Published on by Gary Grappo
Published first at The Cipher Brief on October 16, 2019
The argument often proffered to justify President Trump’s precipitous decision to withdraw U.S. forces from northeast Syria is that “America must end its ‘forever wars.’” Costly wars in Syria, Afghanistan and even Iraq have made the loss of American lives an almost daily occurrence, drained the American treasury, sapped the vigor of the world’s most […]
Published on by Gary Grappo
Published first at Fair Observer on October 2, 2019
One year after his grisly execution by a hit squad, the memory of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and his aspirations for the people of Saudi Arabia haunt the world’s collective conscience. On October 2, 2018, Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi expatriate journalist, walked into the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. What then transpired resembled a 1920s American gangland-style […]
Published on by Gary Grappo
Published first at Fair Observer on September 18, 2019
The attack on oil facilities in Saudi Arabia, the consequent impact on oil markets and the effect on the global economy mark the third Middle East conflict to become internationalized in the last decade. “If we don’t go to the Middle East, the Middle East will come to us.” That prophetic comment was once shared […]
Published on by Gary Grappo
Published first at Fair Observer on August 14, 2019
If America has abdicated its global leadership role, are we now left with a free-for-all? People around the world, including Americans, have argued that the world can get along without US leadership. Today, they may want to scan the global landscape. While acute crises and violent conflict may not seem imminent at the moment, the […]
Published on by Gary Grappo
Published first at The Cipher Brief on July 25, 2019
The various sanctions the U.S. has imposed on Iran have exacted an economic toll far more onerous than what the Iranians and other observers anticipated. Unlike those imposed in the past by the U.S., the EU and the UN, these were done to cause real harm and pain to Iran’s economy. And they have, despite […]