“The Chinese chose Djibouti because of its strategic location in Africa and mainly because it gives foreign military forces that built bases in this country control of one of the most important water ways – the Bab Al Mandeb Strait,” says Uzi Rabi, director of the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies at the Center for Iranian Studies, both at Tel Aviv University.

TEL AVIV: Israel needs something like America’s Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to monitor and, when needed, curtail Chinese investment that may pose a national security threat. “Surprisingly, we don’t have a body that supervises operations of Chinese companies in Israel and that is very worrying. I hope that this will… Keep reading →

Several laser attacks on U.S. aircraft in Djibouti are another way the Chinese appear to be making their presence felt in Africa. One analyst calls it a warning shot to other countries in the region.

Last month, Secretary of Defense James Mattis warned that if Congress doesn’t “remove the defense caps,” he said, “then we’re questioning whether or not America has the ability to survive.” This claim that insufficient increases in Pentagon spending threatens American security is flatly wrong. The real and present danger to our national security is the… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: In an interesting twist in the era of software-heavy systems such as the F-35, President Trump has nominated a top cyber expert, Robert Behler, as the Pentagon’s top weapons tester. Behler currently is COO for the Carnegie Mellon University Software Engineering Institute, a Federally Funded Research and Development Center. Before that, he was president… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: For the first time, an important United States military base, one where a great deal of highly classified communications, intelligence and operations occur, sits within a few miles of a military competitor, China. Where? Djibouti, the tiny African state that sits on the Horn of Africa across from Yemen and sits astride the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. It… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: If you want to grow uneasy about the world, read the US-China Commission’s annual report to Congress. China, while it continues to enjoy robust economic growth, faces a major strategic challenge. Strategically, the biggest threat facing China right now — and the rest of the world given how integrated China is to the global economy… Keep reading →

Once in a while we feel the need to remind the world that we’ve done something fabulous and are glad to see the competition catch up. Today is one of those days. The New York Times, in a story we are sure will garner close attention on Capitol Hill, at the Pentagon and at NATO… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: China is pushing hard for either special port access or basing rights in the former French colony of Djibouti, a key center where US and French special operations forces operate from against terrorism in both Africa and the Middle East. I confirmed with a senior allied official today that China is seriously pursuing a favored… Keep reading →

BALLSTON, VA: A soufflé is fluffy but a SOFLE – a brand new military acronym that stands for Special Operations Forces Liaison Element — is sinewy and powerful. Just ask Marine Lt. Col. Andrew Christian, who led the first such unit for the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit during a seven month deployment to the Pacific… Keep reading →