TRAVELING THE WORLD, WRITING WHAT THE PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW.
TRAVELING THE WORLD, WRITING WHAT THE PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW.
On Monday, the White House released the new National Security Strategy (NSS), and despite officials having said in the lead-up to the release it would be a major break with the past, the changes appear largely to be within the rhetoric, not the specifics. The new NSS relies heavily and repeatedly on the phrase “putting America Read More…
North Korea is constantly expressing concern about the growing number of US military drills along their border, and while US officials have insisted such drills are routine, it’s hard not to see the nature of them as inherently hostile toward the North Korean government. The most recent drill, entitled “Warrior Strike,” was a four day Read More…
Iran’s Foreign Minister likened Nikki Haley’s presentation to Colin Powell’s 2003 WMD speech about Iraq, which precipitated the disastrous US invasion and occupation of Iraq. The Iranian government issued a statement Thursday denying that a presentation by the U.S. represented proof that they’d been sending arms to the Shia Houthis in Yemen in a bid to Read More…
Most reports have presented North Korea’s nuclear retaliatory capabilities as a rapidly advancing part of their military, and one which may preclude a unilateral US attack against them. Secretary of Defense James Mattis has rejected that idea. On Friday, Mattis said analysis of the most recent North Korean test launch, the one that led many Read More…
UN special rapporteur on torture Nils Melzer has issued a new statement on Wednesday claiming information that Gitmo detainee Ammar al-Baluchi continues to be subjected to torture by US forces, including treatments banned under international law. Baluchi is being accused of having “facilitated” 9/11, and worked as a courier for Osama bin Laden. During his detention at a CIA Read More…
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson appeared to make a major change to the US position with respect to possible direct negotiations with North Korea, saying Tuesday that he is prepared to engage in such talks without preconditions. Historically, the US has demanded North Korea unilaterally disarm before they would even consider negotiations, something which North Korea has Read More…