brian M Downing Overt Iranian intervention? Tehran is deeply concerned that events in Iraq will lead to Saudi and American gains along its western border, parts of which have low-level insurgencies. Its only major military ally in the region, Syria, has come out on top in the civil war but Read More …
Director: Martin Scorsese Starring: Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Joe Pesci 10/10 I don’t like many Scorsese films. They’re generally repetitive, often tediously long, and overly reliant on oldies for the soundtrack. But I loaded The Irishman up on Netflix and hit play. First thing that comes on? An annoying Read More …
Brian M Downing Unrest is spreading across many parts of the world. The most violent case might be Iraq where a large youth population is calling for reforms and enduring high casualties for it. Prominent in their demands is a call for the end of Iranian meddling in the country’s Read More …
Brian M Downing President Trump has taken the extraordinary step of stepping into the military justice system. He has countermanded a demotion and granted clemency to military personnel convicted of war crimes. Further, he has delved more deeply into military administration by insisting that a convicted NCO be allowed to Read More …
Brian M Downing Israel is more secure now than at any time since its founding. Regional enemies have either signed peace agreements (Egypt, Jordan), all but disintegrated from internal divisions (Syria, Libya, Iraq), or aligned with it against Iran (Saudi Arabia). Furthermore, Jerusalem has skillfully built ties with Moscow. Without Read More …
Brian M Downing Relations between Israel and Russia have shifted, even reversed, more than once since the former’s inception in 1948. This isn’t surprising given the region’s volatility and Moscow’s power vicissitudes. The Soviet Union, in keeping with its policy of weakening Western powers, supported Jewish settlers in the 1948 Read More …
Brian M Downing Abu Bakr al Baghdadi hoped to conquer and lead a new Islamist empire. His armies once alarmed capitals in and out of the region. However, western-backed forces ground them down and late last week American special forces killed him. What does his death mean for the future Read More …
Brian M Downing American security interests in the Middle East are declining, yet US troop levels there are rising. By mid-century the region will not be as important to world energy supplies or rivalries with Russia and China. Israel faces no coherent enemies. The Arab world will be plagued by Read More …
Brian M Downing In recent years American policies in the Middle East have met with mixed success. Key allies are reasonably secure and arms sales are on the rise. However, intermittent efforts to liberalize the region have brought more chaos than democracy, in large part because most Arab rulers oppose Read More …
Brian M Downing The US is pulling out of Syria. Damascus, backed by Moscow, welcomed the vacuum and moved troops into Kurdish areas to counter the Turkish incursion. The view here has long been that the US presence in eastern Syria was poorly thought out and bound to end badly. Read More …