Forgotten History: Nixon Nearly Went to War with North Korea
April 15, 1969 marked one of the deadliest days for the United States in postwar Asia. The shootdown of a U.S. Air Force reconnaissance aircraft off the coast of North Korea was unprovoked, and cost the lives of thirty-one Americans.
Here s What You Need to Remember: Nixon decided to continue U.S. reconnaissance flights in the region while providing them with military escorts to prevent another downing. This showed American resolve against the attack while still continuing the intelligence collection mission. It also had the benefit of not escalating what was already a crisis.
Why Russia Would Lose a War Against NATO Over the Baltics
It took a lot of investment and training, along with Soviet blunders, to achieve something resembling a military edge.
Key point: It was technology and a better doctrine that helped NATO meet and outmatch the Soviets. Thankfully though this advantage was never put to the test in combat against the Warsaw Pact.
A recent RAND wargame on a potential Russian offensive into the Baltics brought talk of a “new Cold War” into sharp focus. The game made clear that NATO would struggle to prevent Russian forces from occupying the Baltics if it relied on the conventional forces now available.
Accidental war is rare, but not impossible.
Here s What You Need to Remember: China and America don t trust each other and tensions are still a problem. With each vying to long-term dominance in the South China Sea, here are three ways things could go bad.
It’s easy to imagine an even more serious confrontation in the SCS. Another accidental collision would be bad enough, but if a scenario developed similar to that of the downing of KAL 007, with a Chinese fighter jock actually opening fire on an American plane, the situation could get ugly very quickly. And if an American pilot fired upon a Chinese plane, the reaction of the Chinese public could become too much for Beijing to reasonably handle.