Blog Posts

Here is the latest edition of my column at Foreign Policy:

Topics include:

1) In its dealings with the United States, will the new Egypt take after Pakistan?

2) Should the Pentagon flaunt its cyberpower?

In its dealings with the United States, will the new Egypt take after Pakistan?

This week's battle between pro- and anti-Mubarak supporters for control of Cairo's Tahrir Square only deepened the mystery over where Egypt's latest revolution is headed. Mubarak has promised to step down after presidential elections in September, though it remains to be seen if he'll have to make an exit much sooner than that. What will follow, no one can say. The U.S. government has long granted a generous foreign assistance package to Egypt in order to maintain Mubarak's support for critical interests in the region. Regardless of what form the new, post-Mubarak government takes, the financial price the United States will have to pay to keep Egypt on its side will almost certainly go up.

Whether the next government is authoritarian or representative, the street protests of the past two weeks will force it to do more than Mubarak ever did to reflect popular will. The Mubarak government was as pro-American as U.S. policymakers could reasonably hope for; its successor will almost certainly be less so. Its level of dependence on the United States will start out the same, but its level of antagonism will very likely go up. At the same time the new Egyptian government will also have important leverage over the United States. Since 9/11, Pakistan's leaders have shown how leverage and antagonism can be combined into a money machine financed by the U.S. treasury. Obama and his officials should expect the new Egyptian government, whatever form it takes, to quickly apply the same formula.

Click below to read more ...

Ed. Note:  Bob Jones' article

A Populace-Centric Foreign Policy, published at World Politics Review in Feb

2009, will be available in front of their paywall until Feb 13, courtesy of WPR.  Thanks to Judah,

Hampton, and all.  And thanks, Bob.

Guest post by Robert C. Jones:

The Department of State focuses on governments.  The Department of Defense

focuses on Threats.  With two such powerful governmental organizations at work,

it is only natural that U.S. foreign policy would also so be focused on

relationships with allied governments to work together to contain, deter, and if

necessary, defeat any array of threats.  Lost in this equation are the people.

In an age of rapid and widespread information and transportation technology the

people are connected and empowered in ways that were unimaginable even a few

short years ago.

Who says we're just a bunch of theorists, analysts, and policy wonks?  How

about someone from our Small Wars Journal community taking on a mission & taking

down the competition?

Received this from Lauren via email.  Obviously her encyclopedic casting

genius sensed that the center of

c.2009 hotness was ready to stretch it's legs again.  Speaking of stretching,

I guess this announcement is stretching our sense of just how big our community

tent is, but we're all about a big and inclusive tent, so here goes with this casting

call:

Egyptians Muster for New Protest as Crackdown Widens - New York Times

Protesters Again Fill Tahrir Square for 'Departure' Rally - Washington Post

Egyptian Throngs Have a Word for Mubarak: 'Leave!' - Los Angeles Times

Mubarak 'Fears Chaos if He Quits' - BBC News

Turmoil Heartens U.S. Foes - Wall Street Journal

Amid Arab Protests, U.S. Influence Has Waned - Washington Post

U.S. Intelligence on Arab Unrest Draws Criticism - Associated Press

Obama Cautiously Shifting World View on Democracy - Washington Post

Israel Ponders Border Security Amid Unrest - Washington Post

Many in Pakistan Fear Unrest at Home - New York Times

Kandahar: Safer for Good or Just Safer for Now? - Stars and Stripes

Petraeus Discusses Troop Transition Options - AFPS

China Eyes U.S. Defense Contracts - Wall Street Journal

Proposal for Cyber War Rules of Engagement - BBC News

Ft. Hood Shooting: Senate Report Blasts Army - Stars and Stripes

Continue on for today's SWJ news and opinion links.

