Kushner Stumbles on Bumps in the Road on Mideast Junket
The whirlwind Middle East trip last week by Trump son-in-law and senior advisor Jared Kushner and his team working to restart Israel-Palestinian talks highlighted the […] More
Diplomacy
Trump Push to Scrap Iran Deal Risks ‘Corrupting’ U.S. Intel Process
President Donald Trump has made it clear that he thinks the international accord to reign in Iran’s nuclear program was the “worst deal ever.” And […] More
No Way to Convince Kim to Give Up Nukes
One of the key responsibilities of the Intelligence Community is to provide the president with the other guy’s perspective. How does he/she see the world […] More
U.S. to Slash Visas for Russians After Cuts to Embassy Staff
The United States is cutting back on issuing non-immigrant visas to Russians. The U.S. Embassy in Moscow will temporarily stop issuing the visas next week, […] More
No Direct Way to Denuke Pyongyang
The United States and its allies need to focus first on freezing North Korea’s current nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs with a goal of […] More
Gambling with Catastrophe on the Korean Peninsula
If there has been one common refrain from the Trump administration, it is that President Barack Obama’s policy of “strategic patience” towards North Korea was […] More
Tillerson: Talks Possible If North Korea Stops Missile Launches
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson capped off a whirlwind weekend at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Ministerial meeting in Manilla, Philippines by suggesting […] More
Wanted: Robust Intelligence and Diplomatic Reporting
Son Sen was the Khmer Rouge’s Heinrich Himmler, in charge of carrying out Cambodia’s own holocaust that killed up to two million in the […] More
Permitting North Korea Even a Few Nuclear Weapons is a Mistake
My first meeting with the North Korean delegation to the Six Party Talks in 2003 was instructive. Their lead negotiator, First Vice Foreign Minister Kim […] More
Tillerson Not Happy About Russia Sanctions Bill, Wants Better Relations
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson says “neither the President or I are very happy” with a new Congressional bill sanctioning Russia, but he expects President […] More
Pushback Against Iran
As if there were not enough world problems already facing the United States, President Donald Trump is now talking about declaring Iran “non-compliant” with the […] More
Former Diplomats: U.S. Embassy Staff in Moscow Will Rise to the Challenge
In retaliation for the wave of new sanctions the United States Congress passed, Moscow has ordered the U.S. cut 755 diplomatic staff by September. The […] More
U.S. Abandoning Global Leadership After Withdrawal from Climate Pact
U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Paris Climate Accords last month was widely denounced as a blow to global climate change cooperation. […] More
Climate Change: A Real Challenge to U.S. Military Readiness
When President Donald Trump decided to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement this June, it confirmed the administration’s intent to pull back on international efforts […] More
The Paris Agreement and American Leadership
President Donald Trump’s decision to unilaterally withdraw the United States from the Paris Agreement this June was met with immediate outcry from both domestic opponents […] More
India and China’s Game of Chicken at the “Chicken’s Neck”
The recent tensions between India and China have entered their sixth week. What began as a dispute over the location of a Chinese road building […] More
Signs of a Thaw in India, China Border Dispute
After six weeks, tensions remain high in the Dolam Plateau (within the Doklam area), a contested border area nestled between India, China, and Bhutan. China’s […] More
Border Dispute: China Won’t Back Off, India Can’t Back Down
After six weeks of tension between China and India over a Chinese road building project on contested territory, neither side is prepared to back down. […] More