U.S. Intervention

No Picture

Barack Obama, coverage of foreign events, Deutschland, Egypt, International Law, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Lebanon, Middle East, Nuclear Proliferation, nuclear war, Qatar, religious belief, Russia, Saudi Arabia, State Department Legal Adviser, syria, Turkey, U.N. Charter, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, Ukraine, united arab emirates, United States, use of force, Vladimir Putin, war crimes March 27, 2015

U.S. strategy and leadership needed: The Middle East and other countries hurtle into the Vortex

On some days, the news is so disturbing that you want to take a broader view of what is going on in a region, or…

No Picture

Central African Republic, Crimea, Deutschland, France, Germany, History, International Law, NATO, OSCE, Russia, sanctions, self-defense, State Department, State Department Legal Adviser, U.N. Charter, U.N. Security Council, U.S. Congress, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, use of force, Vladimir Putin, war crimes February 15, 2015

What’s the hurry? Russia pushes hard for U.N. Security Council resolution endorsing Minsk II agreement—a “Munich II” agreement reached under the pressure of Russian military aggression

Angela Merkel and Francois Hollande may assume they have achieved something notable in the Minsk II agreement of February 12, but in point of fact…

No Picture

Barack Obama, China, Crimea, Deutschland, Dictatorship, European Union, France, Germany, OSCE, Russia, sanctions, self-defense, State Department, State Department Legal Adviser, syria, U.N. Charter, U.N. Security Council, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, use of force, Vladimir Putin, war crimes February 14, 2015

U.S., France, U.K. and other members should vehemently oppose any Russian-backed Security Council resolution endorsing Minsk II agreement

News reports speak of the intention of Russia to bring a resolution to the U.N. Security Council which would incorporate the terms of the Minsk…

No Picture

Barack Obama, China, Crimea, Deutschland, Dictatorship, European Union, France, Germany, History, International Law, NATO, Russia, sanctions, self-defense, State Department, State Department Legal Adviser, U.N. Charter, U.N. Security Council, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, use of force, Vladimir Putin February 9, 2015

February 11 Minsk Summit on the Ukraine: Latest update and analysis (Updated February 10, 2015)

Updated February 10, 2015 BACKGROUND The following articles, by some of the most experienced and incisive commentators writing on international affairs, provide the context and…

No Picture

Barack Obama, Deutschland, European Union, France, Germany, History, human rights, International Law, NATO, Russia, sanctions, self-defense, Spain, State Department Legal Adviser, U.N. Charter, U.N. Security Council, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, Ukraine, United Nations Secretary General, United States, use of force, Vladimir Putin, war crimes February 7, 2015

REPRISE: Kiev caves in to Russian military threats, offering far-reaching concessions in eastern Ukraine; Pacifism and appeasement grip Wasington and Europe; First signs of Russian military intervention appear, as troops on border are poised to strike

Originally published April 12, 2014 The Atmosphere in Washington On Saturday, April 12, The New York Times did not have a story (or even a…

No Picture

Barack Obama, CIA, Crimea, Deutschland, European Union, Germany, History, International Law, NATO, OSCE, Russia, sanctions, self-defense, State Department, syria, U.N. Charter, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, Ukraine, United States, use of force, Vladimir Putin, war crimes February 3, 2015

Will Obama and EU countries send lethal arms to help Kiev in Russian-Ukrainian war?

Developing See (1) Carsten Luther (Kommentar), “UKRAINE: Manchmal helfen nur Waffen; Militärisch ist der Krieg in der Ukraine nicht zu lösen. Und doch könnten gerade…

No Picture

"that spark of the divine", Barack Obama, Crimes Against Humanity, History, human rights, International Law, NATO, Russia, State Department, State Department Legal Adviser, syria, U.N. Charter, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, United States, use of force, war crimes December 24, 2014

REPRISE: Christmas reflections—What Obama has taught the American people about Syria

First published on December 25, 2013 We owe it to the people of Syria to pause for a moment, on this Christmas Day, and bow…

No Picture

Barack Obama, coverage of foreign events, Crimea, foreign news coverage, human rights, International Law, NATO, OSCE, Russia, sanctions, self-defense, State Department, State Department Legal Adviser, U.N. Charter, U.N. Security Council, U.S. Congress, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, U.S. news coverage, Ukraine, United States, use of force, Vladimir Putin, war crimes November 12, 2014

Go for Putin!

Commentary The contempt Vladimir Putin evidently feels for Barack Obama and the West was revealed in a split-second at the APEC summit in Beijing these…

No Picture

"that spark of the divine", Barack Obama, China, Crimea, Crimes Against Humanity, Deutschland, extrajudicial execution, extraordinary rendering, extraordinary rendition, France, Germany, History, human rights, internal supporters of human rights, International Law, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Libya, Nobel Lecture, Nobel Peace Prize, Nuclear Proliferation, Oslo, Russia, sanctions, Saudi Arabia, self-defense, State Department, State Department Legal Adviser, syria, Taliban, targeted assassinations, targeted killings, Torture, U.N. Charter, U.N. Security Council, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, Ukraine, United States, use of force, vision of peace, Vladimir Putin, war crimes November 11, 2014

REPRISE: Veterans’ Day, 2011: “Where have all the flowers gone, long time passing?”

