A photograph of [Dr. Mehmet] Oz casting a ballot in Turkey's 2018 presidential election is rankling some national security experts -- particularly after recently saying he has "never been politically involved in Turkey in any capacity." "The decision to vote in a foreign country's election is problematic from a security clearance perspective," according to John V. Berry, a former government lawyer with expertise in federal security clearances. read more
The United States has provided intelligence that has helped Ukrainian forces kill many of the Russian generals who have died in the Ukraine war, the New York Times reported on Wednesday, citing senior U.S. officials. read more
As Russia scales up anti-West rhetoric, Russia has scaled down its May 9 Victory Day Parade by almost 35 percent. The cuts are so dramatic, and the planned parade so humiliating, that Russian President Vladimir Putin could do almost anything to keep the world from focusing overly upon Russia's dwindling military prospects. As planned, the military parade through Red Square will be a humiliating exercise for the Russian military. This year, the slimmed-down Victory Day Parade projects little more than military and economic weakness. read more
"The absence of a historical reckoning with the evils of Stalinism," David Aaronovitch points out, "has spawned a people who believe brutality works." read more
"No longer are people [in Europe] witnessing the desert tan color they've grown accustomed to for the past 20 plus years," the writer notes. "Instead, it's back to the days of old with a fresh coat of olive drab green " or OD green." Why? "The Army is working ... to paint all of its ground combat vehicles in the shade of woodland green as part of the readiness plan to counter the increasing Russian ground force threat." read more
From the Institute for the Study of War (www.understandingwar.org):