Militærhistorie: konflikter efter anden verdenskrig

Julen 1944 nærmede sig. Stilheden og kulden sænkede sig over Ardennerne. Et kuperet og viltert skovterræn i grænselandet mellem Frankrig, Belgien og Tyskland, som den allierede hærledelse anså for at være en stille sektor holdt med få og grønne enheder. Efter sommerens landgang i Normandiet havde de allierede i en hæsblæsende fremrykning trængt Nazitysklands arméer tilbage, men nedslidte gjorde de nu holdt for vinteren for at komme sig. En fredfyldt højtid var kærkommen. Men Adolf Hitler havde helt andre planer. Nazitysklands fører slap hundredtusindvis af elitesoldater og tunge kampvogne løs i en sand Panzerstorm, der gennem de små skovveje skulle rase gennem Ardennerne, vende krigslykken og knuse de allieredes trætte hærstyrker i en sidste desperat storoffensiv. På 80 året for de højdramatiske dage, hvor Vestfronten og de allieredes skæbne hang i en tynd blodig tråd, går historiker og forfatter Jakob Sørensen helt tæt på de voldsomme kampe i Ardennerskovene. Kampe der gjorde små byer som Bastogne og St. Vith, og ikke mindst de underlegne amerikanske soldater der heltemodigt stod i vejen for Hitlers tordnende Panzerstorm, verdensberømte.

Denne bog giver eleverne på stx, hf og htx en grundig indføring i ca. 35 års dansk udenrigs- og sikkerhedspolitik. Den kan bruges i både historie og samfundsfag og på tværs af de to fag.Med afslutningen af den kolde krig ændrede vilkårene sig for småstaten Danmark. Fra omkring 1990 til i dag har danske beslutningstagere måtte forholde sig til forskydninger og udviklingstendenser på regionalt og globalt plan og har samtidig aktivt søgt at fremme danske interesser, både kulturelt, ideologisk, økonomisk og sikkerhedsmæssigt.Bogens fokus er på de bestræbelser på og initiativer til at fremme landets mangeartede interesser på internationalt plan, som danske beslutningstagere har udfoldet. Den lægger op til analyser og diskussioner af den aktivisme, som efter mange forskeres opfattelse har præget dansk udenrigspolitik siden den kolde krigs afslutning.Bogen behandler temaer som:europæisk integrationøkonomisk og politisk globaliseringglobale nord/syd-problematikkerdet sikkerhedspolitiske landskab.Niels Geckler er cand.mag. i historie fra Københavns Universitet. Han har undervist på Høje Taastrup Gymnasium og på Campus Bornholm samt Københavns Folkeuniversitet. Han har desuden arbejdet med historiefaglig formidling via museer og lokalarkiver samt skrevet en række artikler og bøger, primært med fokus på nyere tids danske udenrigs- og sikkerhedspolitik samt erhvervsforhold.

Revideret og forøget femte udgave af Anders Lassens Krig. Foruden ny tekst er udgaven udstyret med et forord af den forhenværende britiske hærchef Sir Mark Carleton-Smith. Da tyskerne 9. april 1940 besatte Danmark, følte Anders Lassen sig kaldet til at melde sig til britisk krigstjeneste. Han var 19 år. Fem år senere faldt han i kamp, få uger inden hans fædreland atter blev frit. I krigen fandt den rastløse Anders et formål med sit liv og en anvendelse for sine talenter. Den styrke og de færdigheder, han udviste i aktiv krigstjeneste, skulle blive legendariske. Med Small Scale Raiding Force og senere Special Boat Service – forløbere for vore dages specialstyrker – deltog Anders Lassen i dristige operationer mod tyske og italienske styrker i Vestafrika, langs den franske kanalkyst, i Grækenland, Jugoslavien og Italien. Anders Lassen modtog Military Cross hele tre gange, og efter sin død blev han hædret med Victoriakorset, Storbritanniens fornemste tapperhedsdekoration. Dette er hans eventyrlige historie. THOMAS HARDER (f. 1959), cand.mag. i italiensk og historie, litterær oversætter og forfatter til en lang række bøger om bl.a. oversætteri, Italien og Anden Verdenskrig.

Blev loven som de mandlige landssvigere dømtes efter reelt mildnet i 1946, eller var det en skrøne? Påvirkede dødsdommene og henrettelserne ved krigsforbryderdomstolen i Nürnberg de danske medier? I dette andet bind, om de danske avisers håndtering af de dømte mandlige landssvigere, ser vi på nogle af de 7.000 domme der faldt i 1946. Med straffe fra 30 dages hæfte til fængsel på livstid var spændvidden i dommene stor. Og så var der lige dødsdommene. Vi ser på den til tider aggressive debat mellem tilhængerne og modstanderne af retsopgøret, hvor der fremkom udtalelser som ”Gudskelov for Scavenius” eller ”Han blev desværre ikke likvideret”.

