Responsible Statecraft

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Hegseth is getting annoyed because the people we elected to represent taxpaying citizens want to know if there will be any munitions left to defend the nation when and if we are ever in actual imminent danger. responsiblestatecraft.org/hegseth-congre…

"Far from a simple contracting innovation, the new approach represents another step in the long evolution of America’s military-industrial system towards an ever more corporatist order in which profits remain private while risks fall on the public." responsiblestatecraft.org/lockheed-marti…

"If history offers any indication, Cuba’s leaders are unlikely to give into U.S. political diktats, no matter how legitimate, in exchange for temporary aid, no matter how generous." responsiblestatecraft.org/rubio-sanction…

Hegseth himself had echoed similar concerns about the American weapons stockpile, reportedly pausing a 2025 weapons shipment to Ukraine over the issue. responsiblestatecraft.org/hegseth-congre…

"More than simply moving offices, structural reform requires confronting how these institutions are staffed, incentivized, and embedded in the political contexts in which they operate." responsiblestatecraft.org/trump-cuts-un/

Historically, increases in Pentagon spending have been justified by a monster abroad we’re told we must destroy. In their hearings, neither Hegseth nor Caine made that case, says @BenFreemanDC: responsiblestatecraft.org/hegseth-testif…

"The result could be perpetual instability in Ukraine and other European hotspots, coupled with a Europe too distrustful to engage with Russia yet too weak to deter it. And a crisis-prone Europe would not facilitate reduced American involvement there." More from @GeorgeBeebe13: responsiblestatecraft.org/germany-troop-…

Once other contractors begin to demand the same treatment, the result will be an arms industry virtually detached from competitive pressures altogether, writes @solis_mullen: responsiblestatecraft.org/lockheed-marti…

Asked to identify the biggest threat to Ukraine’s development, Ukrainians living in government-controlled territory were more likely to cite corruption (54%) than Russia’s military aggression (39%). responsiblestatecraft.org/ukraine-yermak…

For now, the Trump administration appears set on crippling Cuba’s economy through sweeping secondary sanctions while dangling vague, heavily conditioned humanitarian aid to pressure Havana into political and economic concessions, writes @lee_schlenker: responsiblestatecraft.org/rubio-sanction…

A Financial Times report from March, roughly two weeks into the war, said that the administration had already gone through "years" worth of munitions. responsiblestatecraft.org/hegseth-congre…

The hurdles to any disarmament of Hezbollah are partly a matter of physical capability. They also are a matter of political realities within Lebanon, writes Paul Pillar responsiblestatecraft.org/lebanon-talks-…

By announcing his decision with little advance notice, Trump left NATO with inadequate means to counter Russia’s growing numbers of Oreshnik intermediate-range hypersonic missiles, writes George Beebe responsiblestatecraft.org/germany-troop-…

By insulating major contractors from downside risk, the government weakens one of the few remaining mechanisms that encourages cost discipline and prudent investment responsiblestatecraft.org/lockheed-marti…

Despite spending hours on Capitol Hill arguing for an unprecedented increase in military spending, Hegseth and Caine offered more reasons to question it than to justify it. responsiblestatecraft.org/hegseth-testif…

54% of Ukrainians say corruption is the "biggest threat to Ukraine's development" responsiblestatecraft.org/ukraine-public…

A source with knowledge of companies’ operations tells RS that financial institutions, particularly across Canada, the European Union and Latin America, have initiated a de facto boycott of all transactions involving Cuba responsiblestatecraft.org/rubio-sanction…

NEW @blaise_malley: Despite reports warning of future shortages, Hegseth dismisses munitions fears as "foolishly & unhealthily overstated.” responsiblestatecraft.org/hegseth-congre…

The growing danger of a crisis or conflict over Taiwan stems from a shared failure in Washington and Beijing to recognize how their own actions are eroding a decades-old understanding that has preserved peace across the Taiwan Strait responsiblestatecraft.org/trump-and-xi-m…

Strategic considerations should add up to an American policy of managed, rather than abrupt, rebalancing within the NATO alliance, in which that rebalancing is harmonized with efforts to restore Europe's economic and military health responsiblestatecraft.org/germany-troop-…