Brian M Downing and the world at war. Timely, thoughtful, and nonpartisan analysis of military matters. @BrianMDowning1.
Brian M Downing The war in Afghanistan has dragged on for fifteen years now. The conflict has been complicated by the rise of ISIL in the region. Its Afghan franchise, ISIL-Khorasan Province, has established itself in eastern Afghanistan, where it has coalesced with and recruited from other jihadi groups, including Read More …
President Trump faces the war in Afghanistan Brian M Downing Throughout the presidential campaign Donald Trump proclaimed that he would see that America won again. Early in his presidency he will have to deal with the resurgent Taliban which as winter ends, will be beginning a new offensive. His national security Read More …
The Islamic world continues to break apart – Pakistan Brian M Downing Rand-McNally must be a busy place. Europe has seen the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, and Czechoslovakia break apart; the Ukraine is being broken apart. The Islamic world has been even more tumultuous. The Sudan broke in two; Iraq is Read More …
The House of Saud tries to modernize (at last) Brian M Downing Saudi Arabia has announced bold economic moves. Weeks ago Riyadh floated the idea of selling shares in its oil industry to shore up cash reserves, and more recently it announced an ambitious program of building an industrial base. This, the Read More …
ISIL expanded suddenly over the last year and a half, from half-forgotten bombing outfit in western Iraq to regional danger. It has won the allegiance of unaffiliated Islamist groups as well as those formerly bound to al Qaeda. Attention is on North Africa and the Middle East, but conditions conducive to Read More …
Afghanistan’s prominence in the news is subject to sudden change. The 9/11 attacks vaulted it into our attention. Iraq pushed it aside for years, until the Taliban reasserted itself and reconquered parts of the south and west. The rise of ISIL in Syria and Iraq pushed it aside once more, until Read More …
Not long ago, American power and beliefs appeared unchallenged in the world. The Soviet Union was gone, generals in developing nations were heading back to the barracks, and democracy was everywhere on the rise. We had, in the famous words, reached the end of history. Open economic and political systems Read More …
The black flags of ISIL have spread from Iraq and Syria to many other parts of the Islamic world, from North Africa to Central Asia. In recent months they have been seen in Afghanistan, or Khorasan as it is known in Islamic apocalyptic texts – the land where the Read More …
Brian M Downing The dialog between the US and Iran has moved ahead. Opposition comes from important groups in both Tehran and Washington – as well as in a few Middle Eastern capitals. In Washington, the issue is decried as a sign of the administration’s naivety regarding world affairs Read More …
Brian M Downing The Iranian nuclear talks ended without agreement, except to extend the deadline on negotiations until next July. Over the next few months, world events may change the positions of the powers involved. The pause also offers time to better understand each power’s viewpoint. Each country, including Iran, Read More …