Vi kender historien. Nazismens syge ideologi. De frygtelige lidelser. Holocaust. Og de millioner af liv, der gik til i kampe og bombardementer under Anden Verdenskrig. Og vi undrer os. Hvordan kunne det ske? Hvordan kunne det lade sig gøre for Hitler og hans kumpaner at erobre det meste af Europa med deres terrorregime. Hvorfor sagde ingen fra? Ikke mindst, da krigen begyndte at gå den forkerte vej for tyskerne. Generalernes Forræderi sætter fokus på de militære ledere under Anden Verdenskrig. Og kaster nyt lys over beslutninger, politik og strategiske dispositioner. Vi bliver klogere på generalernes moralske – eller manglende moralske – overvejelser og får et detaljeret indblik i de taktiske dispositioner og styrkemæssige forhold i krigens største slag. Flere af de tyske generaler bliver efter krigen vigtige figurer i NATO. Den Kolde Krig nødvendiggør fortrængning af rædsler og forbrydelser, og tyske fjender gøres til venner.

Det er aldrig uden omkostninger, når en nation sender sine soldater i krig. Oberst Lars R. Møller har skrevet en bramfri debatbog om Danmarks veteraner.At soldater dør eller såres er velkendt, men op gennem historien har man stort set ignoreret at der findes andre konsekvenser ved at gå krig. En stor del af de soldater, der ikke er blevet fysisk skadede, vender tilbage efter krigen med usynlige sår og samfundets evne til at tage sig af dem er i bedste fald ringe. At give Danmarks veteraner en ordentlig behandling er ikke en opgave for forsvaret, men for samfundet.

Just Fine in Vietnam is the raw and unvarnished recollections of a Vietnam soldier, Bo Hardin. It is a compelling story about the kind of aggression and fear one experiences only in a war zone. It tells his story about his experiences there and his unplanned departure from each tour. Many of the stories are grueling recounts of the very worst things that can happen when men and women go to war. In Hardin's mind, Vietnam had become his true home, and how he became addicted to a chosen lifestyle of combat, comradery and the arms of a woman that had captured his soul.

Based on a true story, "Peace to You Too, Brother" tells the story of three young people growing up in Erie, Pennsylvania during the turbulent Sixties who are attempting to build their futures, but the Vietnam War is hanging over their heads. It's a story of dreams, devotion and devastation.

This action-packed story of combat written by Dan Daly, a Vietnam combat veteran who was the Officer in Charge of PCF 76 makes you part of the Swift Boat crew. The six man crew of PCF 76 were volunteers from all over the United States, eager to serve their country in a highly unique type of duty not seen since the PT boats of WWII. This inexperienc

An account of the many unseen contributions made by civilians to conflict in support of the military in Afghanistan.

Tommie Pueschel dreamed of flying ever since he was a little kid. It's now 1968, and U.S. Army Warrant Officer Thomas R. Pueschel is 22 years old and his dream of flying is being realized. Only thing is, he is in Vietnam and the helicopter he is flying is loaded with guns and rockets and while he may be flying, there's people on the ground who are shooting back at him. His dream has now turned into a full-blown nightmare. The events around him are encapsulating him, forcing him to do things he would never do, never even think of doing, and he's got no choice. In a letter home to his parents, he voices his concern:"All my life, you and the church have taught me, 'Thou shalt not kill' and yet, I now find myself on a ship which is taking me to a place where I will be expected to do just that. It is a battle that has been raging in me for many months now, and I cannot find what seems to be an answer, and I guess I will not until that final test comes when I come face to face with my enemy and have to tighten my finger on the trigger and blast the breath of life in an instant from the body of a fellow man. I know it will be him or me, and I think that I may be able to do it, but the thought still frightens me terribly. Can I really take the life of a man, and afterwards, can I really justify that act by attributing it to my own instincts for self-preservation?"This is the story of Tom's 423 days in Vietnam from his first days in that God-forsaken country in October 1967 through his "freedom bird" home on the 5th of December 1968. Vietnam was ugly and brutal and 1968 was the bloodiest and most deadly year of the war. Troop levels were at their highest (536,100 American troops) and the fighting was at its worst. As one of the original "Blue Ghosts", Tom flew over 900 missions in his 423 days and experienced "enough blood and gore for all." Much of Tom's story is told in his own words, through the many letters he wrote home, with his changing thoughts and insights, and his great attempts to call out for some of the normalcy of the life he left behind. It is also told through the history of the times, the decisions made by others that he had no say in but greatly affected him, and how expendable life can be in times of war. This is a unique portrayal of one soldier's journey through the Vietnam War and his own inner struggle with the consequence of what he was doing.

