Articles written by David Axe
By David Axe
03 Feb 2010 |
World Politics Review
More than eight years into the Afghan war, U.S. forces do not have
enough interpreters -- or good enough interpreters -- speaking Pashto
or Dari. The shortages reflect a struggle
within the U.S. government over what kinds of war-zone interpreters it
needs, how to define standards for them, and how to find people to fill
the ever-expanding number of needed positions.
By David Axe
27 Jan 2010 |
World Politics Review
Just four months after the world's navies all but declared victory in
their war on Somali pirates, hijackings have spiked. In the span of
just one week in early January, sea bandits seized four large
commercial vessels off the Somali coast. No longer content to entrust their safety to naval forces, shippers are
mulling the wide adoption of seaborne private soldiers -- in a word,
mercenaries.
By David Axe
20 Jan 2010 |
World Politics Review
A year after the formation of a coalition government staved off post-election chaos, Zimbabwe is calmer: Cholera is mostly under control, the wide adoption of foreign
currencies has eased inflation, and political violence is less severe than it was last year. Still, many Zimbabweans fear that the fragile unity government could fail, resulting in another period of potentially catastrophic violence and hardship.
By David Axe
13 Jan 2010 |
World Politics Review
As part of its escalating campaign against Islamic terrorists based in
Yemen, the U.S. government has expanded efforts to crack down on
terrorist financiers in the Middle Eastern country. But the
counter-finance approach in Yemen is complicated by the same factors
that have stymied similar efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
By David Axe
06 Jan 2010 |
World Politics Review
Chad and Sudan are weighing a proposed treaty that would facilitate joint patrols of their shared border, along Sudan's Darfur province. The security pact
could help lay the groundwork for peace talks
with rebel groups, aimed at reducing cross-border violence that has
claimed thousands of lives in Chad and Sudan since 2005.
By David Axe
23 Dec 2009 |
World Politics Review
More than 56 years after the end of the Korean War ushered in a
long period of relative military isolation, South Korea is finally
taking steps towards a regional security role commensurate with the
country's advanced economy. But South Korea's rise as a military power
is complicated by its domestic politics -- and a belligerent North
Korea.
By David Axe
16 Dec 2009 |
World Politics Review
The Netherlands has taken the first steps towards officially
withdrawing from the NATO coalition in Afghanistan beginning in late
2010. A non-binding parliamentary decision in October rejecting an
extension of the Dutch mission represents a striking break from the
overall trend within NATO of deepening the alliance's commitment to the
eight-year-old war.
By David Axe
09 Dec 2009 |
World Politics Review
A fanatical rebel group formed in northern Uganda in the 1980s has
spread to become what one U.S. general labeled a "transnational"
threat, prompting the U.S. and various East African nations to work
together to defeat the group. The international cooperation is the
fruit of years of delicate planning by U.S. officials.
By David Axe
02 Dec 2009 |
World Politics Review
In a move with huge implications for one of the world's
gravest humanitarian crises, last week the Somali Islamic group Al-Shabab told the U.N. World Food Program to stop sending foreign food
aid to southern Somalia. The Islamists reportedly ordered the U.N. to begin buying food directly
from local producers, who are incapable of meeting the country's needs.
By David Axe
25 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan -- Two years after its formation, a controversial military program to
embed civilian social scientists inside combat units in Iraq and
Afghanistan is scrambling to recover from a string of crises. How the
so-called "Human Terrain System" responds to a spate of combat deaths
and a disastrous employee pay cut will determine whether the program
survives in its current form.
By David Axe
18 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan -- The Afghan helicopter, a brand-new Russian-made Mi-17,
wasn't clearly his, but U.S. Air Force Maj. Darren Brumfield was still
determined to keep it. His unit, the 438th Air Expeditionary Training
Group, needs four transport helicopters to perform its mentoring mission to an Afghan air wing, and in
early November, the group had just three.
By David Axe
11 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
LOGAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan -- As part of a strategy to win over local farmers in this agricultural region, U.S. forces organized a veterinary outreach event at the U.S. Army outpost in Baraki Barak district. But the event, like the larger plan, hinged on farmers accepting the gift that the military and
the district government were offering. And on the morning of the event, no farmers waited at the gate.
By David Axe
04 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
LOGAR PROVINCE, Afghanistan -- In a farming village near Baraki Barak district, soldiers from the U.S. Army's 2nd Platoon, Able Troop, approached
every farmer they saw and, through an interpreter, invited them to fill
out a survey about local agriculture. The answers will help U.S. forces give friendly Afghans a
little of what they want in exchange for their cooperation.
By David Axe
28 Oct 2009 |
World Politics Review
A 6-year-old Afghan girl's treatment in an Air Force hospital reflects an imbalance in international efforts to secure
and rebuild Afghanistan. The high level of military activity has not
been matched by aid groups and government civilians. As a result,
Afghanistan still struggles with a lack of social services, jobs and
medical care -- and that could undermine the military strategy.
By David Axe
21 Oct 2009 |
World Politics Review
One unit's solution to the problem of powering an observation post
illustrates many of the most vexing challenges underlying the
eight-year-old Afghanistan war. Poor infrastructure, daunting terrain,
manpower shortages, equipment shortfalls and a sometimes ambivalent
local populace dog not just 3rd Squadron, but the whole war effort.
By David Axe
14 Oct 2009 |
World Politics Review
ABOARD USS DONALD COOK -- Boarding teams man the front lines of the war against piracy. When one of the warships patrolling East
African waters encounters a pirate boat, it's usually the boarding team that's tasked to apprehend the crew. It's dangerous work that also represents the point of contact between a powerful naval coalition and a community of struggling fishermen.
By David Axe
09 Oct 2009 |
WPR Blog
BAGRAM, Afghanistan -- Nearly a week after Taliban fighters overran a
U.S. and Afghan military outpost in eastern Afghanistan, killing eight
Americans and at least two Afghan soldiers, one U.S. Air Force official
wonders why the air service hasn't highlighted its own vital
contributions to the battle.
By David Axe
07 Oct 2009 |
World Politics Review
In the waters off Somalia, world powers have assembled a naval
counter-piracy coalition that includes flotillas from NATO, the EU, China, Japan, South Korea, India and Russia. The roughly 40 ships share intelligence and supplies, and, when necessary, help cover each other. There's just one country that refuses to cooperate: Iran.
By David Axe
30 Sep 2009 |
World Politics Review
ABOARD U.S.S. DONALD COOK -- In 2008, Somali pirates hijacked more than
100 large commercial vessels, provoking a massive international
response that included multilateral naval patrols in the Gulf of Aden and Indian Ocean, and diplomatic initiatives to forge consensus. The result, a year into this "global war on piracy," is that successful hijackings are way down.
By David Axe
23 Sep 2009 |
World Politics Review
Improvised explosive devices are taking an escalating toll
on coalition troops in Afghanistan. There are now so many IEDs on Afghanistan's roads that some units say it's no longer a question of whether they'll
be hit on a given day, but exactly when and where. That's
having a major effect on the conduct of military operations in a
country on the brink.
