NATO | AEIdeas

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Foreign and Defense Policy, Middle East and North Africa

Obama’s decision point on Turkey

Niklas Anzinger | May 14, 2013, 9:31 am

On May 16, 2013, President Obama will host Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the White House. In a January 2012 interview, Obama counted Erdoğan as one of his top five foreign friends. Erdoğan, who has made a half … read more >

Foreign and Defense Policy

Is De Gaulle rolling over in his grave?

Gary Schmitt | April 30, 2013, 11:53 am

It’s a sad state of affairs when a major allied country can spend 1.5% of its GDP on defense and remain Europe’s No. 2 in military spending. But that’s the case now with France, whose defense expenditure remains only slightly … read more >

Image Credit: Yanni Koutsomitis (Flickr) (CC BY 2.0)

Foreign and Defense Policy, Europe and Russia

EU gets the prize, NATO gets the snub

Gary Schmitt | December 12, 2012, 8:55 am

On Monday, the Nobel Peace Prize was presented to the European Union, with the claim that the EU was essential for post-World War II reconciliation and “probably the most dramatic example in history to show that war and conflict can … read more >

Image Credit: Official U.S. Army Imagery (Flickr) (CC BY 2.0)

Foreign and Defense Policy

Restricting joint operations with ANSF: Major setback to mission in Afghanistan

Ahmad Majidyar | September 19, 2012, 8:31 am

The U.S. and NATO’s decision to restrict joint operations with the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) presents a major setback to the military mission in Afghanistan. The new rules call into question the most critical pillar of the Obama administration’s … read more >

Foreign and Defense Policy, Europe and Russia

Missile defense cooperation with Russia should be limited

Daniel Vajdic | March 14, 2012, 4:16 pm

The Obama administration is reportedly prepared to share interceptor data with the Kremlin to alleviate Russian concerns about U.S. missile defense plans in Europe. This would include information about interceptors’ “velocity at burnout,” or VBO, which indicates an interceptor’s speed … read more >

Foreign and Defense Policy

What next for Pakistan’s army?

Sadanand Dhume | November 29, 2011, 9:14 am

As Afghans and Pakistanis trade charges over the circumstances that led to the death of 24 Pakistani soldiers on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border Saturday, once again the Pakistani army finds itself under scrutiny. Afghan and Western officials say Afghan troops called … read more >

Foreign and Defense Policy

AEI Debate Prep: Charting the right course in Afghanistan

Gary Schmitt | November 10, 2011, 9:30 am

This post is part of an ongoing series preparing for the AEI/CNN/Heritage National Security & Foreign Policy GOP presidential debate on November 22. See the rest of the posts here. President Obama is to be given credit for increasing the … read more >

Foreign and Defense Policy, Terrorism

Follow the Leader: Obama’s Drawdown Echoes across ISAF

Richard Cleary | June 29, 2011, 10:05 am

In the advance to President Obama’s Afghan speech, one of the worst fears of observers was that a drawdown of American troops would open the door for other NATO members to withdraw troops as well. As my colleague Gary Schmitt … read more >

Foreign and Defense Policy

SecDef at Notre Dame: ‘The Ultimate Guarantee against the Success of Aggressors, Dictators, and Terrorists…Is Hard Power’

Lazar Berman | May 23, 2011, 12:22 am

“If history–and religion–teach us anything, it is that there will always be evil in the world, people bent on aggression, oppression, satisfying their greed for wealth and power and territory, or determined to impose an ideology based on the subjugation … read more >

Politics and Public Opinion

NATO Secretary General in Texas to Thank Troops as Obama Fundraises, Pushes Agenda

Bridget Johnson | May 10, 2011, 2:33 pm

At 3:30 p.m. ET, President Obama, on his first trip to the U.S.-Mexico border as president, “Delivers a speech on importance of fixing the broken immigration system for our nation’s 21st century economic and security needs so that America can … read more >