High level U.S. officials met with their counterparts in Ukraine in full public view. The targets were Republicans in Congress and Vladimir Putin, which tells you a lot, doesn't it?
I'm with Jesse. A coup, you should pardon the expression. I suspect Mr. T.'s access comes from three generations of Truscotts at the highest levels of the military.
You need to ask a real soldier that question. I never heard a shot fired in anger, so I’d be stepping well beyond my experience to answer that. For the most part our military is a meritocracy, unlike the corporate and academic worlds I am familiar with. By the time an officer qualifies for a stripe down the outer seam of his dress uniform (major and above) he (or she) has had to prove himself worthy on multiple occasions.
You write about the military with an authority that speaks of access and knowledge. And, fortunately for us, with clarity. I find it telling that the CIA met openly with Zelensky. We don’t often see that, do we?
Well, we went to the same high school but not at the same time and I don't know for sure, but Rumor has it that he was a rock star. We would have graduated together, but I got shipped off. (military family)
You're right. The network is very deep. I'm pretty sure his friends are in high enough places to get him into some very interesting discussions the likes of which we will never know.
The Republican Party seems to be led by the Neville Chamberlain of our time, Kevin McCarthy. I would rather fight Russians in Ukraine as opposed to in Poland. It is naive to think otherwise. Get onboard, Germany! The US will learn a lot about Russian tactics through this process which will be invaluable to NATO in future encounters. Smerconish had an interesting pole question this morning. “Should the US give Ukraine everything it needs to win?” 92-8% said yes!
Yes, but remember the polled audience is more likely to already be on board. Still, it's a sign we are not falling for the isolationist propaganda, etc.
I don't see the similarity between McCarthy and any of the three gents suggested in this thread -- Neville Chamberlain, Oswald Mosley, and Kim Philby. The three of them all believed in something outside of themselves. I'm not at all sure McCarthy does. He wants power, but power to do what? In order to get power, he's given away most of it. (Fwiw both Kim Philby and his father, the Arabist Harry St. John Bridger Philby, fascinated me as a much younger person.)
The Sword and the Shield: The Hidden History of the KGB and the Mitrokhin Archive (1999) has a very interesting account of Philby. How he and some of the rest of the "Cambridge Five" could go so far in their opposition to the system, etc.
Plus not only available from any large library, it's "free" at the Internet Archive site. The audiobook is also worth a listen.
Ooh, thanks! I had quite a little collection of Philbyiana way back in the day, but it was before that came out. I still have on my shelves _Treason in the Blood_ by Anthony Cave Brown, which considered both St. John and Kim Philby and the "spy case of the century." The author was a little too horrified by both Philbys to write a really good book about them, but it was still interesting. I've always been fascinated by border-crossers. Spies certainly qualify, and St. John Philby, while not a spy, was as loyal to Ibn Sa'ud as he was to Britain.
St. John Philby (b. 1885) and T. E. Lawrence (b. 1888) were contemporaries. They were on opposite sides in the post-WWI years, with Lawrence and the British backing the Hashemites and Philby (secretly at first) allied with Ibn Saud. I was pretty sure they'd met but just looked it up. From Wikipedia: "In November 1921, Philby was named chief head of the Secret Service in Mandatory Palestine, worked with T. E. Lawrence and met his American counterpart, Allen Dulles." (I could stay up all night following up on that!)
My grandfather was deputy director of the CIA under Dulles. I served him martinis as a boy when I spent summers with my grandparents in Washington. Grandpa's deputy was Richard Helms. Nice little group of spies, huh? And a 12 year old boy in there with a pitcher of martinis in his hand, pouring, and then retreating to the next room while the adults talked.
Nowhere else Lucian, am I seeing even a smattering of the information that you present to us, everything you say makes perfect sense to me. As inherently evil as this invasion of a peaceful nation has been, it is just a manifestation of the black heart wholly owned by the Russian dictator. I suppose it may be possible to take a piece of coal and with enough pressure create a diamond out of it, but lacking that enormous energy wouldn’t that black hearted coal more likely burn itself out of existence? From the sounds of it General Miley just showed up with a whole lot of matches, need a light?
Thanks Lucian. Only someone with your background and insight could write this one. What serious travels and meetings you’ve interpreted. But the section outlining the training levels and cooordination is awesome Not the 1950s ROTC I knew at Rice U. Onward through the fire to peace.
