"The U.S. attack is completely illegal under such international law as exists. The U.N. charter is very clear on that. One cannot help but reach the conclusion that something is dreadfully wrong in our system. Germany, Italy and Japan, when they were fascist-controlled, similarly launched expansionary and aggressive moves against various regions."
"Randall Schriver, the Defense Department's top Asia official, said the $45 billion total for the year includes $5 billion for Afghan forces and $13 billion for U.S. forces inside Afghanistan. Much of the rest is for logistical support. Some $780 million goes toward economic aid."
"It was a bad moment for the US to stir the pot by saying it would stay in Syria and target Assad and Iran. A Kurdish-Turkish war in northern Syria will be a very fierce one. The US obsession with an exaggerated Iranian threat – about which, in any case, it cannot do much – makes it difficult for Washington to mediate and cool down the situation. Trump and his chaotic administration have not yet had to deal with a real Middle East crisis yet and the events of the last week suggest that they will not be able to do so."
"What has been the outcome of this 16-year quagmire in Afghanistan? The nation-building war that Bush, Obama and now Trump continue to wage has destabilized neighboring Pakistan further."
"American forces went to Syria with the declared objective of pushing the ISIS terror gang out of territory it had seized there. This has been accomplished. It is an ideal moment for the U.S. to declare victory and depart. That, however, would be hauling down our flag. By Roosevelt’s logic — and evidently Tillerson’s — American soldiers should not be withdrawn from any country where they have ever been deployed."
"Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan: This trifecta of semi-permanent US military engagements reflects the extraordinary power of the Pentagon to sway even a president who had made opposition to such policies a central element of his campaign."
"Tillerson once again reiterated the US desire to eventually see President Bashar al Assad removed from power while also pledging US commitment to staying in Syria in order to counter Iran's influence in the region. Ultimately, according to Tillerson, 'the United States will remain in Syria' until certain conditions are met which include the complete destruction of ISIS, Assad's removal from power, and the return of refugees to a stabilized country."
"One of the reasons that Americans are unable to draw the parallels between Great Britain and the United States is that the U.S. version of empire hasn’t followed the British model. Instead of converting foreign lands into colonies, the U.S. government has followed the Soviet Union’s model of empire that was established in Eastern Europe. It uses local proxies or 'puppets' to serve as agents for the U.S. government, just as the Soviets did in Eastern European countries. This has enabled the United States to maintain the façade of supporting 'independent' regimes in the countries it controls, which just happen to 'invite' the United States to maintain military bases in their countries."
"Kahn emphasized 'a wide field of intelligence cooperation and defense cooperation have been suspended,' but added the supply lines for NATO troops in Afghanistan would remain open. There was little mention of the fate of CIA drone bases operating in the country."
"The U.S. has been fighting in and bombing several countries in the Middle East and Asia for 16 years. According to a new study, all that war has cost the U.S. taxpayers $5.6 trillion, which is over three times what the Pentagon estimates."