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L. Todd Wood

L. Todd Wood

L. Todd Wood, a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, flew special operations helicopters supporting SEAL Team 6, Delta Force and others. After leaving the military, he pursued his other passion, finance, spending 18 years on Wall Street trading emerging market debt, and later, writing. The first of his many thrillers is "Currency." Todd is a contributor to Fox Business, Newsmax TV, Moscow Times, the New York Post, the National Review, Zero Hedge and others. For more information about L. Todd Wood, visit LToddWood.com.

Articles by L. Todd Wood

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during an awarding ceremony in Moscow's Kremlin, Russia, on Thursday, Sept. 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev, pool)

Vladimir Putin mops the floor with Obama, John Kerry in the Middle East

After bombing hospitals and aid convoys during the latest abortive cease-fire in the Syrian War — notice I didn't say "civil war" because this is now a global conflict — Moscow on Thursday generously proposed a 48-hour window to allow relief supplies to enter the besieged city of Aleppo, which Syrian government forces are doing a very good job of reconquering with Russian support.

September 29, 2016
Wilbert Paulissen of the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) speaks on the preliminary results of the investigation into the shooting-down of Malaysia Airlines jetliner flight MH17 during a press conference in Nieuwegein, Netherlands, Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2016. The disaster claimed 298 lives. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)

MH-17 investigators say missile came from Russia

Dutch investigators have concluded that the BUK missile system that shot down Malaysian flight MH-17 over East Ukraine was of Russian origin and the shot came from pro-Russian separatist territory.

September 28, 2016
Black Lives Matter protesters march in downtown Atlanta, Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016, in response to the police shooting deaths of Terence Crutcher in Tulsa, Okla., and Keith Lamont Scott in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Branden Camp)

Seeing #BlackLivesMatter for what it is

The #BlackLivesMatter movement is not a movement against institutionalized racism in America. It cannot be, because institutionalized racism in America, for the most part, doesn't exist. We have a black president (notice I didn't say African-American), our schools are integrated, our military is integrated and opportunity abounds for those who seize it in this country.

September 27, 2016
In this photo provided by the Syrian Civil Defense group known as the White Helmets, a destroyed ambulance is seen outside the Syrian Civil Defense main center after airstrikes in Ansari neighborhood in the rebel-held part of eastern Aleppo, Syria, Friday, Sept. 23, 2016. A Syria monitoring group and a rescue worker say an intense air bombing campaign has targeted several neighborhoods in rebel-held part of Aleppo city, including centers of the award-winning volunteer civil defense group known as the White Helmets. (Syrian Civil Defense White Helmets via AP)

ISIS uses weapons of mass destruction against U.S.

The Islamic State has long-coveted weapons of mass destruction to use against the West, whether it be nuclear, biological or chemical. It seems one of the first uses of WMD against U.S. troops by ISIS has been confirmed in Syria.

September 23, 2016
A woman walks in front of an election poster of the Party of Growth in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, Sept. 15, 2016. Russia's parliamentary election will be held on Sunday. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)

Russia’s gleaming capital obscures a grimy political reality

"Our fatal troika dashes on in her headlong flight, perhaps to destruction, and in all Russia for long past men have stretched out imploring hands and called a halt to its furious reckless course." — Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Brothers Karamazov

September 22, 2016
Iranian armed forces members march in a military parade marking the 36th anniversary of Iraq's 1980 invasion of Iran, in front of the shrine of late revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini, just outside Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi) ** FILE **

Iran threatens to turn Tel Aviv to pile of dust

Iran paraded military hardware through its capital recently to mark the anniversary of the Iraqi invasion of Iran in 1980. The Islamic Republic also used the occasion to warn the United States to stay out of the region or 'suffer the consequences.

September 21, 2016
Supporters of the main opposition party wave Georgian national flags during a protest against buying gas from state-controlled Gazprom, in Tbilisi, Georgia, Sunday, March 6, 2016. Thousands of Georgians formed a human chain stretching for about 7 kilometers (4 miles) through the capital on Sunday to protest negotiations between their government and the Russian natural gas monopoly, Gazprom. (AP Photo/Shakh Aivazov)

The Georgia imperative for the West

During the eight years of the Obama administration, the transformation of former Ottoman territory has been sweeping and complete.

September 19, 2016
A worker steps through the maze of hoses being used at a remote fracking site in Rulison, Colorado. (Associated Press/File)

Low oil prices cause Russian pain

The sustained low price of hydrocarbons is beginning to cause substantial pain in Russia: Last month, Moscow again dipped heavily into its reserve fund to plug a whopping hole in the budget. Officials can't keep doing this. The rainy-day funds could be exhausted at some point in 2018.

September 15, 2016
CORRECTS THE SECOND SENTENCE TO REMOVE REFERENCE TO "NUCLEAR-CAPABLE" - A U.S. B-1B bomber, center, flies over Osan Air Base with U.S. jets in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2016. The United States on Tuesday sent two supersonic bombers streaking over ally South Korea in a show of force meant to cow North Korea after its recent nuclear test, and also to settle rattled nerves in the South. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

Incompetent White House habit of flying a couple old bombers to show force is getting ridiculous

OK, this is getting ridiculous. President Obama seems to think flying a couple 50-year-old B-52s or 30-year-old B-1s near a possible conflict zone is supposed to scare the pants of our adversaries. On the contrary, it shows how weak this White House really is. Our enemies want to destroy us. The policies of the Obama administration have made them think they can, that the U.S. is a decaying paper tiger.

September 14, 2016
A Druze family, celebrating the Eid al-Adha holiday, look towards Syria's Quneitra province as they visit an observation point in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2016. Israel is denying Syrian government claims that its forces shot down a warplane and a drone near the Israeli-controlled part of the Golan Heights. Israeli warplanes have conducted several air raids on Syrian army positions over the past weeks after stray shells hit the Israeli-occupied area. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Israel and Syria move closer to war

The firing of two S-200 surface-to-air missiles in the Quneitra region was not a coincidence. This is the first known instance of Assad's army retaliating to Israeli military activity in Syrian territory since the country's civil war began some five-and-a-half years ago, reports the Jerusalem Post.

September 13, 2016
In this photo released by China's Xinhua News Agency, a Russian naval ship arrives in port in Zhanjiang in southern China's Guangdong Province, Monday, Sept. 12, 2016. The Chinese and Russian navies launched eight days of war games in the South China Sea on Monday, in a sign of growing cooperation between their armed forces against the backdrop of regional territorial disputes. (Zha Chunming/Xinhua via AP)

China, Russia practice taking a South China Sea island

China and Russia are to shortly initiate an eight day naval exercise in the South China Sea. Provocatively, in light of Chinese militarization of disputed atolls in the region, a large part of the exercise will practice joint "island defense."

September 12, 2016
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump smiles as he meets with students and educators before speaking about school choice, Thursday, Sept. 8, 2016, at Cleveland Arts and Social Sciences Academy in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Donald Trump already negotiating with Russia

As a former military officer, I learned decades ago that when taking command of new unit, an officer has to be a strict disciplinarian. Rules have to be enforced and your subordinates need to respect and understand you are a determined person who takes your oath of office seriously. In reality, these first few months are a negotiation with your troops. First impressions count, they set the stage for your entire command.

September 8, 2016