Brian M Downing and the world at war. Timely, thoughtful, and nonpartisan analysis of military matters. @BrianMDowning1.
Brian M Downing In 2008, late in the Bush administration, the Iraqi government ordered the US to withdraw its troops by the end of 2011. The Obama administration was not eager to argue. Nor could it have succeeded had it tried as US troops were fiercely disliked then. Facing a resurgent al Qaeda not Read More …
Brian M Downing President Trump ordered the Pentagon to present him with a more aggressive strategy for fighting ISIL, and the chiefs are about to offer options. One option calls for deploying more troops to Syria. The units would not be ground combat units, rather they would be primarily support troops to help Read More …
Negotiation and escalation in the Syrian civil war after Aleppo Brian M Downing The war in Syria is entering its sixth year. Various rebel groups, backed by Sunni powers, had the upper hand until Hisbollah, Iran, and Russia intervened on the government side. Over the last year government forces developed a tactic Read More …
Is conflict with Iran coming, again? Brian M Downing Throughout the campaign Donald Trump criticized his chief adversary for supporting the Iranian nuclear deal of 2015. The president-elect has backtracked on several matters, including prosecuting Hillary Clinton and building a physical wall along the Mexican border. Trump has not stepped Read More …
The coming ISIL dispersal – Iraq and Syria Brian M Downing In coming weeks, or months, ISIL’s prestigious holdings, Mosul and Raqqa, will have been retaken. ISIL will have only a handful of smaller towns and expanses of land – most of it wasteland. Several thousand ISIL fighters are in Read More …
Muslim Press: How do you analyze Washington’s role in Iran-Iraq war? Brian Downing: The US was in the awkward position of opposing both countries: Iran for the embassy hostage situation and its calls for revolution; Iraq for its brutal government, alignment with the Soviet Union, and hostility to Israel. The Read More …
US policy and the future of a unified Syria Brian M Downing Secretary of State Kerry has repeated the administration’s commitment to keeping Syria a united country, as it was before public protest turned into civil war. His statement comes along with a ceasefire agreement with Russia and the announcement Read More …
Is a great Shia-Sunni war in the offing? Brian M Downing Almost 1400 years after the great schism in the Islamic world, sectarian hatreds in the Middle East are higher than in centuries. Princes and mullahs exchange angry words. Proxies fight fierce local wars. Armies of regional powers purchase huge Read More …
Saudi Arabia’s execution of a respected Shia figure has led to outrage in the Shia world and concern in western capitals and human rights organizations. Protesters in Iran, upholding a venerable tradition, attacked and partially burned the Saudi embassy in Tehran. Sunni powers have broken or reduced diplomatic ties with Read More …
The war in Syria is a stalemate and disaster. Civilian casualties are appalling, cities lie in ruins, and people flee the desolation by the tens of thousand. The former country is a training ground for jihadis and terrorists from Morocco to China. Preliminary talks are underway but any agreement is months away, at Read More …