In Tough Choices: Sustaining Amphibious Capabilities' Contributions to Strategic Shaping, a new report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Maren Leed and Benjamin Moody analyze the value amphibious operations currently make to America's "strategic shaping" strategy. As the debate over the EFV showed, amphibious capabilities are expensive and compete with other defense priorities. In their report, Leed and Moody assert that calculations that look for savings in the amphibious budget should take into account the cost it would take other substitute forces to perform the strategic shaping or "Phase Zero" missions currently performed by U.S. amphibious forces and the risk assumed by no longer performing those shaping missions.

Resources for the Leed-Moody report included numerous interviews with a variety of military officers and diplomats, along with examinations of unit records, post-deployments briefs, and command histories. In the preparation of the report, the authors assessed the importance and impact by geographical region of various shaping activities (humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations, partnership activities, and regional assurance and deterrence operations). Similarly compared were the regional importance of the various attributes of amphibious capabilities (breadth, visibility, responsiveness, scalability, persistence, mobility, etc.).

Leed and Moody recommend that decision-makers in the Pentagon adopt an opportunity cost model when contemplating force structure reductions. In addition to standard cost and risk considerations, such a model would also consider the costs shifted to other capabilities by a force structure decision and the risks assumed from foregoing strategic shaping activities.

In addition, listen to this 6:38 audio summary of the report delivered by Maren Leed.

Nothing follows.

Arab World Faces Its Uncertain Future - New York Times

Violence Escalates After Gunfire Assault - Wall Street Journal

Mubarak Supporters Clash With Anti-Government Protesters in Cairo - VOA

Five Fatally Shot in Second Day of Bloody Clashes - Washington Post

Egypt: Gunfire Rings Out as Protesters Clash - New York Times

Mubarak Backers Join Fray in Egypt - Washington Times

Battered Protesters Remain After Deadly Clashes - Los Angeles Times

Egypt PM Apologises for Violence - BBC News

Death Toll Grows in Egypt Protests - Los Angeles Times

U.S. Decries Use of 'Thugs' Against Egyptian Protesters - Voice of America

Landscape in Tatters, But Movement Stands Ground - Los Angeles Times

ElBaradei: The Unlikely Face of Egypt's Protesters - Washington Post

Mubarak Still Has Support, from Rich and Poor - Washington Post

European Leaders: Egypt Transition Must Start Now - Associated Press

U.S. Reexamining Relationship with Muslim Brotherhood - Washington Post

Sudden Split Recasts U.S. Foreign Policy - New York Times

As Crisis Deepens in Egypt, U.S. 'Can't Dictate Events' - Washington Post

U.S. Diplomats Gather in Washington - New York Times

U.S. Neoconservatives Split with Israeli Allies - Washington Post

Analysts Assess Role of Egyptian Intelligence Services in Crisis - VOA

Egypt: Hackers Shut Down Government Sites - New York Times

Mullen Reiterates Confidence in Egyptian Military - AFPS

Journalists Are Targets of Violence in Cairo - New York Times

Disarray at Cairo Airport as Thousands Try to Leave Egypt - Voice of America

Shippers Concerned Over Possible Suez Canal Disruptions - New York Times

Frank Wisner, the Diplomat Sent to Prod Mubarak - New York Times

Egypt's Upheaval Hardens Israel's Stance on Peace - New York Times

Israel Concerned Egypt Upheaval Could Radicalize Arab Neighbors - VOA

Arab Rulers Watch Unrest for Signs it's Contagious - Washington Times

U.S. Angered Over Egypt, Hopeful Over Yemen, Jordan - Associated Press

Yemeni President to Step Down in 2013 - Voice of America

Dueling Protests in Yemen Unfold Peacefully - New York Times

Yemen's President Looks to Quell Unrest - Washington Post

Yemen Protests: 20,000 Call for President Saleh To Go - BBC News

Yemen Next: 20,000 on Streets in 'Day of Rage' - NBC News

Premier of Jordan Holds Talks With Rivals - New York Times

Young Sudanese Start Protest Movement - New York Times

Upheaval Puts Jihadi Militants in the Lurch - New York Times

Egypt's Blood on Obama's Hands? - Washington Times editorial

Egypt's Bumbling Brotherhood - New York Times opinion

U.S. Walks the Line on Egypt - Los Angeles Times opinion

Obama the Realist - Washington Post opinion

Watching Thugs With Razors and Clubs - New York Times opinion

Beirut Calling - Los Angeles Times opinion

Continue on for today's SWJ news and opinion links.

