Estonia is the best U.S. ally most Americans have never heard of

Posted on by paulrhuard

Estonia, a tiny nation whose population is less than that of Phoenix, Ariz., can show the U.S. why the NATO alliance is in America’s best interest despite President Trump’s criticisms.

In short, Estonia is the best U.S. ally that most Americans have never heard of — they even sent combat forces to Afghanistan where their troops have one of the highest casualty rates per capita of any nation in the NATO contingent.

My piece is long-form news analysis and commentary with reporting that includes interviews with Estonia’s commander-in-chief of their Defense Forces, the commander of their largest land force who is also the EDF’s new chief of staff, a defense ministry official, a former president of Estonia, and two Baltic think tank experts on defense issues involving Estonia and the United States (one is British, the other American).

You can read it here at Arc Digital. 

Trump the Internationalist?

Posted on by paulrhuard

Once upon a time, Donald Trump disdained U.S. international involvement and criticized his predecessors for what he considered a reckless and adventurous foreign policy. Now, his administration talks openly about the “international community” in the wake of Syrian gas attacks on its own civilians and Kim Jong Un’s threats of further nuclear tests. There is even the question of how the U.S. will continue to offer its services as a protector state to Syrian Kurds — an issue that is particularly timely because of Turkish airstrikes against the YPG. Here is my column about the evolution of Donald Trump and how it will shape American engagement in the international order.