Russia’s war in Ukraine has recast the entire Arctic security architecture
Russia’s 2014 war of aggression against Ukraine – renewed in 2022 – is having worldwide ramifications, and the Arctic region is now experiencing fundamental changes to its overall security structures and infrastructure. Arctic institutions and organizations are being transformed because of Russia’s actions. These changes will continue to reverberate across the entire international system for…
Leaders in NATO countries are guilty of crimes against humanity, yet only Africans are tried
In recent months, words like genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes have been used extensively in the media. These are important legal terms, and they shouldn’t be used loosely. Using them as political weapons risks making them meaningless. The word ‘genocide’ was coined in 1944 by Polish-Jewish law professor Raphael Lemkin after he studied…
He expresses a vision that reaches back over 1,000 years, to a Russia that was an empire and proud of it
Let’s make a stipulation up front: Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine is unjustified. There’s no ambiguity on that score. Russia is the bad actor in this situation. Still, it’s always useful to understand the other guy. Understanding doesn’t imply approval and insight is never a bad thing to have. Putin is typically described…
Why isn't the West reacting more strongly to Russian aggression? Energy supplies
Ukraine is under fire and United States President Joe Biden and his NATO colleagues are talking tough on the Russian invasion of the country. But their hands seem tied. Russian President Vladimir Putin, the ex-KGB man, is already emerging as the winner of the first round of the battle for Kyiv. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy…
NATO largely ignored the ethnic, cultural, religious and other aspects of how Afghans live
The hasty, defeatist and craven withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces from Afghanistan in August has compelled the “civilized” Western nations and their leaders to confront the failures and errors of the past 20 years, which resemble those of earlier conflicts. The initial supposed conquest of Afghanistan relegated the remnants of the Taliban zealots to…
From 5G concerns internally to military spending on equipment to contributions to NATO, Canada falls far short of pulling its weight
“Canada needs to be in a position to defend itself and defend its values,” U.S. national security adviser Robert O’Brien told delegates at the Halifax International Security Summit recently. He urged Canada to keep its NATO commitments and increase defence spending. He also warned that Chinese company Huawei must be shut out of building 5G…
Our contribution to NATO shouldn't be measured by a flawed financial system. It's a matter of willingness and ability. We have both
U.S. President Trump is complaining about Canada and other allies not spending enough on their military operations. This brings into play the NATO goal of each country spending two per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) on defence. Aside from the ridiculous new idea of doubling that goal, there are two problems with this two…
While former KGB agent Vladimir Putin no longer reports to anyone, that doesn’t mean a demotion might not be in his future
Russia intervened in the Syrian Civil War in September 2015, with the deployment of a range of 65 bombers and fighters, 16 attack helicopters and roughly 4,000 personnel, including a contingent of Russian Special Forces. At the time, the Assad government was experiencing significant losses to the Syrian rebels and seemed on the verge of…
If progressives like Trudeau have often been less than enamoured of NATO, why is everyone so alarmed about Trump’s possible apostasy?
As U.S. President Donald Trump shakes up the existing order, the ripples are causing substantial discomfort beyond American shores. Will he, for example, walk away from the decades-long American commitment to collective defence under the auspices of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Canada has a long NATO history. But despite our current dismay with Trump,…
NATO needs to return to the basics, dust off the old manuals from the Cold War, and think through what is really required to successfully defend Eastern Europe
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is heralded as the world’s most successful military alliance. However, it finds itself under pressure from within and without. Some people in NATO countries do not understand the importance of its goal: to safeguard its members’ freedom and security by political and military means. This goal is executed through…
Russia’s 2014 war of aggression against Ukraine – renewed in 2022 – is having worldwide ramifications, and the Arctic region is now experiencing fundamental changes to its overall security structures and infrastructure. Arctic institutions and organizations are being transformed because of Russia’s actions. These changes will continue to reverberate across the entire international system for…