Matthew Millham

ISAF HQ Public Affairs

Coalition forces in southern Afghanistan provided $1.4 million in compensation in the last four months to Afghan civilians whose properties were rigged with explosives by Taliban militants and later demolished by Afghan and coalition security forces.

The coalition has tried to avoid such demolitions, choosing to defuse explosive devices and save buildings from destruction when feasible. But in some cases, officials say, the risk to security forces' lives is too great to justify trying to save structures that have often been abandoned for months or years.

Most of the demolitions occurred in three districts in Taliban strongholds in Kandahar province, where a major Afghan and International Security Assistance Force offensive, dubbed Operation Dragon Strike, began in September.

Continue on for more...

Obama Urges Faster Shift of Power in Egypt - New York Times

Obama: Transition in Egypt 'Must Begin Now' - Washington Post

Pressure Mounts on Egypt's Mubarak - BBC News

Mubarak's Pledge Seen as Not Enough - Washington Post

Protesters Unmoved by Mubarak's Speech - Christian Science Monitor

Egypt's Army Calls for End to Protests - Wall Street Journal

Egypt's Army Tells Anti-Mubarak Protesters "Enough" - Reuters

How Cairo, U.S. Were Blindsided by Revolution - Wall Street Journal

Mubarak's Departure Raises Tough Questions for U.S., Israel - National Journal

Jordan's King Dismisses Government Amid Protests - Wall Street Journal

Yemeni President Says He Won't Seek Another Term - Associated Press

Yemen Hopes to Stave Off Spreading Arab Unrest - Reuters

U.S. General Sees Success Even if Pakistan Doesn't Act - New York Times

Rodriguez: Taliban Likely to Favor More Indirect Attacks - Stars and Stripes

Aide: Karzai Won't Offer Taliban 'Power-sharing' - McClatchy Newspapers

Afghan Taliban Members Seek Guarantees for Peace Talks - BBC News

Pakistan Court Bars American's Release - Wall Street Journal

Iraq: Diplomat Defends Size, Cost of State Dept. Presence - Washington Post

Continue on for today's SWJ news and opinion links.

A few highlights from the day's testimony:

1) Roger Cliff of RAND discussed how the People's Liberation Army (PLA) describes its "active defense" doctrine, noting that the PLA never uses such U.S. terms as "area denial" or "anti-access." Cliff notes that since its founding in 1927, the PLA has long become used to the idea of engaging in combat against better-equipped adversaries. According to Cliff, the PLA's current doctrine emphasizes seven principles: avoiding direct confrontation; seizing the initiative early; surprise; preemption; "key point strikes" against critical nodes; "concentrated attack;" and information superiority. Applying this doctrine to a hypothetical China-U.S. matchup in East Asia, Cliff would expect the PLA to bypass frontline U.S. forces and instead focus its attacks on U.S. bases, the U.S. supply and maintenance system, and the U.S. command and control system.

2) Martin Libicki of RAND discussed two scenarios involving China's use of offensive cyber operations, the first for strategic coercion and the second in operational support of a conventional military campaign. Libicki asserted that the U.S. government has yet to assess its risk exposure to cyber attack, let alone calculate its ability to fight through such an attack.

3) Lt. Gen. David Deptula, USAF (ret), catalogued the PLA's current and near-term capabilities in integrated air defense; conventional missile forces; integrated joint operations; and space and counter-space operations. For non-conventional operations, Deptula discussed the Chinese concept of the "Three Warfares": psychological operations, influence operations, and "legal warfare."

