Brian M Downing and the world at war. Timely, thoughtful, and nonpartisan analysis of military matters. @BrianMDowning1.
Brian M Downing The Khashoggi affair has caused a rift between the US and Saudi Arabia. It’s also shown that the partnership is not based on shared heritage and values, but on sales of oil and weapons. President Trump cautioned that the affair might cost the US many billions in Read More …
Brian M Downing President Trump issued a warning to Pakistan last January and this week he cut $300 million in military aid to our putative ally. Other forms of aid are continuing, however. The reason for the cuts is Islamabad’s support for the Taliban, which has been gaining ground in Read More …
Brian M Downing The Trump administration is concerned about China’s ascendance in world affairs, often at US expense. Its economy will surpass the US’s in a decade or so. Military spending has increased, especially in naval and air might. China’s territorial claims and fortified artificial islands are well known. Beijing’s Read More …
Brian M Downing Saudi Arabia and Iran have been engaged in conflict since the Khomeini Revolution of 1979 and the Iran-Iraq War that began the following year. Washington may think it can limit involvement to supplying arms and intelligence with an occasional skirmish and airstrike. But the US risks deeper involvement and Read More …
Brian M Downing Sectarian conflict, chiefly between Saudi Arabia and Iran, has been underway for decades. Based at least as much on religious hatred as national security, it reached intense levels with the Iran-Iraq War of the 80s and took hundreds of thousands of lives. Afterward, animosities lessened but picked up Read More …
Brian M Downing Only a few weeks ago leaders in Washington and Pyongyang were trading threats and even insults. Some people thought East Asia was approaching nuclear war. A false alarm of an incoming missile brought consternation in Hawaii. A year ago it would have brought nothing. Though a few Read More …
Brian M Downing China and Russia have put aside past conflicts and begun a portentous aligment. Combined, they have formidable economic and military power – enough to control most of the Eurasian land mass. Such control has been a dream of geostrategists since Halford Mackinder outlined his “heartland” thesis a Read More …
Brian M Downing China’s most important strategic partner, by far, is Russia. They share borders, opposition to democracy at home, and the desire to weaken American hegemony. Their combined land mass and military power have no parallel in history and pose a challenge to the role order. Russia and China Read More …
Brian M Downing States rise to global power in partnership with other countries. Britain, for example, rose to preeminence with allies that weakened enemies on the continent, and with local notables on the subcontinent. American preeminence came after the Second World War with a slew of alliances stretching from Western Read More …
Brian M Downing China’s economic growth and increasing global reach have reaped geopolitical advantages. The same of course was true when Britain, France, and the United States planted their flags and built commerce across the globe in previous centuries. In the case of China the process has come from careful Read More …