Internationale kriser er kulminationen på stormagter kamp for magt og indflydelse. Her balancerer en lille gruppe statsledere på kanten af krig. Jo dybere krisen bliver, desto større tendens har statslederne til at lave overmodige beslutninger, hvor de overvurder deres politisk-militære muligheder i en mulig krig, imens modstanders chancer undervurderes.Hvorfor har beslutningsprocesser i storpolitiske kriser sådanne modstridende karakteristika, og hvilke konsekvenser kan overmod have for krisens forløb og udfald?Denne bog tilbyder et muligt svar med afprøvningen af tesen om, at beslutningstagers overmod er en overset, men kritisk medbestemmende faktor i udfaldet af stormagtskriserne i 1870, 1914 og 1962. Bogen gennemfører en analyse af tre storpolitiske kriser, som hver især fik afgørende betydning for moderne historie.Undersøgelsen af overmod tager sit teoretiske udgangspunkt i den såkaldte Rubiconteori, som anvendes løbende i bogens historievidenskabelig undersøgelse af de tre kriser. På denne måde tilbydes en alternativ læsning af hændelsesforløbet og udfaldet i tre af nogle af de mest velbelyste storpolitiske kriser inden for studiet af diplomatisk historie og i international politik.Dermed får læseren får en ny og anderledes vinkel på, hvordan og hvorfor disse storpolitiske kriser opstod, og særlig hvordan statsleders beslutninger blev påvirket af overmod – en pointe, vor egen tids krige og konflikter, særlig Ruslands invasion af Ukraine i 2022, har aktualiseret på dramatisk og tragisk vis

I slutningen af 2. Verdenskrig kom op imod 250.000 tyske flygtninge til Danmark. De kom med skibe til Sjælland og blev fordelt, hvor der var plads på skoler og i forsamlingshuse. Men da den tyske værnemagt overgav sig i maj 1945, blev der i stedet oprettet lejre til flygtningene. Flygtningene var oftest meget afkræftede ved ankomsten, og op imod 7% døde under deres ophold i Danmark.Flygtningelejren Sølund – De tyske flygtninge i Skanderborg 1945-1946 er beretningen om de flygtninge, som i et år blev indkvarteret i det tidligere hovedkvarter for Luftwaffe i Danmark, der lå i Dyrehaven ved Skanderborg. Stedet er nu en del af området for musikfestivalen Smukfest.Bogen Flygtningelejren Sølund vil give de oversete tyske flygtninge i Skanderborg en ny, men nødvendig og påkrævet plads i historien. For billedet af vores behandling af de tyske flygtninge har tidligere ikke umiddelbart passet ind i den danske selvforståelse, om hvor gode vi tror, vi er. Forfatterne skaber en mere nuanceret fortælling om krigen og efterkrigstiden, der måske nok gør ondt, men er med til at sætte fokus på flygtninge, historisk som i dag. Martin Philipsen Mølgaard (f. 1981) er historiker ansat som museumsinspektør og arkivleder ved Museum Skanderborg. Han arbejder særligt med formidling af 2. Verdenskrig i lokalt, nationalt og internationalt perspektiv. Julie De Vos (f. 1978) er arkæolog ved Museum Skanderborg, og hendes forskningsarbejde koncentrerer sig særligt om samtidsarkæologi og konflikt.

Firefights, mortar attacks, and friendly fire were all part of the experiences of an infantryman in the jungles of the Central Highlands of Vietnam. But bugs, leeches, exhaustion, swamps, accidents, snakes, C-rations, digging in, cutting overhead cover, grief, humor, camaraderie, rain, thirst, impressive weapons, useless weapons, care packages, and much, much more filled up most of the infantryman's one-year tour in Vietnam.Daily life as an infantryman in Vietnam was a completely foreign experience compared to the lives most young American soldiers knew growing up. The war and the jungle saw to that. Soldiers had to cope and adapt. Almost all did.In this book, the author tells many stories of events he personally experienced during his year in Vietnam. Through these stories, he aptly describes the daily life and shared experiences of soldiers in the 4th Infantry Division in the jungles of Vietnam's Central Highlands.Anyone who has a personal connection with someone who served as an infantryman in Vietnam or simply has curiosity about infantry life in Vietnam will better understand, after reading this book, the answer to the question "What was daily life like for them there?"

The poignant images in this book reveal the anguish, terror, bewilderment, and happiness of children born into a war that affected their everyday lives. Those who greeted me on jungle trails were happy, frightened, and wary. Barefooted, often balancing a little brother or sister on their hip holding out a hand for anything that we might give them. The ones standing apart, fearful, harboring memories of horrific things endured or witnessed. At the time I knew little of their life realities. It was to come fitfully with time, as they confronted me in the hamlets and villages with disease, illness, and injury.