First published, November 11, 2011 My uncle died in a field in northern France with a German bullet in his head. To him, and all…

No Picture

Barack Obama, China, Crimea, Crimes Against Humanity, Deutschland, Dictatorship, European Union, extrajudicial execution, France, Germany, History, human rights, internal supporters of human rights, International Law, Iran, Libya, Libya, NATO, Nuclear Proliferation, Russia, sanctions, self-defense, State Department Legal Adviser, syria, U.N. Charter, U.N. Security Council, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, use of force, Vladimir Putin, war crimes October 21, 2014

REPRISE — The fruits of pacifist foreign policies: Aggression in Ukraine, atrocities in Syria

Viewing the developing Russian-Ukrainian war from the vantage point of March 3, 2014, it is striking to note how much of what has happened since…

No Picture

Barack Obama, Crimea, Crimes Against Humanity, Deutschland, Dictatorship, Ebola, European Union, France, Germany, human rights, International Law, Iraq, Justice Department, Middle East, Russia, sanctions, self-defense, State Department, syria, Turkey, U.N. Charter, U.S Foreign Relations, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, Ukraine, United States, use of force, Vladimir Putin, war crimes October 11, 2014

A rudderless U.S. foreign policy: Obama flounders in dealing with the Ukraine, ISIS, and Ebola

Draft While the United States has finally, and belatedly, begun military actions in Iraq and Syria to slow the advance of ISIS forces, the country…

No Picture

Barack Obama, Crimea, Crimes Against Humanity, extrajudicial execution, International Law, State Department Legal Adviser, syria, targeted assassinations, targeted killings, Turkey, U.N. Charter, U.N. Security Council, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, United States, use of force, war crimes October 7, 2014

International law and the use of military force against groups in Syria

There is considerable confusion over the legality under international law of taking military action against groups and targets in Syria. This has led some governments…

No Picture

Barack Obama, Crimea, Crimes Against Humanity, Deutschland, European Union, foreign correspondents, France, Germany, human rights, International Law, NATO, Russia, sanctions, State Department, syria, U.N. Charter, U.S. Congress, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, Ukraine, United States, use of force, Vladimir Putin, war crimes September 20, 2014

Obama in Control: No lethal aid for Ukraine, no combat troops in Iraq no matter what, and lethal aid for “moderates” in Syria

Friday night fatigue can affect one’s musings on world affairs. Much of the fatigue this week comes from the news. The Russian-Ukrainian War Russia is…

No Picture

Barack Obama, CIA, Crimea, Crimes Against Humanity, Deutschland, Egypt, European Union, extrajudicial execution, extraordinary rendering, extraordinary rendition, France, Germany, human rights, International Law, Libya, Mossad, NATO, Russia, sanctions, self-defense, State Department, syria, targeted assassinations, targeted killings, Torture, U.N. Charter, U.N. Convention Against Torture, U.N. Torture Convention, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, Ukraine, United States, use of force, Vladimir Putin, war crimes September 16, 2014

Order in the World: Things fall apart

One of the wisest and most-experieced journalists reporting on foreign policy, Roger Cohen, who writes an Op-Ed column for the New York Times, has published…

No Picture

Barack Obama, Crimea, Deutschland, European Union, France, Germany, History, International Law, Justice Department, NATO, Russia, sanctions, self-defense, State Department, State Department Legal Adviser, U.N. Charter, U.S. Congress, U.S. Intervention, Ukraine, United States, use of force, Vladimir Putin August 26, 2014

REPRISE: Overt Russian military invasion of the Ukraine underway; West must impose harsh stage 3 sanctions immediately

Putin has challenged directly the existing international political and legal order, upon which, incidentally, the world’s economic order rests.

Either Putin and Russia win, or the West and the other civilized countries of the world win.

It is that stark and simple.

No Picture

Barack Obama, Crimea, Dictatorship, electronic curtain, Google, Intelligence, International Law, public diplomacy, Russia, sanctions, self-defense, State Department, State Department Legal Adviser, television, U.S. Congress, U.S. Intervention, Ukraine, United States, use of force April 27, 2014

Russia’s propaganda and empty justifications for aggression in the Ukraine; the urgent need for the West to broadcast accurate news into eastern Ukraine

See Nik Afanasjew, “RUSSISCHE PROPAGANDA: Senden, um zu siegen; Im Krieg der Worte ist die Ukraine zum Schlachtfeld geworden; Die russische Propaganda ist Putins schärfste…

No Picture

Barack Obama, Deutschland, France, Germany, Intelligence, International Law, Justice Department, NATO, Nuclear Proliferation, Russia, sanctions, self-defense, U.N. Charter, U.N. Security Council, U.S. Congress, U.S. Intervention, U.S. Military, Ukraine, United States, use of force March 14, 2014

To influence Putin: Strong action by the West is required—Analysis and further commentary on the Ukraine

The Crimea is going ahead with its referendum, on Sunday, on whether it wants to be annexed by Russia. The Russian parliament or Duma is…