Vernuccio’s View

Vernuccio’s View: Philippines Move Closer to China

China’s President Xi Jinpings’ November visit to the Philippines should concern the U.S. and its allies. Xinghua,  the official government news agency of China, reports that “China and the Philippines agreed … to upgrade their ties to comprehensive strategic cooperation… […]

by · November 28, 2018 · Vernuccio's View

Vernuccio’s View: Japan Rises to its Defense

Japan is increasingly threatened by an expansionist China and an aggressive Russia, even as North Korea suspends its missile testing program. A Japanese Government document describes how Tokyo envisions threats to the nation: “In the area surrounding Japan, there is a concentration […]

by · November 21, 2018 · Vernuccio's View

A Greater Threat than 9/11

As Americans paused this month in remembrance of the 9/11/01 attacks, a far greater threat is rapidly maturing. Russia and China have extensively ramped up their military development in recent years. Moscow now has, for the first time, a lead […]

by · October 15, 2018 · Vernuccio's View
Russian President Vladimir Putin has taken issue with NATO.

No Illusions About Putin

The fundamental underpinnings of the contentious relationship between Moscow and Washington will not change anytime soon. The Bolshevik takeover of the Russian Revolution resulted in a government that saw human rights, the central concept of the West, as a serious […]

by · September 12, 2018 · Vernuccio's View
Vernuccio’s View: NASA’s Next Big Project

Vernuccio’s View: NASA’s Next Big Project

  The United States is on the verge of a renaissance in space, with ambitious goals to have astronauts develop a lunar base and explore Mars, as well as accomplishing new science goals using robotic spacecraft. Vice President Pence, who leads […]

by · September 6, 2018 · Vernuccio's View
Slavery in the 21st Century

Slavery in the 21st Century

The 2018 Global Slavery Index  has been released. The focus of the study highlights the connection between modern slavery and two major factors: highly totalitarian regimes, in which populations are put to work to prop up the government, and conflict […]

by · August 29, 2018 · Vernuccio's View
Russia, China, Military Moving Rapidly Ahead

Russia, China, Military Moving Rapidly Ahead

In most of the world’s freely elected governments, officials explain their defense budgets almost apologetically. There is a media inclination to frame spending on military needs as an unwanted diversion of funds from civilian programs. It is startling when one reads […]

by · August 26, 2018 · Opinion, Vernuccio's View
Credit: YouTube

Vernuccio’s View: Google, China, and Censorship

It’s odd that you don’t see much anger expressed online about how social media giants have helped dictatorships.  Is that because those comments have been intentionally censored? An Intercept article by Ryan Gallagher recently reported that “Google is planning to launch a censored […]

India's Foreign Minister Manmohan Singh and China's Xi Jinping.
Credit: thediplomat.com

Vernuccio’s View: India, Unacknowledged

India is the world’s most populous democracy, an important US trading partner, and a key counterweight to China.  Despite all that, there is little discussion or acknowledgement of India’s increasingly vital role in geopolitics. That may soon change. The Center for […]

by · August 12, 2018 · Vernuccio's View
The Reality of War in Space

The Reality of War in Space

Earlier this year, Daniel Coats, the Director of National Intelligence, warned that  “China and Russia will continue to expand their space-based … systems in terms of the numbers of satellites, the breadth of their capability, and the applications for use. Both […]

by · August 10, 2018 · Vernuccio's View
President Vladimir Putin, Russia.

Vernuccio’s View: Russia’s Naval Threat

Russia’s significant increase in its seafaring nuclear threat and its aggressive moves in the Atlantic and the waters surrounding Europe increases the challenges facing the U.S. Navy.

Vernuccio’s View: China’s Drive Towards Supremacy

Vernuccio’s View: China’s Drive Towards Supremacy

The unprecedented extent of China’s combined military, financial, and political challenge to the United States and its allies has been outlined at an unclassified hearing called by the House Permanent Select Committee on intelligence. According to Committee Chairman Devin Nunes, […]

NATO alliance flags

Vernuccio’s View: NATO’s Crucial Meeting

This week’s NATO summit, in session Wednesday and Thursday, is a test both of the stability of the most important military alliance in existence, and the maturity and realism of key European governments. At the conclusion of the Second World […]

Mexico's President-elect  Andrés Manuel López Obrador casts his vote in the July 1, 2018 election. (Credit: lopezobrador.org.mx/)

Vernuccio’s View: Growing Danger From Mexico

Leftist candidate Andrés Manuel López Obrador, known also by the nickname AMLO, will be the next president of Mexico. He believes that “All have the right to immigrate to the United States.” His approximately 53% victory was facilitated by votes […]

Putin's forces have targeted the Republic of Georgia.

Vernuccio’s View: Sweden Responds to Russian Threat

Sweden, long associated with nonalignment in the Cold War, a peaceful foreign policy, and an armed forces that had come rather close to being barely existent, is taking a dramatic turn. Faced with Vladimir Putin’s expansionist goals, aggressive actions, and […]

by · June 29, 2018 · News, Vernuccio's View