The Joint Chiefs of Staff briefly published and then removed from public access a new edition of their official doctrine on the use of nuclear weapons. But a public copy was preserved. See Joint Publication 3-72, Nuclear Operations, June 11, 2019.
The Guardian: Nuclear weapons: experts alarmed by new Pentagon ‘war-fighting’ doctrine
US joint chiefs of staff posted then removed paper that suggests nuclear weapons could ‘create conditions for decisive results’…
John Batchelor and Andrew McCarthy: Why does Spygate matter for the future of national security?
John Batchelor and National Review’s Andrew McCarthy explore the possible ramifications of efforts by US law enforcement and intelligence agencies to surveil members of the 2016 Trump campaign.
Ed Lozansky: Russia’s role in American politics
A Trump-Putin opportunity at Osaka G-20 summit
Nadezhda Azhgihina: Is Russia Loosening Its Grip on the Press?
The unexpected release of journalist Ivan Golunov, who was arrested on false drug charges, could be a sign of change to come.
Leonid Bershidsky: Putin and Xi Are Going Soft on Protest. Why?
The differences between the Chinese and Russian situations are obvious: In Hong Kong, the protests and the concession have been much bigger. But the similarity of the authoritarian regimes’ retreating when they didn’t really have to – both have ample capacity for repression, and they could have stood their ground – is more intriguing.
Fred Weir: Russian internet giant Yandex takes rare stand against state snooping
The primacy of Russia’s security state is beginning to crimp the global growth of the country’s information technology sector. That could foretell hard choices for the government over what it will prioritize.
Stephen F. Cohen: Washington’s Dr. Strangeloves
Is plunging Russia into darkness really a good idea?
R. Jeffrey Smith: Scary Fast
How hypersonic missiles — which travel at more than 15 times the speed of sound — are touching off a new global arms race that threatens to change the nature of warfare.
Paul Robinson: Book Review: The Lands In Between
The Lands in Between begins with a quotation from what was possibly the worst book about Russia published in 2018 – Timothy Snyder’s The Road to Unfreedom. Snyder and Orenstein are clearly birds of a feather.
Stephen Walt: When Zombie Neoconservatives Attack
Why most Americans are right about foreign policy, and David Brooks is wrong.
Asia Times: Iran at the center of the Eurasian riddle
President Rouhani blasts US leader Donald Trump as ‘a serious threat to regional and world stability’, offers preferential treatment to SCO companies that invest in his country
Jon Basil Utley: How our attempts to get tough on Russia and Iran are hurting trade
The long term consequences of our trade sanctions are not yet clear. One possibility will be the break up of the world into two main trading blocs as China, Russia and Europe work to set up a trading system not dependent upon the dollar.
Peter Harris: Where is Trump the Realist?
Those who advocate for a more circumscribed foreign policy have every reason to feel cheated.
DW: NATO and Russia: Maneuvers and countermaneuvers in the Baltic Sea
NATO is again running Baltic Sea drills — but now, the exercise is headed by the US Navy’s 2nd Fleet, a key force during the Cold War era.
Daniel L. Davis: America’s Fear-Based Foreign Policy Needs to Go
Since 9/11, fear has become the basis for most of America’s foreign policy—and the lives of its citizens are worse because of it.
AFP: Moscow warns against ‘baseless accusations’ over tanker attacks
The Kremlin on Sunday warned against “baseless accusations” over last week’s attacks in the Gulf of Oman on two oil tankers, blamed by Washington and Riyadh on Iran.
Stephen Kinzer: America’s Legacy of Regime Change
For most of history, seizing another country or territory was a straightforward proposition. You assembled an army and ordered it to invade. Combat determined the victor. The toll in death and suffering was usually horrific, but it was all done in the open.
Rolling Stone: Pentagon Keeps Trump in the Dark About its Cyber Attacks on Russia
“Intelligence officials described broad hesitation to go into detail with [the president] about operations,” the report said.
Reuters: Putin says U.S.-Russia relations are getting ‘worse and worse’
Putin made his gloomy assessment ahead of a G20 summit in Japan later this month at which he might meet U.S. President Donald Trump.