4) Finally, Jim Thomas of CSBA discussed his recommendations for a U.S. regional response. Thomas recommended that the U.S. should encourage its allies and partners in Southeast Asia to develop their own "mini anti-access/area denial" defense postures. Second, the U.S. should promote regional defense planning, coordination, and transparency. Third, the U.S. should promote regional ISR data sharing. Fourth, the U.S. should expand its own military engagement activities with its allies and partners in the region. Finally, the U.S. should continue to develop and refine its emerging AirSea Battle concept.

There are additional witness statements and documents not covered in this summary. Click here to see all of the witnesses and their statements.

Nothing follows.

Mubarak Seeks Dialogue, Shows No Sign of Relenting - Washington Post

Mubarak's Grip on Power Is Shaken - New York Times

Egypt Protests Strengthen, Army Vows to Hold Fire - Los Angeles Times

Thousands Gather at Egypt Protest - BBC News

Egyptian Protesters: 'The People Won't Get Tired' - USA Today

U.S. Open to Islamist Role in New Egypt Government - Los Angeles Times

Muslim Brotherhood May Gain Power in Egypt by Default - The Guardian

Anti-American Sentiment Gradually Surfaces in Egypt - Los Angeles Times

U.S. Begins Evacuation Flights From Cairo - New York Times

Losses at Afghan Bank Could Be $900 Million - New York Times

Afghan Officials Shielded Bank From Scrutiny - Wall Street Journal

Kabul Bank Employees Flee Amid Investigation - Washington Post

Letter from Kabul: The Great Afghan Bank Heist - The New Yorker

Afghan Lender Disputes Losses at Kabul Bank - New York Times

Afghan Deaths Hit 'Record Levels' - BBC News

Pakistani Nuclear Arms Pose Challenge to U.S. Policy - New York Times

Pakistani Court Blocks Release of American Official - Associated Press

Senate Report Says Iraq Is at Critical Juncture - Associated Press

Report Lists Perils for Envoys After U.S. Leaves Iraq - New York Times

Iraq War Casualties Rise In January - Reuters

Report Warns of Iran Nuke Disaster - Associated Press

Key Military, Intelligence Assets Imperiled in Egypt - Washington Times

U.S. Military Says Keeps Up with China; Is it Enough? - Reuters

Continue on for today's SWJ news and opinion links.

Churchill's Secret War: The British Empire and the Ravaging of India during World

War II

by Madhusree Mukerjee. 

Published by Basic Books, a member of

the Perseus Book Groups, New York.  319 pages, 2010.

Reviewed by Commander Youssef Aboul-Enein, MSC, USN

I have the great privilege to teach officers selected for the vital Afghanistan-Pakistan

Fellows Program at the Industrial College of the Armed Forces in Washington D.C. 

These men and women spend a year totally immersed in the politics, culture, religions,

and policies of Southwest Asia.  One of my main challenges is to cultivate

empathy and get students to walk in the shoes and emotions of the region. 

Madhursee Mukerjee, a scholar, Guggenheim Fellow, who resides in Germany, had written

an uncomfortable book critical of allied policy towards India that led to the death

of millions.  She opens by introducing a 1943 famine in Bengal that killed

1.5 million people, and which was a result of the British decision to use the resources

of India to fight Germany and Japan.  The economic stressors placed on India

during World War II, led to deprivation and anarchy which tore the fabric of society

leading to independence in 1947.  This is the hidden side of World War II,

and decisions that did not make Winston Churchill's memoirs. 

The Balfour Declaration: The Origins of the Arab-Israeli Conflict

by Jonathan Schneer.

Published by Random House, New York. 

416 pages, 2010.

