| This week's curated content continues to follow the best analysis on troop withdrawal, defense spending, and geopolitical prioritization. With the question of President Trump's promised troop withdrawals from Afghanistan and Germany looming large, we recommend George D. O'Neill's piece suggesting that the president force Congress to authorize the war if they want it so badly. "Defund Afghanistan" is a good companion piece for those especially interested in the topic. Turkey has recently made the news as a geopolitical hotspot, with cultural tensions igniting as Recep Tayyip Erdogan led prayers in the newly converted mosque of Hagia Sophia. Doug Bandow suggests abandoning what remains of the US-Turkey Alliance. Arguably the most significant geopolitical development of late is the strengthening relationship between China and Iran. On US policy contribution to this development we highlight Daniel DePetris' piece; for an understanding of the alliance itself we highlight Ellie Geranmayeh's piece. Grand strategies, both good and bad, ultimately depend on funding. Sometimes the best route to a more optimal resource allocation geopolitically is to control the flow of resources coming out of the Pentagon--hence the importance of budgets to any responsible discussion of grand strategy. On this crucial question, we recommend Benjamin Friedman's piece at Responsible Statecraft as well as Dan Grazier and Mandy Smithberger's piece at Defense Priorities. Original Posts Stephen Wertheim, RealClearDefense Before the pandemic, more and more Americans concluded that their country’s foreign policy was failing them. In return for lavishing taxpayer dollars on the world’s largest national ... In the News Daniel Larison, American Conservative Ellie Geranmayeh, Responsible Statecraft Daniel L. Davis, Military.com Stephen Walt, Foreign Policy Daniel DePetris, Defense One Jalil Bayat, Responsible Statecraft Bonnie Kristian, Washington Examiner Dan Grazier & Mandy Smithberger, Defense Priorities James A. Russell, Responsible Statecraft Doug Bandow, American Conservative Michael O'Hanlon, Defense Priorities Jennifer Brick Murtazashvili and Mohammad Qadam Shah, Mercatus Kenneth Gofigan Kuper, Responsible Statecraft Doug Bandow, Antiwar.com Eric Gomez, Brandon Valeriano, & Lauren Sander, Defense One Net Assessment The 2017 National Security Strategy states that “economic security is national security.” Chris, Zack, and Melanie get together to discuss how the United States might strengthen and use its economic power in an increasingly competitive and connected world to enhance our national security. Atlantic Council NATO played a critical role in stabilizing Europe after World War II, preventing great-power conflict and overcoming Cold War divisions after 1989. Three decades after the end of the Cold War, great-power competition has returned to the global stage. Is NATO still a relevant force to manage the challenges to the international order of the 21st Century and the great powers testing its limits? How can the alliance adapt to the issues presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, and does the post-coronavirus NATO look different from the alliance of today? Empire Has No Clothes Matt, Kelley, and Daniel speak to Thomas Juneau of the University of Ottowa. He explains why America never seems to get it right on Iran. We also talk about Joe Biden's incoming foreign policy advisors and why his administration is likely to be more of the same warmed-over liberal internationalism Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft For all the efforts the United States has made to shape the Middle East – why is the region still in chaos? Why are we constantly intervening and then finding ourselves in situations where we can do no good - and no good comes to us? Our desire to dominate the Middle East militarily and control its resources has destabilized the region and made Americans less safe. To end endless wars and bring home our troops, we have to begin by giving up on the illusion that military dominance can fix the region. | 
