Tuesday, June 6, 2017

Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- June 6, 2017


Jamie McIntyre, Washington Examiner: Trump's Qatar tweets put Pentagon in a box

The oil-rich Persian Gulf nation of Qatar is one of the U.S. military's most stalwart allies, providing a sprawling, state-of-the art air base from which the U.S. directs wars in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan.

So when a presidential tweet implies that Qatar is a supporter of terrorism, it puts the Pentagon's primary spokesman in a tough spot.

"Do you consider Qatar a supporter of terrorism?" a reporter asked Navy Capt. Jeff Davis at his regular off-camera briefing on Tuesday.

"I'm not the right person to ask that," Davis replied, careful not to place himself in opposition to his commander in chief.

Read more ....

Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- June 6, 2017

Saudi Dispute With Qatar Has 22-Year History Rooted in Gas -- Marc Champion, Bloomberg

Where does Qatar go from here? To Moscow? -- Bob Bowker, Lowy Institute

Sarajevo 1914, Doha 2017? -- Simon Henderson, Foreign Policy

Trump the Peacemaker? -- Shlomo Ben-Ami, Project Syndicate

The $110 billion arms deal to Saudi Arabia is fake news -- Bruce Riedel, Brookings

The Right Way to Confront Iran in Syria -- Alexander Decina, Council on Foreign Relations

Applying the ‘Bosnian model’ to Syria’s crisis -- Anton Mardasov, Al-Monitor

In an Era of Low Oil Prices, Oman Faces a Post-2011 Political Reckoning -- Robert Looney, WPR

US defense chief takes new hard aim at China -- Richard Javad Heydarian, Asia Times

How the Gulf row is blocking China’s new Silk Road -- Julia Hollingsworth, South China Morning Post

Pakistani rethink on Islamic pact points to growing schism -- F.M. Shakil, Asia Times

Congo President Joseph Kabila: 'I'm Not Going to Commit Suicide' -- Spiegel Online

Can Albania be saved from narco-government? -- Besart Kadia, CAPX

The Leaked NSA Report Is Being Read Backward -- Leonid Bershidsky , Bloomberg

A Vast Blockchain Experiment Could Change Russia -- Leonid Bershidsky , Bloomberg

Nationalism Puts Trump at Odds With EU Elites -- Christophe Barbier, Daily Signal

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