Reviewed by Commander Youssef Aboul-Enein, MSC, USN

Understanding the grievances and complexities of the Middle East requires

immersing yourself in the events of World War I and the way in which this war

was concluded.  It is vital to understand that the 1919 Versailles Conference

did not resolve the complex issues of World War I.  One item left undone was

what to do regarding the Ottoman Empire, which was on the losing side of this

conflict, and whose possessions were the subject of contention between Britain

and France.  Conferences undertaken include San Remo, 1920 and Cairo, 1921,

which created the modern states of Iraq and placed Egypt onto the path of

quasi-independence.  Historian Jonathan Schneer has written an excellent book

that untangles the more controversial documents regarding the Middle East,

chiefly the Balfour Declaration.....

Spies in Arabia: The Great War and the Cultural Foundations of Britain's Covert Empire in the Middle East

by Priya Satia.

Published by Oxford University Press,

London.  472 pages, 2008.

Reviewed by Commander Youssef Aboul-Enein, MSC, USN

Stanford University Associate Professor Priya Satia has published an award

winning book that pieces together the evolution of British intelligence in the

Middle East.  Those with an interest in intelligence networks and Middle East

affairs will find this book worth reading.  Special Duty Agents traveled under

cover of the Palestine Exploration Fund before World War I, and British Royal

Engineers traveled Egypt and the Sudan as part of Egypt's Survey Department. 

You will enter a world in which internal competition for intelligence occurred

among British officials in Cairo, London, and Delhi.  However, Horatio Kitchener

the British High Commissioner in Egypt, and Sir Reginald Wingate Sirdar

(Military Commander) of the Egyptian Army viewed Africa and Western Arabia their

administrative responsibility.  Externally, there would be a pre-World War I

race between the British and Germans for archeological discoveries, prestige,

and intelligence access.