What a great read! And what a worthwhile effort on your part to put it all together. So much of the MSM Ukraine war coverage is just rubbish. Battlefield toing-and froing minutiae, and geographic references that few of us can relate to. I’ve been ignoring it. Your experience and insight serve you, and us, well. I hadn’t put the full-court-press of our military/defense establishment together as an orchestrated message to Putin, as you did so well, which makes your column all the more valuable. Thanks, and don’t stop.
Nicely done Lucian! There is no question in my mind that the US military is the best trained in the world and has the best training infrastructure. My last assignment was at the Engineer school training ROTC and other freshly minted 2nd LT's in the Officer Basic course. There was a deep cadre of combat experienced staff as well as civilians, mostly retired military who had years of experience. I appreciate knowing that we are engaged in providing high level training in the Ukraine. It will not only give them the skills they need to operate the equipment effectively, but more importantly it will save lives. I always hoped that the training we provided was going to be instrumental in helping new officers most of which were headed to Vietnam to make the right call and protect the lives of the men in their command as well as their own. Thanks for a great update on our involvement in helping Ukraine. Its good to hear something positive for a change that is fact based.
The clear explanation is much appreciated. It's the best one I know of. Glad to know we are giving so much help. But we should not forget that this is a chance for America to see how its equipment and tactics work against Russia. And for the industrial side of the the military-industrial complex it is a chance to create a need for more replacement equipment and more $$$$$. So I guess no good deed goes unpunished.
One of my "trustafarian" artsy girlfriends had a studio around there. Turning swords into ploughshares and so on. And while reporter Joe Mazan does turn up some fine stories, of course the CIA wasn't guarding the building --- 15 blocks up Central Ave from where I live --- in WW2!
I'm curious, Lucian, as to why you believe that "[i]t will be much more difficult for Speaker Kevin McCarthy and his unruly right wing to continue their threats to reduce support in the Congress with such high-level meetings between American and Ukrainian officials taking place." They don't seem to give a flying fuck what anyone to the left of their fascist asses thinks.
I guess I should have said "hopefully" it will be much more difficult. I recognize they're assholes with no integrity, but it's better if we show the flag over there than not, don't you think?
Holy military knowledge, Batman! Lucian, this is a six star column. I’ve been reading a lot about the run up to WWII for a novel I’m writing and as I read what you’ve written here, I see so convincingly that the US of A has learned from the British mistakes. Sometimes it feels as if the only language a bully like Putin understands is raw violence, but when you combine tempered violence with the greatest intelligence, you have the hammer that can smush a bully like him into smithereens. The piecemeal daily reporting I read in the FT, Guardian, WSJ, WaPo, NYT, and elsewhere never seems to give me the knowledge and details you do. Thank you!!!!!!
I rely on the G but I think you're right. And just subscribed to that "Agents and Books" substack in case it can help my too-long-abiding Sherlock Holmes pastiche get edited, finished, and published.
Absolutely the best (and most encouraging) forecast of what we & NATO are doing help Ukraine kick Russian ass. Although my intelligence service experience is well behind me, I have no doubt that Lucian is correct in his assessment of our intelligence agencies ability to accurately monitor what the Russian army is up to (and in excruciating detail) 24/7. This alone would enable the Ukrainians to counter almost any offensive the Russians might be thinking about. The addition of well-trained Ukrainian troops using U.S. & NATO equipment will keep the Russians (and Putin) thinking about where & when the next attack will come. Take the fight to the enemy!!
What an excellent article, explaining military tactics and training to those, like me, ignorant of these facts. What a great education. Thanks, Lucian. We can always count on you to keep us well informed.
As ever, this is the best informed, clearest writing on the war. As ever, many thanks.
I'm with Jesse. A coup, you should pardon the expression. I suspect Mr. T.'s access comes from three generations of Truscotts at the highest levels of the military.
I was a 2nd lieutenant. My father retired as a colonel. Grandpa was a general. My level wasn't terribly high!
I was a sergeant. You have no idea how much NCOs revere second lieutenants. (Yes, that was sarcastic.)
George, in your experience, are all second lieutenants dangerous?
You need to ask a real soldier that question. I never heard a shot fired in anger, so I’d be stepping well beyond my experience to answer that. For the most part our military is a meritocracy, unlike the corporate and academic worlds I am familiar with. By the time an officer qualifies for a stripe down the outer seam of his dress uniform (major and above) he (or she) has had to prove himself worthy on multiple occasions.
You write about the military with an authority that speaks of access and knowledge. And, fortunately for us, with clarity. I find it telling that the CIA met openly with Zelensky. We don’t often see that, do we?
Wow!
I knew in 7th grade he was destined for big things.
You went to school together? He was a star in 7th grade? Impressive - and always fun to have known people of accomplishment way back when.
