L. Todd Wood

Trump energy plan a climate changer on clean coal

One of the most remarkable consequences of President Trump's making America great again has been the revolution in energy policy under The Donald.

Hamas praises vehicle ramming attack In northern Israel that injured four

The terror group Hamas, which controls the Palestinian Gaza Strip, praised the attack Sunday on Israeli soldiers and civilians in the Acre jurisdiction in northern Israel.

Vladimir Putin’s boasts echo Soviet Union unease

Perhaps a sense of deja vu has crept into the Kremlin's thinking. It is obvious that the Russian military is worried about America's missile defense, worried about an arms race it can't win, and worried about President Trump's unpredictability and determination to rearm the depleted U.S. military.

A Night For Freedom’s big tent

The stranglehold big business held on the Republican establishment has been diminished, in favor of new thought leaders who bring new ideas, and new members, to the party. A Night For Freedom, a growing crusade developed by internet sensation Mike Cernovich, is one of these movements. I was privileged to attend a recent event in Washington, D.C. over the weekend, after attending CPAC.

EU beware: Milo Dukanovic’s ‘mafia state’ of Montenegro

As the saying goes, absolute power corrupts and power corrupts absolutely. There is no other place that more vividly depicts this truth than the tiny Balkan nation of Montenegro.

Russians are hoarding gold while U.S. piles up debt

If you ignore the corruption and misallocation of capital in the Russian economy, you could make the case that Moscow has been more financially responsible than Washington over the last several decades.

CROSSTALK: Munich Security Conference leaves unanswered questions

This year the Munich Security Conference produced the usual litany of sound bites for the media to feast on regarding smoldering conflicts around the world.

Gaza flares up after Syrian attack on Israel

The shoot-down of an Israeli F-16 after an Iranian drone was flown into Israeli airspace last week was widely reported. However, what is even more interesting, but not widely reported or discussed, is the flare-up of violence from the Gaza Strip, where Israel fought a short conflict in 2014 against Hamas terror.

Israel should be America’s ally, not Russia’s

For its own preservation, Israel under Mr. Netanyahu has been forced to cozy up to the Kremlin and Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has made himself the kingmaker in the region after Mr. Obama's abdication of responsibility.

U.S. left fears Russia’s Christianity, whiteness, anti-feminism

Iran turning its sights on Israel

We've predicted for some time that once the fight between pro-Assad Shia elements (Iran/Hezbollah) and Sunni Islamists in the Middle East wound down, Iran and its proxies would turn their attention towards Israel to achieve their longstanding dream of wiping the Jewish State off the map.

Donald Trump fixes Hillary Clinton’s Russia ‘reset’

Hillary's Russian reset proved to be anything but -- in fact, it was the beginning of amateur hour when it came to American-Russian relations. President Trump is changing all that, resetting relations for real in fields like national security where it matters, without the plastic buttons from OfficeMax and the sickening fanfare.

ManPAD Rubicon passed in Syria

On Saturday, a Russian Su-25 Frogfoot attack jet was shot down in Syria by what Russia calls "terrorists" and the U.S. calls "Anti-Assad rebels." The Su-25 is Russia's version of the vaunted, American A-10, and was designed and built around the same time. The Frogfoot has only slightly swept wings, and is meant to fly low and slow over the battlefield, carrying a heavy load of weapons. In short, it is meant to loiter and find targets on the ground to attack. It is not an air-superiority aircraft, and is 1970s technology. It has one mission--to find things on the ground and kill them.

U.S. as world’s largest energy producer will shape global markets

I had an argument recently with a woman in Moscow over American energy production. She simply did not believe that the United States has become the largest energy producer in the world -- which marks a real shock to the ordinary Russian's self-image.

Putin splits NATO, exploits Turkey’s fears

One of the objectives of Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Russian security services, since that crucial time in Mr. Putin's mind when he decided to turn against the exploitation of Russia by the West, has been to split the NATO alliance. This week, Mr. Putin officially achieved his goal.

Donald Trump takes Ronald Reagan mantle to defend the West

I can remember the wailing and gnashing of teeth in Europe as President Ronald Reagan deployed medium-range nuclear missiles into Western Europe to counter the Soviet threat. I can remember the name-calling, the "Ronald Ray Guns," the stupid American cowboy references. The leftists of Europe and the United States threw everything, including the kitchen sink, at the Great Communicator. However, the simple fact remains for history's judgment — Reagan was right.

New war in East Ukraine?

Well, it looks like the Deep Obama State and the neocons are going to get their new war in East Ukraine. This time it will be with American weapons killing Russians. How cool is that?

CROSSTALK: Trump must beware domestic enemies

How do you deal with a country where a corrupt elite attempts to shut down free speech?

Russia needs to grow, but has no idea how

The Russian media outlet Republic.ru reported this week on a conversation with Alexander Lebedev, a Russian businessman and banking expert. The most striking comment made in the interview was Mr. Lebedev's assertion that at least $100 billion had been illegally smuggled overseas from Russian banks over the last decade. For an economy the size of Russia's, that is an extraordinary amount.

Trump, Putin, North Korea, the art of the deal

North Korea is a Stalinist state, created by the Soviet Union. Pyongyang has long and deep ties to Russia and Moscow wants to keep it that way.