Egypt Protests Enter Seventh Day - BBC News

Army, Police on Cairo Streets, But No End to Egypt Protests in Sight - VOA

Opposition Unites in Egypt - Wall Street Journal

Egyptian Military Makes a Show of Force - Los Angeles Times

Opposition Rallies to ElBaradei as Military Reinforces - New York Times

Egyptian Reform Leader Calls for Mubarak to Resign - Associated Press

Egyptian Muslims Call Out for ElBaradei - Washington Times

Muslim Brotherhood Says it is Only a Minor Player - Washington Post

Muslim Brotherhood Mutes Religious Message for Protests - Los Angeles Times

As Mubarak Clings to Power, Military Shows Strength - Washington Post

Egypt Protesters Camp Out, Mubarak Turns to Army - Reuters

Face of Mideast Unrest: Young and Hungry for Jobs - Associated Press

Obama: Egypt Needs Orderly Transition - Voice of America

Clinton Calls for 'Orderly Transition' in Egypt - New York Times

U.S. Administration Aligns Itself with Protests in Egypt - Washington Post

U.S. Cautiously Prepares for Post-Mubarak Era - Los Angeles Times

Key European Leaders Urge Restraint in Cairo - New York Times

World Leaders Call on Egypt to Implement Reforms - Associated Press

Israel Says Peace Treaty With Egypt Must Be Preserved - Voice of America

Israel Shaken as Turbulence Rocks an Ally - New York Times

Fighter Jets Over Cairo As Egypt Demos Go On - Sky News

Activists Use Web in Egypt Despite Shutdown - Washington Times

Protest's Old Guard Falls In Behind the Young - New York Times

Rich, Poor and a Rift Exposed by Unrest - New York Times

Governments Send Planes to Evacuate Citizens From Egypt - Voice of America

U.S. Set to Fly Thousands of Americans from Egypt - Associated Press

For Many Fleeing Egypt, a Long Wait - New York Times

Egyptian Antiquities Chief Reports Damage, No Theft - Washington Post

Egypt Unrest: Day Six as it Happened - BBC News

African Union Summit Agenda Skips Egypt, Tunisia - Voice of America

Sarkozy Calls on African Leaders to do Better or Risk Public Wrath - VOA

Tunisian Islamist Leader Returns - BBC News

Tunisian Islamic Leader Returns - Wall Street Journal

Tunisians Wary as Islamists Emerge from Hiding - Los Angeles Times

Arab World Transfixed by Egyptian Protests - Washington Post

Syria Strongman: Time for 'Reform' - Wall Street Journal

Yemen: Calls for Revolution But Many Hurdles - Washington Post

Analysis: Yearning for Respect, Arabs Find a Voice - New York Times

Analysis: For U.S., Egypt Crisis Recalls 1979 Iran - Associated Press

Date With a Revolution - New York Times opinion

Rejoice in Egypt - Washington Post opinion

The Devil We Know - New York Times opinion

A Proud Moment in Egypt's History - Los Angeles Times opinion

Continue on for today's SWJ news and opinion links.

Chaos Engulfs Cairo; Mubarak Points to Succession - Associated Press

Egyptian Soldiers Show Solidarity with Protesters - Washington Post

Egyptians Defiant as Military Does Little to Quash Protests - New York Times

Egypt: Looting Spreads as Vigilantes Roam - Los Angeles Times

Egyptian Protesters Demand U.S. Condemn Mubarak - Washington Post

Looting Engulfs Cairo, Other Egyptian Cities - Associated Press

Lawlessness on Egypt Streets, Mubarak Clings On - Reuters

Jordanians Rally Against Corruption And Poverty - Reuters

Ruling Party Urges Talks In Yemen to Halt Protests - Reuters

Afghans Plan to Stop Recruiting Children as Police - New York Times

Family Vanishes In Attack On Market - New York Times

Suicide Bomber Kills Kandahar Official - Washington Post

U.S. Says Pakistan Illegally Holding Diplomat in Killings - Washington Post

Iraqi Security Forces Facing Serious Problems - Washington Post

Dutch Freeze Contacts with Iran Over Hanging - BBC News

South Sudan Referendum: 99% Vote for Independence - BBC News

Continue on for today's SWJ news and opinion links.

Egyptians Defiant as Military Does Little to Quash Protests - New York Times

Troops Let Protests Proceed as Mubarak Names VP - Washington Post

No End in Sight for Protests in Egypt - Voice of America

Protesters Challenge Regimes Around Middle East - Los Angeles Times

Urging Restraint, U.S. Military Faces Test of Influence - New York Times

Egypt Crisis Puts Obama to the Test - Los Angeles Times

Egypt: Protesters Again Defy Curfew; Police Stand Down - Los Angeles Times

Hosni Mubarak Under World Pressure - BBC News

ElBaradei: President Mubarak Must Go - Voice of America

Nobelist Has an Unfamiliar Role in Protests - New York Times

Yearning for Respect, Arabs Find a Voice - New York Times

Egypt: U.S. Wants to See an Overhaul, Not Overthrow - Los Angeles Times

Egypt Protesters Welcome Army As It Projects Power - NPR

Egyptians Wonder What's Next - New York Times

Regional Reaction Mixed For Egypt Protests - Voice of America

Israel Fears Unrest in Egypt Could Jeopardize Peace Treaty - Voice of America

Protesters Around World March Against Egypt's Mubarak - CNN News

Canada Intends to Extradite Wealthy Tunisian Fugitive - Voice of America

As it Happened: Egypt Unrest Day Five - BBC News

Q&A: What the Egyptian Unrest Means - The Guardian

Arab Rulers Only Have One Option: Reform - Daily Star editorial

The New Arab World Order - Foreign Policy opinion

White House Wobbles on Egyptian Tightrope - The Guardian opinion

Egypt's Military Now Pivotal - The Atlantic opinion

Egypt Needs Reform, Not Revolution - Daily Telegraph opinion

Is Qaddafi the Next to Fall? - The Daily Beast opinion

African Leaders Clinging to Power - Irish Times opinion

Israel Casts an Uneasy Glance at Protests - Global Post opinion

The Conflicts in Yemen and U.S. National Security.

