Tag Archives: Afghanistan

Opinion: Winning the Protracted War Against Radical Islamic Terrorists

Opinion: Winning the Protracted War Against Radical Islamic Terrorists

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Soldiers of the personal security detachment for Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 113th Cavalry Regiment, Task Force Redhorse, patrol the villages in the Bagram Security Zone in 2011. US Army Photo

Soldiers of the personal security detachment for Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 1st Squadron, 113th Cavalry Regiment, Task Force Redhorse, patrol the villages in the Bagram Security Zone in 2011. US Army Photo

President Barack Obama’s recent decision to leave 8,400 U.S. forces in Afghanistan through next year and NATO’s announcement over the weekend to support the United States with another 3,000 troops—as well as $1 billion in financial support— means the effort to secure a lasting peace in Afghanistan will enter its 16th year with U.S. forces still operating on the ground and in the air above Afghanistan. Two U.S. administrations have now pursued an elusive peace in this region of the world at a staggering cost in blood and treasure. Read More →

SASC Staffer Goel : U.S., Pakistan Relationship Goes Beyond Afghanistan

SASC Staffer Goel : U.S., Pakistan Relationship Goes Beyond Afghanistan

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U.S. and Pakistan national anthems are played during the decommissioning ceremony of the guided-missile frigate USS McInerney (FFG-8) at Naval Station Mayport in 2010. US Navy Photo

U.S. and Pakistan national anthems are played during the decommissioning ceremony of the guided-missile frigate USS McInerney (FFG-8) at Naval Station Mayport in 2010. US Navy Photo

When considering the future U.S. relations with Pakistan it’s important not to deal with Islamabad exclusively “through the lens of Afghanistan,” a Senate Armed Services Committee staffer said Thursday. Read More →

Dunford: Next U.S. Military Strategy Document will be Classified

Dunford: Next U.S. Military Strategy Document will be Classified

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Gen. Joseph Dunford testifying before Congress on March 17, 2016. DoD Photo

Gen. Joseph Dunford testifying before Congress on March 17, 2016. DoD Photo

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said the next military strategy document will be kept classified, a recommendation often called for in House and Senate armed services committee hearings that began in the fall on “defense reform.” Read More →

Video: Medal of Honor SEAL Byers Tells His Story

Video: Medal of Honor SEAL Byers Tells His Story

The following is a Feb. 26, 2016 U.S. Navy video of Chief Special Warfare Operator (SEAL) Edward C. Byers Jr. describing the actions that led to his recommendation for the Medal of Honor — to be presented to Byers by President Obama on Feb. 29. Read More →

Dunford on ISIS: ‘The Enemy Doesn’t Respect Borders and Neither Do We’

Dunford on ISIS: ‘The Enemy Doesn’t Respect Borders and Neither Do We’

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Defense Secretary Ash Carter, foreground, and Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, testify before the House Armed Services Committee about U.S. strategy for Syria and Iraq in Washington, D.C. on Dec. 1, 2015. DoD Photo

Defense Secretary Ash Carter, foreground, and Marine Corps Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, testify before the House Armed Services Committee about U.S. strategy for Syria and Iraq in Washington, D.C. on Dec. 1, 2015. DoD Photo

In discussing the administration’s strategy to defeat the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on Tuesday told the House Armed Services Committee “the enemy doesn’t respect borders and neither do we.” Read More →

Essay: Mistakes Are Not War Crimes

Essay: Mistakes Are Not War Crimes

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In this photograph released by Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) on October 3, 2015, fires burn in part of the MSF hospital in the Afghan city of Kunduz after it was hit by an air strike. MSF Photo

In this photograph released by Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) on October 3, 2015, fires burn in part of the MSF hospital in the Afghan city of Kunduz after it was hit by an air strike. MSF Photo

Let’s get one thing straight: Accidents are not war crimes. Unintentional or collateral damage does not constitute a war crime, even when there are noncombatant deaths. The advent of precision weapons has fostered an unrealistic expectation regarding the applications of military force, which is substantially at odds with the reality of combat. Read More →

Opinion: A New Approach to Dealing with ISIS

Opinion: A New Approach to Dealing with ISIS

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French fighters leave for strikes against ISIS targets in Syria on Nov. 15, 2015. French Ministry of Defense Photo

French fighters leave for strikes against ISIS targets in Syria on Nov. 15, 2015. French Ministry of Defense Photo

The desire for some expressive use of military power to release pent-up anger in France and the Western world in response to the latest terrorist attack in Paris is reaching a new level. France responded with strikes against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS, ISIL and also called Daesh) targets over the weekend. Read More →

Essay: Strategies That Matter – Why Targets That Matter, Don’t

Essay: Strategies That Matter – Why Targets That Matter, Don’t

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A B-2 Stealth Bomber from Whiteman AFB in Missouri leads an aerial flight formation with F-18 Hornets from the during exercise Valiant Shield 2006. US Navy Photo

A B-2 Stealth Bomber from Whiteman AFB in Missouri leads an aerial flight formation with F-18 Hornets from the during exercise Valiant Shield 2006. US Navy Photo

In 1954, U.S. Representative W. Sterling Cole, chairman of the Joint Atomic Energy Committee, announced what had been suspected: that the U.S. Air Force could deliver an H-bomb anywhere in the world. Hardly a revelation, this boast since has been echoed for more than half a century. Indeed, Air Force talking points regularly repeat a version of this theme: We can hold any target at risk anywhere in the world in any time, any place. This idea is deeply embedded in the Air Force’s transformation efforts, as an aspirational statement became a “requirement” and thereby a justification for airpower capabilities. “Any target, any time, any place” is a centerpiece of service dogma, offered in place of coherent airpower strategy. Unfortunately, that means very little for the nation’s air, space and cyber power entrusted to the Air Force. A capability is not a strategy, and can’t be substituted for one. It’s strategy that matters. Read More →

Document: Guide to U.S. Military Casualty Statistics

Document: Guide to U.S. Military Casualty Statistics

The following is the Congressional Research Service Aug. 7, 2015 report, A Guide to U.S. Military Casualty Statistics. The report covers: Operation Freedom’s Sentinel, Operation Inherent Resolve, Operation New Dawn, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. Read More →

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