Obama amid the redrawn Levant
Take a step back and look at what is going on in the Middle East from a 30,000-foot level and you won't like what you see. Published September 11, 2015
L. Todd Wood
Articles by L. Todd Wood
U.S. vulnerable to terrorists exploiting refugee crisis
The Obama administration announced Thursday that the United States will take up to 10,000 additional Syrian refugees over the next year. Published September 10, 2015
Russia admits troops in Syria
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Reuters Wednesday that Russia indeed has advisers in Syria training and assisting Assad government forces. Published September 9, 2015
Snowden calls out Hillary from Moscow
From Russia, with love, Edward Snowden lashed out at his critics and slammed U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton during an online interview with Al Jazeera. From Russia, with love, Edward Snowden lashed out at his critics and slammed U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton during an online interview with Al Jazeera. Published September 7, 2015
Chinese navy gives Obama an Alaskan welcome
As President Obama confirmed the Alaskan glaciers were melting in the summer, the Chinese navy gave our president a warm Alaskan welcome as he made his historic trip to the 49th state. Published September 3, 2015
Putin puts boots on the ground in Syria
Last month, the Obama administration squealed and complained to the Kremlin, when Iranian Quds Force commander, Qassem Soleimani, visited Moscow in an apparent violation of a U.N. travel ban due to Soleimani's sponsorship of terrorism. Published September 1, 2015
Kiev erupts over status changes in the East per Minsk Agreement
Protests turned violent outside of the Ukrainian parliament today as lawmakers considered granting special status to the separatist regions in East Ukraine as required by the Minsk agreement negotiated between Germany, France, Russia, and Kiev. According to the Ukrainian government, MPs gave initial approval to the proposal; however, the deal's final passage is far from assured. Published August 31, 2015
Russia's dirty war in Ukraine
You have to wonder what the Kremlin has been thinking. I mean, did they really think they were going to get away with it? Published August 27, 2015
East Ukraine could be annexed soon
Much has been made in the media in recent weeks about the increased violence in East Ukraine between Ukrainian government forces and pro-Russia rebels of the Donetsk People's Republic, or DPR. Published August 21, 2015
The day China says its currency is backed by gold
It's common knowledge the Chinese have about $2 trillion in foreign currency reserves. What a nice, fat bank account. Published August 18, 2015
Will Obama disarm our missile defense for Russia?
American missile defense has long bothered Russia, which relies on its nuclear capability to project power and strength on the world stage Published August 14, 2015
Is East Ukraine about to blow?
It seems the mask of a cease fire has come off in East Ukraine. Ukrainian government forces report assaults across the front lines in recent days with the heaviest attacks on the territory around Mariupol, the key port city on the Sea of Azov. Published August 12, 2015
Debate issues too serious to just look at personalities
As the first Republican debate nears closer this evening, I am dismayed by the soundbites coming from the press as the sniping between the candidates increases. Published August 6, 2015
Is Russia preparing to send troops to Syria?
There was confusion coming out of the Kremlin on Tuesday regarding Russia sending paratroopers to help the Assad regime in Syria, a longtime client state of Moscow. Published August 4, 2015
We're facing a crisis of rational thought
I was forced to watch CNN Monday morning while sitting in a professional's waiting room. The subject of discussion was the explosion in murders in New York and other cities in the last year. Published August 3, 2015
Russia to reap weapons windfall with Iran
Although the press has not had access to the entire agreement, including secret side deals, it seems that Russia will now be unrestrained to harvest the Iranian arms market. Published July 31, 2015
Russia unveils new naval doctrine, but can it afford it?
Sunday was Navy Day in Russia, celebrating the power and history of the Russian fleet. The Kremlin used the occasion to announce a new naval doctrine on its website which lays out an ambitious plan to modernize and reconstitute a blue water Russian naval force. Although it sounds powerful on paper, the real question with oil trending below $50 a barrel, is whether Russia can afford this agenda. Published July 27, 2015
Collapsing oil could cause a war in Europe
The price of crude oil is plummeting again with West Texas Intermediate closing below $50 a barrel, possibly on its way to retest its recent lows of $42. For the commodity exporting BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), this is not good, especially not good for Russia. Published July 23, 2015
Snowden leak: Israeli assassins killed top Syrian general at seaside home
According to top secret NSA documents leaked by Edward Snowden, who still resides in Moscow, Israeli commandos assassinated a top Syrian general as he entertained at a dinner party held at his seaside, weekend home in August of 2008. Published July 16, 2015
The Manchurian president, complicit Dems destroy our national security
Democrat Barack Obama said in the second presidential debate in October of 2008: "We cannot allow Iran to get a nuclear weapon. It would be a game-changer in the region. Not only would it threaten Israel, our strongest ally in the region and one of our strongest allies in the world, but it would also create a possibility of nuclear weapons falling into the hands of terrorists. And so it's unacceptable. And I will do everything that's required to prevent it. And we will never take military options off the table." It was a lie. Published July 15, 2015
