Always the sucker for a postmortem or a lessons learned, we go back to Afghanistan and Foreign Affairs with Why Afghanistan Fell: An Insider’s Account of What Went Wrong. Ultimately, there was not a single thing that led to the Afghan collapse to the Taliban. The article focuses on the last two years of calamity and infighting but I suspect, as the author noted early in the piece, the fall was baked in the cake years prior via corruption, denial of ground truth and a system of governance that was doomed from the beginning. Now that the Taliban is firmly in control, the AP asks, EXPLAINER: Can the Taliban suppress the potent IS threat? The article is interesting, after all, the Taliban in only slightly less bad. Or is the Islamic State a threat to Taliban governance at all? DW tackles this question highlighting how confined the Islamic State’s influence really is in: Afghanistan: What will the Taliban do without an enemy to fight? The Taliban focus on governance is their priority as demonstrated in another DW article: Afghanistan: Taliban meet with EU, US representatives and just to make sure they are a success, The Taliban has many suitors lining up to help – Asia Times. While most of the talks concern the looming humanitarian crisis, the Asia Times dives into the power politics of the region. To round out our ol’ punch to the midsection, according to Al Monitor Muqtada al-Sadr set to claim victory in Iraqi elections. For something different, how about a demographic crisis with The Moscow Times’: Russia Marks Record 12-Month Population Decline. All of this and more in Today’s Daily Dump.
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October 12, 2021
Podcast: IN PURSUIT OF A GRAND STRATEGY – A BETTER PEACE
#Reviewing Bitskrieg – The Strategy Bridge
Europe’s Selfish Reaction to Australia’s Submarine Purchase – Royal United Services Institute
Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff: Getting Force Design Right in the Next National Defense Strategy – War on the Rocks
The Scylla and Charybdis of Duty Discharge: Military Dilemma with Undemocratic Leaders – War on the Rocks
Nuclear Operations and Counter-Homeland Conventional Warfare: Navigating Between Nuclear Restraint and Escalation Risk – Texas National Security Review
Hybrid Warfare and Active Measures – Small Wars Journal
Countering China’s Gray Zone Strategy – Small Wars Journal
The Afghan Air Force: A Harsh Lesson in the Expensive Game of Airpower Reconstruction – Small Wars Journal
10/11/2021 National Security and Korean News and Commentary – Small Wars Journal
Rising community violence exposes South Sudan’s fragile peace deal – Institute for Security Studies
Why Climate Policy Has Failed – Foreign Affairs
How to Prevent an Accidental War Over Taiwan – Foreign Affairs
Why Afghanistan Fell: An Insider’s Account of What Went Wrong – Foreign Affairs
Flanked by nuclear missile, N.Korean leader says U.S., S.Korea threaten peace – Reuters
Malaysia hopes for ASEAN consensus on Australian nuclear sub pact – Reuters
EXPLAINER: Can the Taliban suppress the potent IS threat? – AP
Fishing, Northern Ireland: EU, UK back to Brexit wrangling – AP
Kim vows to build ‘invincible’ military while slamming US – AP
Partial results show pro-Iran groups losing Iraq election – AP
Tigray forces say Ethiopia has launched a major offensive – AP
Indian troops kill 5 suspected militants in Kashmir fighting – AP
Afghanistan: Taliban meet with EU, US representatives – DW
Afghanistan: What will the Taliban do without an enemy to fight? – DW
Germany, France and Russia may hold summit on Ukraine conflict – DW
Muqtada al-Sadr set to claim victory in Iraqi elections – Al Monitor
Iraq captures ‘Most Wanted’ Islamic State finance chief – Al Monitor
Muqtada The Conqueror gains ground in Iraqi poll – Asia Times
The Taliban has many suitors lining up to help – Asia Times
Bashar al-Assad Steps In From the Cold, but Syria Is Still Shattered – The New York Times
The Haunted History Of Ukraine’s Underground River – Radio Free Europe
Float, Move, and Fight: How the U.S. Navy lost the shipbuilding race. – Foreign Policy
Abdul Qadeer Khan, Pakistani hero and rogue nuke-peddler, has died – The Economist
Tiny Leadership Tales – Grounded Curiosity
Russia Marks Record 12-Month Population Decline – The Moscow Times
Historic Judgment in Liberian Massacre Case Advances US Law – Just Security
What’s Next for U.S.-China Relations Amid Rising Tensions Over Taiwan – United States Institute for Peace
Why Multi-Billion Dollar Nuclear Submarines Still Run Into Things Underwater – The Drive
The Navy’s Next Laser Weapon Is Basically a Real-Life Ray Gun – Popular Mechanics
Another Global Pandemic Is Spreading—Among Pigs – Wired
The first Arab mission to Mars is delivering some interesting science – Ars Technica
When Will China Invade Taiwan? – Angry Planet
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