We were in the same English class he wrote about last year.
Bet most of us are Jeopardy wizards, every Friday Mr. Lockhart would give us a Soup to Nuts test, history, politics, etc.
What fun. (Good for Mr. Lockhart.)
Lockhart taught me everything I know about writing the English language.
Well, we went to the same high school but not at the same time and I don't know for sure, but Rumor has it that he was a rock star. We would have graduated together, but I got shipped off. (military family)
You're right. The network is very deep. I'm pretty sure his friends are in high enough places to get him into some very interesting discussions the likes of which we will never know.
I could be wrong, but my guess is that a reporter not steeped in all things military might not
know the meaning of the information he is getting.
YES! DITTO! WOW!
Man, I sure appreciate your knowledge of things military as well as your seasoned viewpoint!
The Republican Party seems to be led by the Neville Chamberlain of our time, Kevin McCarthy. I would rather fight Russians in Ukraine as opposed to in Poland. It is naive to think otherwise. Get onboard, Germany! The US will learn a lot about Russian tactics through this process which will be invaluable to NATO in future encounters. Smerconish had an interesting pole question this morning. “Should the US give Ukraine everything it needs to win?” 92-8% said yes!
Yes, but remember the polled audience is more likely to already be on board. Still, it's a sign we are not falling for the isolationist propaganda, etc.
One can hope!
More like Oswald Mosley than old Neville…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oswald_Mosley
Never knew of this guy. Like his mustache though. Can’t place it, but it reminds me of someone. :)
I don't see the similarity between McCarthy and any of the three gents suggested in this thread -- Neville Chamberlain, Oswald Mosley, and Kim Philby. The three of them all believed in something outside of themselves. I'm not at all sure McCarthy does. He wants power, but power to do what? In order to get power, he's given away most of it. (Fwiw both Kim Philby and his father, the Arabist Harry St. John Bridger Philby, fascinated me as a much younger person.)
The Sword and the Shield: The Hidden History of the KGB and the Mitrokhin Archive (1999) has a very interesting account of Philby. How he and some of the rest of the "Cambridge Five" could go so far in their opposition to the system, etc.
Plus not only available from any large library, it's "free" at the Internet Archive site. The audiobook is also worth a listen.
www.foreignaffairs.com/reviews/capsule-review/2000-03-01/sword-and-shield-mitrokhin-archive-and-secret-history-kgb
Ooh, thanks! I had quite a little collection of Philbyiana way back in the day, but it was before that came out. I still have on my shelves _Treason in the Blood_ by Anthony Cave Brown, which considered both St. John and Kim Philby and the "spy case of the century." The author was a little too horrified by both Philbys to write a really good book about them, but it was still interesting. I've always been fascinated by border-crossers. Spies certainly qualify, and St. John Philby, while not a spy, was as loyal to Ibn Sa'ud as he was to Britain.
Fascinated by Philby family for decades. I seem to recall that Philby's and Lawrence's fathers knew each other..
St. John Philby (b. 1885) and T. E. Lawrence (b. 1888) were contemporaries. They were on opposite sides in the post-WWI years, with Lawrence and the British backing the Hashemites and Philby (secretly at first) allied with Ibn Saud. I was pretty sure they'd met but just looked it up. From Wikipedia: "In November 1921, Philby was named chief head of the Secret Service in Mandatory Palestine, worked with T. E. Lawrence and met his American counterpart, Allen Dulles." (I could stay up all night following up on that!)
My grandfather was deputy director of the CIA under Dulles. I served him martinis as a boy when I spent summers with my grandparents in Washington. Grandpa's deputy was Richard Helms. Nice little group of spies, huh? And a 12 year old boy in there with a pitcher of martinis in his hand, pouring, and then retreating to the next room while the adults talked.
Great re-cap. With all that brass showing up and being public about it, maybe Putin will get the memo.
You're done dude, stick a fork in it. Cut your losses. Oh, by the way stay away from windows, stairways and don't drink the tea.
Nowhere else Lucian, am I seeing even a smattering of the information that you present to us, everything you say makes perfect sense to me. As inherently evil as this invasion of a peaceful nation has been, it is just a manifestation of the black heart wholly owned by the Russian dictator. I suppose it may be possible to take a piece of coal and with enough pressure create a diamond out of it, but lacking that enormous energy wouldn’t that black hearted coal more likely burn itself out of existence? From the sounds of it General Miley just showed up with a whole lot of matches, need a light?
