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Fernando Betancor's Thoughts on the Present State of American Affairs

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Defense

This tag is associated with 15 posts

Inherent Resolve: Full Data Set 2015 to present

By fdbetancor ⋅ September 30, 2016 ⋅ Post a comment

Time series analysis is a valuable statistical tool, used in many industries to develop models, understand patterns and bring some order out of the chaos of a complex economy. It is no less useful in studying military affairs: the ebb and flow of battles and campaigns is a real phenomenon and one that cannot be […]

Did the US Abandon the New Syrian Army at Al Bukamal?

By fdbetancor ⋅ July 14, 2016 ⋅ Post a comment

On the 28th of June, elements of the rebel force called the New Syrian Army executed a highly ambitious attack to seize the key border town of Al Bukamal. The town sits astride Highway 4[1], the Euphrates River and is only 6 kilometers from the Iraqi border and the town of Al Qa’im. It is […]

Petition to the Senate to Condemn Spanish Harassment of the USS Florida

By fdbetancor ⋅ May 12, 2016 ⋅ 3 comments

To the Honorable David Perdue and Johnny Isakson United States Senators for the State of Georgia Dear Senators, I write to you to express my outrage at the wanton endangerment of the ballistic missile submarine U.S.S. Florida by a Spanish patrol craft during a port call at the Royal Navy base of Gibraltar on […]

From Russia With Love…To Ceuta

By fdbetancor ⋅ October 29, 2015 ⋅ 5 comments

Defense experts on both sides of the Atlantic have expressed concern about the increase in Russian submarine activity in the Atlantic Ocean[1]. Russian patrols have risen by 50% to what one unnamed European diplomat described as “Cold War levels”. Not only the frequency of excursions has increased: the submarines are approaching the United States and […]

Catalonia: An Essential Pillar of NATO, Peace and Security in Indi-Pac by Alex Calvo and Pol Molas

By fdbetancor ⋅ September 17, 2015 ⋅ 10 comments

Alex Calvo is a guest professor at Nagoya University in Japan Pol Molas is a naval analyst and regular contributor to the Blau Naval blog The article is reprinted with permission of the author. The views expressed are exclusively those of the author and are not necessarily endorsed by Common Sense. Security and defence, […]

Japan’s Strategic Challenge

By fdbetancor ⋅ July 26, 2015 ⋅ Post a comment

You may download and play the PowerPoint slideshow here: japan2 or follow the link to the YouTube video here. Japan is a nation in the Pacific Ocean, just off the coast of East Asia. The Japanese archipelago consists of 6,852 islands; however, the four main islands comprise 98% of the land area and 99% of the population. […]

Gibraltar: The Daily Grind

By fdbetancor ⋅ July 3, 2015 ⋅ Post a comment

There has been a stand-off today between a number of Spanish government vessels and the Gibraltar Squadron inside the Territorial Waters of the British Overseas territory. Beginning at 0500 local time, the HMS Sabre left the port at high speed to intercept and shadow the Spanish Oceanographic Research Vessel Ángeles Alvarino. Throughout the morning, the Spanish […]

Ceuta en la Encrucijada por Alex Calvo (en castellano)

By fdbetancor ⋅ July 3, 2015 ⋅ Post a comment

Alex Calvo is a Professor of International Relations and International Law, and Head of the IR Department, at European University (Barcelona Campus), and a guest professor at Nagoya University. An expert on Asian security and defense issues, he got his LLB from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS, University of London) and is currently doing an MA […]

Spain: The Russians Are Coming

By fdbetancor ⋅ June 22, 2015 ⋅ 5 comments

Spanish newspaper El Pueblo de Ceuta reported[1] on Sunday the arrival of two ships of the Russian Navy, the Alexander Shabalin and the Ivan Bubnov. The Shabalin is a 4,000 ton amphibious landing ship assigned to the Baltic Sea Fleet while the Bubnov is a fleet replenishment tanker with a fully-loaded displacement of 13,500 tons […]

CIDOB: “Catalonia and Scotland: New States, Security and Defense Policy”

By fdbetancor ⋅ June 21, 2015 ⋅ Post a comment

Common Sense had the pleasure of attending the recent round table discussion at the Barcelona Center for International Affairs, CIDOB, on “New States: Security and Defense Policy” held on 04 June 2015. The meeting boasted the participation of noted Catalan historian, Professor F. Xavier Hernández Cardona of Barcelona University, and Professor Alex Calvo, specialist in Asian security studies at Nagoya […]

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