The United States wants to reduce its military presence in Africa, Washington’s top military officer said, as France hosts Sahel leaders as it seeks to bolster the fight against jihadists in the region. Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, said resources “could be reduced and then shifted, either to increase […]

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday observed massive military drills off the coast of Moscow-annexed Crimea that involved test launches of cruise and hypersonic missiles. Russia’s commander-in-chief was on board the cruiser Marshal Ustinov to watch the joint drills by the Northern and Black Sea Fleets, the Kremlin said. He watched test launches of Kalibr […]

US Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Wednesday that the US strike that killed a top Iranian general had restored credibility to the US threat to Tehran to restrain itself militarily. “I believe that we’ve restored a level of deterrence with them,” he said. But Washington security analysts say it is far from certain that Tehran […]

Although NATO is committed to the training mission in Iraq, the alliance has suspended training operations in the country, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in Brussels today. ”In everything that we do, the safety of our personnel is paramount,” Stoltenberg told the media after a meeting of the North Atlantic Council. ”As such, we […]

America’s military strategy in Iraq has been thrown into disarray after the Pentagon admitted a top US general mistakenly informed the Iraqi government his troops were preparing to leave. Here is AFP’s look at what shape a withdrawal could take. How could troops withdraw? A senior US military official had told AFP that a hypothetical […]

The United States continues to deploy and reposition troops throughout the region of Iraq and Iran to bolster U.S. security and force protection and to be prepared for any contingency, Defense Secretary Dr. Mark T. Esper said. “Over the last several days, I’ve had many conversations with our partners and allies about the situation in […]

The US drone strike that killed top Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani has revived debate about whether American presidents have unilateral authority to launch attacks and send soldiers into battle, or must await congressional approval. War powers are divided in the US Constitution, and not in a definitive way, experts say, leading to a decades-long tug […]

President Donald Trump campaigns on a no more “stupid” wars mantra, but the US killing of Iran’s military mastermind will test his ability to stay out of Middle Eastern quagmires less than a year from election day. Since the day of his surprise election victory in 2016, Trump has signaled an end to what critics […]

It is all too tempting to focus on the current crisis in Iraq: The Iranian-sponsored attacks by Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces on U.S. forces and facilities, the U.S. retaliatory attacks, and the well-organized demonstrations and attacks on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. At the same time, focusing on the current crisis has led to consistent […]

The Pentagon said Thursday it had conducted background checks on all Saudi military personnel currently training in the United States and found no “immediate threat scenario,” two weeks after a deadly shooting rampage by a Saudi air force officer. Defense Department officials had announced a security review following the attack, halting operational training for Saudi […]