Thanks Lucian. Only someone with your background and insight could write this one. What serious travels and meetings you’ve interpreted. But the section outlining the training levels and cooordination is awesome Not the 1950s ROTC I knew at Rice U. Onward through the fire to peace.
Lucian and I and our peers were getting our training while the country was at war, a big difference, possibly.
What a great read! And what a worthwhile effort on your part to put it all together. So much of the MSM Ukraine war coverage is just rubbish. Battlefield toing-and froing minutiae, and geographic references that few of us can relate to. I’ve been ignoring it. Your experience and insight serve you, and us, well. I hadn’t put the full-court-press of our military/defense establishment together as an orchestrated message to Putin, as you did so well, which makes your column all the more valuable. Thanks, and don’t stop.
Yes! And No, Don't Stop Lucian!
Nicely done Lucian! There is no question in my mind that the US military is the best trained in the world and has the best training infrastructure. My last assignment was at the Engineer school training ROTC and other freshly minted 2nd LT's in the Officer Basic course. There was a deep cadre of combat experienced staff as well as civilians, mostly retired military who had years of experience. I appreciate knowing that we are engaged in providing high level training in the Ukraine. It will not only give them the skills they need to operate the equipment effectively, but more importantly it will save lives. I always hoped that the training we provided was going to be instrumental in helping new officers most of which were headed to Vietnam to make the right call and protect the lives of the men in their command as well as their own. Thanks for a great update on our involvement in helping Ukraine. Its good to hear something positive for a change that is fact based.
Such a clear and important article about the situation in Ukraine. Once again, many thanks, Lucian.
Excellent explanation of what's going on behind the headlines. You put the Post and the Times to shame, Lucian.
Slava Ukraini!
The clear explanation is much appreciated. It's the best one I know of. Glad to know we are giving so much help. But we should not forget that this is a chance for America to see how its equipment and tactics work against Russia. And for the industrial side of the the military-industrial complex it is a chance to create a need for more replacement equipment and more $$$$$. So I guess no good deed goes unpunished.
kstp.com/kstp-news/top-news/so-minnesota-top-secret-world-war-ii-project-happened-in-northeast-minneapolis-building/
One of my "trustafarian" artsy girlfriends had a studio around there. Turning swords into ploughshares and so on. And while reporter Joe Mazan does turn up some fine stories, of course the CIA wasn't guarding the building --- 15 blocks up Central Ave from where I live --- in WW2!
I'm curious, Lucian, as to why you believe that "[i]t will be much more difficult for Speaker Kevin McCarthy and his unruly right wing to continue their threats to reduce support in the Congress with such high-level meetings between American and Ukrainian officials taking place." They don't seem to give a flying fuck what anyone to the left of their fascist asses thinks.
I guess I should have said "hopefully" it will be much more difficult. I recognize they're assholes with no integrity, but it's better if we show the flag over there than not, don't you think?
It will give Putin a heads-up, and time to think of a way to save face that is more acceptable than nuclear weapons.
Remember, their Hero was a cowardly draft dodger...still laugh when the Saudi sword dance is shown!
Remember, too-these people in the cabinet, military and diplomatic corps have only one boss: the President of the United States.
The Congress does not have control over their missions, only their money.
Excellent column!
Holy military knowledge, Batman! Lucian, this is a six star column. I’ve been reading a lot about the run up to WWII for a novel I’m writing and as I read what you’ve written here, I see so convincingly that the US of A has learned from the British mistakes. Sometimes it feels as if the only language a bully like Putin understands is raw violence, but when you combine tempered violence with the greatest intelligence, you have the hammer that can smush a bully like him into smithereens. The piecemeal daily reporting I read in the FT, Guardian, WSJ, WaPo, NYT, and elsewhere never seems to give me the knowledge and details you do. Thank you!!!!!!
I rely on the G but I think you're right. And just subscribed to that "Agents and Books" substack in case it can help my too-long-abiding Sherlock Holmes pastiche get edited, finished, and published.
Absolutely the best (and most encouraging) forecast of what we & NATO are doing help Ukraine kick Russian ass. Although my intelligence service experience is well behind me, I have no doubt that Lucian is correct in his assessment of our intelligence agencies ability to accurately monitor what the Russian army is up to (and in excruciating detail) 24/7. This alone would enable the Ukrainians to counter almost any offensive the Russians might be thinking about. The addition of well-trained Ukrainian troops using U.S. & NATO equipment will keep the Russians (and Putin) thinking about where & when the next attack will come. Take the fight to the enemy!!
What an excellent article, explaining military tactics and training to those, like me, ignorant of these facts. What a great education. Thanks, Lucian. We can always count on you to keep us well informed.