Max Boot joins Richard Haass in touting the great success of the U.S. foreign policy establishment:Yes, post-1945 policymakers got it catastrophically wrong in Vietnam. But they got it right by containing the Soviet Union while building security alliances and...
The Case Against Congressional Meddling in Diplomacy
Kori Schake wants Congress to take more responsibility in foreign policy, but this proposal would effectively block almost all diplomatic agreements and make it practically impossible for the US to negotiate with almost anyone:Agreements with foreign powers, whether...
Biden Continues the War on Terror Beyond Afghanistan
The president delivered a good speech yesterday defending his decision to withdraw from Afghanistan and end the U.S. war there. Here was the key point:So we were left with a simple decision: Either follow through on the commitment made by the last administration and...
In Matters of War, Congress Is Worse Than Useless
Stephen Wertheim makes a good case that Congress needs to take up its responsibilities in matters of war:Mr. Biden inherited this situation, but he need not perpetuate either the ongoing wars or the legal evasions that enable them. He could tell Congress this: It has...
The Dishonest Case for Staying in Afghanistan
Richard Haass, the president of the Council on Foreign Relations, reminded us this week just how blinkered the opponents of withdrawing from Afghanistan are:The alternative to withdrawal from Afghanistan was not “endless occupation” but open-ended presence. Occupation...
Going to War Over Taiwan and the ‘Gas Tank of Will’
Benjamin Wallace-Wells profiles Elbridge Colby and discusses his hawkishness on China in a recent New Yorker article. This section was probably the most telling part of the entire piece:Colby’s response is to try to sever the transformational vision of the forever...
‘Reassuring’ Allies and Clients Breeds Dependency
There is a lot of chatter from the usual suspects about how Biden will need to “reassure” allies and clients following the withdrawal from Afghanistan, but that seems like a serious mistake. First, it’s not at all obvious that allies and clients genuinely need any...
The Forever War Goes to Congo
The forever war has now apparently expanded to the Congo:US special operations forces have arrived in the east of the DR Congo to help in the fight against a feared jihadist militia enjoying "sanctuary" in the region's nature parks, US and Congolese sources said...
Cultivating Dependent Clients Is a Recipe for Failure
Anatol Lieven explains how the failure to anticipate the collapse of Afghan government forces illustrates how little the US understands Afghanistan even after twenty years:I remembered this episode three years later, when the Communist state eventually fell to the...
Daniel Larison: Drawing Lessons From Afghanistan
Bret Stephens is in full fearmongering mode:Now, in the aftermath of Saigon redux, every enemy will draw the lesson that the United States is a feckless power, with no lasting appetite for defending the Pax Americana that is still the basis for world order. And every...


