WASHINGTON: Michele Flournoy, oft rumored as the next Secretary of Defense, called the military’s elaborate planning process “stale,” its training too risk-averse, and its corporate culture in danger of a new “Vietnam syndrome” where it willfully forgets the lessons of the last decade of guerrilla war. Flournoy also threw cold water on the hot concept… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: The United States is still the world’s indispensable nation and we’ll probably avoid sequestration, albeit by the skin of our teeth. That’s the modestly reassuring message from the unlikely duo of Michèle Flournoy, who recently left her job as under secretary of defense for policy, and Dov Zakheim, Pentagon comptroller under George W. Bush.… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: The State Department’s top official dealing with Asia says the American relationship with China is “much more challenging, much more complicated than the one we had with the Soviet Union.” Speaking at a conference hosted by the Center for a New American Security, Kurt Campbell, assistant Secretary of State for east Asian and Pacific… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: It’s spring, and 70-ton Marine Corps M1 tanks rumble through the flowers in southern Afghanistan (pictured above), while at home, both chambers of Congress are adding funds for armored vehicles to the Pentagon spending bill. It may seem counter-intuitive that a nation shifting from hearts-and-minds counterinsurgency to “AirSea Battle” in the Pacific would need… Keep reading →

The GOP talks tough on deficits but fiscal discipline clearly would not apply to defense spending under a Romney administration. CNNMoney reports that: “Compared to the Pentagon’s current budget, Romney’s plan would lead to $2.1 trillion in additional spending over the next ten years, according to an analysis conducted for CNNMoney by Travis Sharp, a… Keep reading →

Libya or Iraq — which path will Syria follow? The rebel fighters of the Free Syrian Army have weathered a brutal crackdown and begun a rebound against the regime. Now the question is whether or not to arm them. Some analysts argue it’s the only way to keep up the pressure on the government of… Keep reading →

After the year 2020 ground wars will be more intense and concentrated in the world’s crowded coastal cities. That’s the consensus from a panel of experts including current and retired Army officers and professional analysts. Over the past decade, the U.S. Army and Marine Corps have adapted to the low-intensity wars in Iraq and Afghanistan… Keep reading →

Escalating cyber threats, a struggling economy, the rise of China, and the unpredictable impact of the Arab Spring will dominate the next decade. At least, that’s the best collective guess of a conclave of academic experts, government officials, and military officers from the U.S. and abroad, convened by the United States Army. Their objective: This… Keep reading →

Washington: It’s a nice round number. One trillion. That is how much one veteran defense budget expert believes the military will have to cut over the next 10 years. But perennial GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney is having none of this sort of defeatist talk. Romney, clearly using data much of America isn’t privy to,… Keep reading →

UPDATED Washington: Former congressman and long-time House Armed Services Committee chairman Ike Skelton is heading to the Democrat’s designated military thinktank, the Center for A New American Security. Skelton, along with former senior State Department officials Anne-Marie Slaughter and Richard Verma are joining the Center for A New American Security’s board of directors. Skelton’s appointment… Keep reading →