U.S.-Israeli forces prepare to battle Iran
Al Jazeera, 8/12–United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has ordered a guided missile submarine to the Middle East and the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group to sail more quickly to the area…Austin “reiterated the United States’ commitment to take every possible step to defend Israel and noted the strengthening of U.S. military force posture and capabilities throughout the Middle East in light of escalating regional tensions”, the Pentagon said in a statement…
The Abraham Lincoln has been in the Asia Pacific, and had already been ordered to the Middle East to replace the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier strike group, which is scheduled to begin heading home. Last week, Austin said it was expected to arrive in the area by the end of the month. The carrier has F-35 and F/A-18 fighter jets on board. The US military had already said it will deploy additional fighter aircraft and warships to the Middle East as Washington seeks to reinforce Israeli defenses from possible attack by Iran.
Imperialist competition for Africa continues
Reuters, 8/5–The United States military has completed its withdrawal from air base 201 in Niger, officials said on Monday, after Niger's ruling junta ordered nearly 1,000 U.S. military personnel to leave following a coup last year. Air base 201, a drone base near Agadez in central Niger that was built at a cost of $100 million, had provided crucial intelligence about Islamist militant groups before the coup. A joint statement from Niger's defense ministry and the U.S. military said personnel and equipment from the base had been withdrawn and coordination would continue over the coming weeks to make sure the pullout is complete. Niger's decision to ask for the removal of U.S. troops came after a meeting in Niamey in mid-March when senior U.S. officials raised concerns about issues such as the expected arrival of Russian forces and reports of Iran seeking raw materials in the country, including uranium. In April, Russia sent military trainers to Niger.
World War I analogy for U.S.-Chinese relations
Foreign Affairs, July/August–In The Rise of the Anglo-German Antagonism, 1860–1914, the British historian Paul Kennedy explained how two traditionally friendly peoples ended up in a downward spiral of mutual hostility that led to World War I. Major structural forces drove the competition between Germany and Britain: economic imperatives, geography, and ideology… Like Germany and Britain before World War I, China and the United States seem to be locked in a downward spiral, one that may end in disaster for both countries and for the world at large. Similar to the situation a century ago, profound structural factors fuel the antagonism. Economic competition, geopolitical fears, and deep mistrust work to make conflict more likely…The United States, meanwhile, has been trying to develop a China policy that combines deterrence with limited cooperation, similar to what Britain did when developing policy toward Germany in the early twentieth century…In the British-German relationship, three main conditions led from rising antagonism to war…All these conditions now seem to be in place in the U.S.-Chinese relationship.
European war expands into Russia
The Guardian, 8/11–Ukrainian sources have indicated that thousands of troops have been committed to its incursion into Russia’s Kursk province, as Moscow and Kyiv traded accusations about a fire at the occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant 250 miles to the south...A Ukrainian security official told the Agence France-Presse that the aim of the incursion was to destabilise Russia and string out Russian forces with light, fast-moving attacks…Several Ukrainian brigades are said to be involved in the operation, according to a range of sources. Kyiv caught Russia off guard by striking at a lightly defended sector of the front that had seen no significant fighting since the spring of 2022 – and broke through limited border defences.