Conference: "To foster dialogue between ISAF members over tactical lessons from Afghanistan, particularly at the company level"—that was the purpose of a conference held at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) in London last December. The conference, organized by the British Army's Counterinsurgency (COIN) Centre, the US Army COIN Center, the USMC Irregular Warfare Center, and the ISAF COIN Advisory and Assistance Team, drew civilian and military academics and practitioners from Afghanistan, Belgium, the Netherlands, the US, and the UK. Speakers included the former commander of Regional Command-South; the US Army Command and General Staff College COIN Chair; a US Army brigade commander, the director of ISAF CAAT, the director of the Joint Center for International Security Force Assistance, and an official from the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office. You can download the conference report here.

COIN Qualification Standards: The COIN Qualification Standards are nine tasks and fifty-two sub-tasks submitted by Gen. David H. Petraeus, commander, International Security Assistance Force (COMISAF), and approved by Secretary of Defense (SecDef) Robert M. Gates (see here).

RFI: "We would like to hear your thoughts on the COIN Qualification Standards and how they might help your unit prepare for deployment."

Anti-Government Protests Spread in Egypt - Voice of America

Egypt's Regime on the Brink - Wall Street Journal

Egypt Protests Continue as Government Resigns - New York Times

Cairo in Near Anarchy as Protesters Push to Oust President - Washington Post

Egypt's Anger Spills into Streets for a 5th Day - Los Angeles Times

Egypt Protests: Hosni Mubarak Faces Fifth 'Day of Rage' - BBC News

Mubarak Vows Cabinet Shift but Defends Deploying Army - New York Times

Egyptian Military Deploys as Protesters Defy Curfew - Washington Post

Egyptian President Dismisses Cabinet Following Massive Protests - VOA

Amid Massive Protests, Egypt Leader Fires Cabinet - Associated Press

New Clashes Erupt as Egyptians Spurn Mubarak Speech - Reuters

Egyptians' Fury Smoldered Beneath Surface for Decades - New York Times

Egypt: President Obama's Remarks - Los Angeles Times

Obama Phones Mubarak, Urges Reforms - Voice of America

Obama Urges Egypt to Heed Protests, Pursue Reforms - Washington Post

Egypt: Obama Cautions Embattled Ally Against Violence - New York Times

Egyptian Military Chiefs Cut Pentagon Visit Short - New York Times

Before Uprising, Decades of Poverty and Resignation - Los Angeles Times

Egypt: A Nobelist Has an Unfamiliar Role in Protests - New York Times

Egyptian Hopes Converge in Fight for Cairo Bridge - New York Times

Chaos And Calm, Fury And Rejoicing Mark Egypt Protests - Reuters

In Alexandria, Protesters Rout the Police, for Now - New York Times

Egypt's Military Is Seen as Pivotal in Next Step - New York Times

U.S. Backs Rights of Protesters in Mideast Upheaval - VOA

Egypt Protests: America's Secret Backing for Rebels - Daily Telegraph

Iran Sees Rise of Islamic Hard-Liners - New York Times

Al Jazeera Covers Protests Despite Hurdles - New York Times

Egypt Cuts Off Most Internet and Cell Service - New York Times

U.S. Warns Against Blocking Social Media - Washington Post

Complete Coverage: Unrest in Egypt - Stars and Stripes

Thousands Protest for Reform in Jordan - Voice of America

In Tunisia, Luxurious Lifestyles of the Corrupt - Washington Post

Protests Unsettle Jordan, Most Other Neighbors Stay Calm - New York Times

U.S. Needs to Break with Mubarak Now - Washington Post editorial

Washington and Mr. Mubarak - New York Times editorial

Cairo's Restless Streets - Los Angeles Times editorial

A New Beginning - Washington Post opinion

How Do You Solve a Problem Like Mubarak? - New York Times opinion

How to Respond - Washington Post opinion series

Continue on for today's SWJ news and opinion links.

