Jed Babbin
Columns by Jed Babbin
NATO is a paper tiger against China
When NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg spoke about Ukraine's future as a member of the alliance, he probably didn't say anything that Russian intelligence didn't already know. Published April 29, 2023
America’s adversaries see AI as means to economic growth, military advantage
Media stories comment on the benefits and dangers of artificial intelligence as if it were today's reality instead of a scientific research goal. Published April 17, 2023
Afghanistan haunts Biden, as it should
Nothing encapsulates President Biden's approach to national security and foreign policy as well as the debacle he created in withdrawing suddenly from Afghanistan in August 2021. Published April 1, 2023
China’s Saudi-Iran gambit
In one critical stroke, China has established itself as a major player in the Middle East, derailed a strategic objective of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and caught President Biden flat-footed. Published March 18, 2023
Will Putin survive his Ukraine war?
Russian ruler Vladimir Putin staged a celebration on Feb. 24, the Ukraine invasion's anniversary. The televised event included kidnapped Ukrainian teenagers from Mariupol paraded to thank Russian troops for saving them. Published March 3, 2023
Erdogan’s second earthquake: Turkey marches steadily toward dictatorship
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan came to power 20 years ago after earthquakes created a wave of popular resentment of his predecessors' failure to deal with the disasters. Published February 20, 2023
Team Biden’s diplomacy will not prevent China from attacking Taiwan
Air Force General Michael Minihan is one of those guys who has real-world warfighting responsibilities. Published February 3, 2023
Corruption as statesmanship: Always follow the money
As one song in "Cabaret" told us, money makes the world go around. Wherever money goes, corruption is only a step behind. Published January 26, 2023
Biden’s border baloney
Three events over the past two weeks should focus Americans on how President Biden is making the national security crisis on our southern border worse. Published January 13, 2023
Two tough years with Biden ahead
In 2014, former Defense Secretary Robert Gates said that then-Vice President Joe Biden had been wrong on nearly every issue of foreign policy and national security for four decades. Published January 2, 2023
Will China knock out America’s satellites?
The biggest strategic and tactical advantages we have over our adversaries are probably the enormous capabilities that our hundreds of military and intelligence satellites provide. Published December 17, 2022
Biden adopts the Palestinian cause
President Biden inherited a Middle East that posed the greatest opportunities for stability, if not peace, in almost six decades. Published December 3, 2022
Cracks in America’s support for Ukraine
President Biden's only praiseworthy action in the realms of national security and foreign policy has been his support for Ukraine in its resistance to Russia's invasion. Published November 22, 2022
Will Biden defend Taiwan?
On four separate occasions since he took office, President Biden has said he would defend Taiwan. Published November 8, 2022
Drills, drones and deterrence
Military exercises between the United States and its allies' forces have always had two purposes: first, to train with our allies so we can fight better together, and second, to show our adversaries some of our deterrent forces. Published October 21, 2022
Are Iran’s protesters revolutionaries?
Since 2009, several waves of riots and near-revolutions have consumed Iran. A few, like the 2009 "Green Revolution," weren't revolutions at all. This time the protests seem very different. Published October 10, 2022
Will Putin nuke Ukraine?
The Ukrainian army's counter-offensive in the northeast and southeast corners of its nation began on September 5 and has been effective beyond its hopes and those of its allies. Published September 21, 2022
Biden must take advantage of China’s stumbling economy
The Chinese Communists have succeeded in making sufficient compromises with capitalism to create the world's second-largest economy. Published September 12, 2022
Biden still courting Iran
Since he became president seventeen months ago, Joe Biden has worked relentlessly to undo everything former President Donald Trump had done and virtually every aspect of American prosperity and strength. Published August 26, 2022
Is Russia a terrorist state?
A friend of mine, a retired Marine colonel, has spent the past few months in Ukraine, observing the horrors inflicted on the Ukrainian people by Russian troops. Published August 15, 2022