International security

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March 7th, 2017 | International security | By Harlan K. Ullman

NATO facing a challenge of relevance in time of “no world order”

Since its creation in 1949, NATO has been at many “crossroads” when its future was often seen in doubt. The most serious rift came in 1966. French President Charles de Gaulle, fearful of the risks of automatic nuclear escalation in the event of war with the Soviet Union and angered at what he saw as […]


February 28th, 2017 | International security | By Harlan K. Ullman

Facing global “arc of instability”, Trump leaves us with nothing but hope

Even with President Donald J. Trump asserting that his White House is "running like a fine-tuned machine," the rest of the world is not. As U.S. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis sees it, an "arc of instability" runs from the Western Mediterranean to the Eastern Bay of Bengal. Not a scintilla of evidence suggests that […]


February 20th, 2017 | International security | By Harlan K. Ullman

Spiraling internal costs threaten to make U.S. military a “hollow force”

In the early 1980s, U.S. Army Chief of Staff Gen. E.C. “Shy” Meyer warned of “a hollow force,” that is a depleted military untrained, ill equipped and unready to carry out its responsibilities. Lack of defense spending was the culprit. Make no mistake: That is happening again. Unless action is taken now, the U.S. military […]


February 14th, 2017 | International security | By Harlan K. Ullman

Why does the U.S. military have such a staggering record of failure?

The official end of the Cold War came in 1991 with the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the creation of the Russian Federation. Since then, remarkably, the United States has been at war or engaged in significant conflicts and military interventions in which tens of thousands of its soldiers, marines, sailors and airmen have […]


February 7th, 2017 | International security | By Harlan K. Ullman

Inside Vladimir Putin’s head, it’s all about Donald Trump

It does not take someone with 30 years experience at the CIA, MI-6 or Mossad to imagine what must be going through the mind of former KGB Lt. Col. Vladimir Putin, now president of Russia. Who is this fellow Donald Trump, the newly elected leader of the United States? What and how does he think? […]


February 6th, 2017 | International security | By Dania Koleilat Khatib

What will be the fate of Syria?

Astana talks did not bring any new solution to the Syrian crisis. It was merely an extension of cease fire. The different parties agreed to continue negotiations in Geneva. The question is: what will be the fate of Syria? In order to know the fate of Syria it is important to determine the fate of […]


February 2nd, 2017 | International security | By Harlan K. Ullman

Trump’s first week brings bizarre campaign to Oval Office

What a week. President Donald J. Trump has transferred the unconventional and often bizarre aspects of his campaign into how he intends to govern the nation. The new chief executive entered office with the lowest popularity rating of any president since records have been kept. His inaugural address was a repeat of his campaign promises […]


January 25th, 2017 | International security | By Harlan K. Ullman

2017 – the year of no world order

2017 marks the hundredth anniversary of two transformative events. The U.S. entered World War I to make the world safe for democracy. And that November, Russia became the Soviet Union. In the ashes of the so-called Great War, the seeds for a second global conflict and a cold war were sown. In many ways, the […]


January 25th, 2017 | International security | By Dania Koleilat Khatib

The time is ripe for side track diplomacy with Iran

In Davos, Jawad Zareef announced that his country is ready to work with Arab neighbours. Some described his speech as hypocritical. A cartoon showed a drawing of Zareef and doves flying out of his speech, next to a drawing of Qassem Soleimani with bullet being fired from his riffle. The comment was: Iran at Davos […]


January 18th, 2017 | International security | By Harlan K. Ullman

Russian meddling – why are we shocked?

The response by most Americans, less so by one president-elect, to Russian meddling in the U.S. elections is reminiscent of a memorable scene in the movie classic Casablanca. When informed of gambling at Rick’s Café, Captain Louis Renault, aka Claude Raines, blurts out “I am shocked,” as he is being handed his cut of the […]


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The 2017 edition of the Strategikon Annual Book – The Year of Challenging Choices

The 2017 edition of the Strategikon Annual Book – The Year of Challenging Choices

It’s not easy to be a leader, but the solution is closer than people may think and it has to do with returning to some good old fashioned traits that shaped leaders in past decades: will power, values and vision. Launched at the Good Governance Summit, The Year of Challenging Choices strives to understand the fault lines in international relations and the relevant actors, as they are and not how they appear to be.

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