Here is the latest edition of my column at Foreign Policy:

Topics include:

1) What does cyberwar look like? In 2008, Georgia found out.

2) Stuart Levey, Treasury's sanctions supremo, didn't get results. What now?

What does cyberwar look like? In 2008, Georgia found out.

In most ways, the brief war between Russia and Georgia in August 2008 was a throwback to the mid-20th century. A border dispute, inflamed by propaganda and whipped-up ethnic tension, resulted in a murky case of who-shot-first, an armored blitzkrieg, airstrikes, a plea for peace by the defeated, signatures on a piece of paper, and the winner's annexation of some territory. So far, so 1939. But one aspect of this little war was very much in the 21st century, namely Russia's integration of offensive cyber operations into its overall political-military strategy. The August war was a preview of how military forces will use cyber operations in the future and what commanders and policymakers need to prepare for.

In a new piece for Small Wars Journal, David Hollis, a senior policy analyst with the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence and a reserve Army officer at U.S. Cyber Command, describes how the Russian government integrated cyber operations into its campaign plan against Georgia. Hollis notes that though the Russian offensive cyber operations in the Georgia war were obvious, they were masked through third parties and by routing the attacks through a wide variety of server connections, all standard practices of cyber operations. As a result, Georgian and other investigators cannot conclusively prove that the Russian government conducted these cyberattacks. Indeed, the Kremlin denies using cyberwarfare in the conflict, a somewhat odd thing to be embarrassed about while Russia's tanks roamed around the Georgian countryside and its aircraft bombed Georgian targets.

According to Hollis, Russian offensive cyber operations began several weeks before the outbreak of the more familiar kinetic operations.

Click below to read more ...

Egypt: Crowds Clash with Police in 'Angry Friday' Protests - Washington Post

Egypt Protests Escalate in Cairo, Suez, Other Cities - BBC News

Massive Protests Sweep Across Egypt - Los Angeles Times

Clashes in Cairo Extend Arab World's Days of Unrest - New York Times

Egypt: Protesters Feel World Has Passed Them By - Washington Post

Egypt's Leader Uses Old Tricks to Defy New Demands - New York Times

Yemenis Join in Anti-government Protests - Washington Post

Waves of Unrest Spread to Yemen, Shaking a Region - New York Times

As Protests Swell Middle East Faces Uncertainty - Washington Post

As Arabs Protest, U.S. Offers Assertive Support - Washington Post

Muslim Brotherhood May Change Tone of Protests - New York Times

Egypt Imposes Night Curfew After Day of Riots - Associated Press

Al Jazeera Galvanizes Arab Frustration - New York Times

The Day Part of the Internet Died: Egypt Goes Dark - Associated Press

Most Members of Old Cabinet in Tunisia Step Down - New York Times

Israel Watches Arab Turmoil Closely, Comments Cautiously - Washington Post

Warily Eyeing Egypt, Israelis Feel Like Spectators - New York Times

Arab Rebellion - Washington Post opinion

Getting it Right on Egypt - Washington Post opinion

What Can the Protests in Egypt Achieve? - New York Times opinion series

Revolutionary Arab Geeks - New York Times opinion

Continue on for today's SWJ news and opinion links.

That oversight begins today when the committee receives testimony on the Pentagon's new efficiency programs from Deputy Defense Secretary William Lynn and the four deputy chiefs of the services. According to The Hill, a top concern of many members of the committee is the Pentagon's cancellation of the Marine Corps' Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) program. According to the article, HASC members have not received from the Pentagon data or analysis behind the decision. The apparent lack of thorough analysis implies that Defense Secretary Gates's office and Marine Corps leaders do not have a convincing plan for how the Marine Corps will accomplish its amphibious assault missions in the future. This, in turn, implies that the Pentagon is not prepared to describe how the Marine Corps will accomplish its assigned missions, and if it can't, whether the Pentagon proposes changing what those roles and missions should be.

Click below to read more ...