by John Isaacs President-elect Barack Obama announced today that he will nominate Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) to be Secretary of State. Selecting a former rival for the most prestigious of cabinet positions has unleashed a torrent of media coverage, most of which has focused on grossly exaggerated disagreements during the presidential campaign and behind-the-scenes political […]
How Comfortable is the U.S.-Iraq SOFA?
by John Isaacs by Travis Sharp CONCLUSIONS IN BRIEF The agreement represents a stunning reversal in policy for the Bush administration, which until now rejected any timeline for troop withdrawals. The Bush administration has fallen in line behind the policy of President-elect Barack Obama, who has proposed removing U.S. combat troops from Iraq within 16 […]
New Systems Boost Iraqi Surveillance Capability
by Travis Sharp Lynx II radar system’s electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) output (General Atomics) While the election of Barack Obama heralds an impending change in U.S. policy toward Iraq, defense officials in Washington and Baghdad continue to focus on transforming the Iraqi military into a legitimate fighting force. Both the United States and Iraq seem to agree […]
Obering’s Missile Defense Exaggerations
by John Isaacs On November 12, Lt. General Henry Obering, head of the Missile Defense Agency (MDA), gave a press briefing where he wildly exaggerated the capabilities of U.S. missile defense systems. Gen. Obering: Our testing has shown not only can we hit a bullet with a bullet, we can hit a spot on the […]
NPR Interview: Galbraith Backs Ethnically Divided Iraq
by Peter W. Galbraith Ambassador Peter Galbraith, senior diplomatic fellow at the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, talked about Iraq on NPR’s All Things Considered on November 12. The transcript is below. SIEGEL: Well, our guest today has written in support of the partition of Iraq, the idea of splitting the country up into […]