"From Kabul to the Promised Land" is a personal travel journal by Farwa Parsa, describing the events in the wake of the fall of Kabul and its occupation by the Taliban in August 2021. It vividly describes the challenges she and her family faced leaving Kabul and arriving in the USA. The journal details the hardships her family encountered, moving from one turmoil to the difficulties of establishing themselves in a new country. It's a reminder of what many Afghan families experienced following the Fall of Kabul and their resettlement across the globe.¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿. ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿. ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿. ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿­¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿. ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿¿ ¿¿¿¿¿¿¿. ¿¿¿

The U.S. Marine Corps' four-year campaign against al Qaeda in Anbar is a fight certain to take its place next to such legendary clashes as Belleau Wood, Guadalcanal, Peleliu, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, Chosin, and Khe Sanh. Its success, the author contends, constituted a major turning point in the Iraq War and helped alter the course of events and set the stage for the Surge in Baghdad a year later. This book brings to light all the decisive details of how the Marines, between 2004 and 2008, adapted and improvised as they applied the hard lessons of past mistakes. In March 2004, when part of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force (I MEF) was deployed to Anbar Province in the heart of the Sunni triangle, the Marines quickly found themselves locked in a bloody test of wills with al Qaeda, and a burgeoning violent insurgency. By the spring of 2006, according to all accounts, enemy violence was skyrocketing, while predictions for any U.S. success were plummeting. But at that same time new counterinsurgency initiatives were put in place when I MEF returned for its second tour in Anbar, and the Marines began to gain control. By September 2008 the fight was over. Richard Shultz, a well-known author and international security studies expert, has thoroughly researched this subject. His book effectively argues the case for the Marines changing the course of the war at Anbar, which is contrary to the conventional wisdom that the Surge was the turning point.

They asked their company commander, "Why are we here?" They did not understand nor wanted to be in the Vietnam War.Looking back fifty-three years, he explains the background and the causes of the War. How and why the US became mired down in turbulent times of student unrest, political assassinations, anti-war protests led by Jane Fonda, Martin Luther King and other notables, as well as Civil Rights marches, corrupt and incompetent Vietnamese governments, meanwhile Presidents and Generals quietly had doubts about the War. So, he quietly mentioned to his soldiers, "Let's do our jobs and go home." They did their jobs, went home, and nobody cared.This book is not for those expecting Rambo-type heroics. Instead, its author and his men served their country not as fighters engaged in active combat, but as engineers, quietly going about the nuts-and-bolts business of building and repairing roads, bridges, and infrastructure. They accomplished their missions through difficult conditions including heavy workloads, drug abuse, racism, doubts about the war, arguments, and heated discussions about getting the job done, and being homesick for love. He then concludes with a suggestion for future wars.

Combat Engineers. The Unsung Heroes of Vietnam.August 25, 1966. Specialist Dan Crowley was among the handful of demolition experts assigned to a route clearing mission in support of Operation AMARILLO. His equipment load was the same as it had been numerous times before: a Claymore mine, TNT, C-4 explosives, blasting caps, time fuse, det cord, eighteen rounds for his M-79 grenade launcher, two hand grenades, and his Colt .45.But this would be no ordinary mission.The Viet Cong had just surrounded an American patrol along Highway 16. Crowley's outfit - Charlie Company, 1st Engineer Battalion - was among the smattering of units thrown together for this impromptu "relief force." History would call it the Battle of Bong Trang.In a war dominated by airmobile infantry, the combat engineers played a critical role in shaping America's battlefield victories. They built obstacles, dug defensive positions, set landmines, performed various types of demolition, and could fight as infantry whenever ordered.Fire in the Hole tells the story of Charlie Company, 1st Engineer Battalion during their deployment to the Republic of Vietnam in 1965-66. Told from the perspective of four Charlie Company veterans - Dan Crowley, Larry Blair, Chuck Humphrey, and Jay Franz - this book provides an intimate, no-holds-barred account of the combat engineers in Vietnam.

In August 1964 Australia deployed six Caribou aircraft and 76 personnel to Vung Tau, South Vietnam, as the new unit, RAAF Transport Flight Vietnam (RTFV). In mid-1966 the unit was renamed No. 35 Squadron and remained in South Vietnam until February 1972. This small team of aircraft and support personnel marked the first deployment of an RAAF unit on operations since the Korean War and the first war in which Australians did not fight alongside British. With only six aircraft, Wallaby Airlines, as the unit's operation became known, notched up impressive statistics over its eight years of existence - 80,000 sorties flying 47,000 hours and carrying over 40 million kilograms of cargo. RTFV was led for the first nine months by Squadron Leader Chris Sugden, DFC and Bar, a veteran of both the Second World War and the Korean War. Suggy was a generation older than most of the members of his unit and so became a defacto father figure to most of them. There is also no doubt he was looked up to by all and that he enjoyed the highest respect of every member of his unit, aircrew ground crew and support personnel, as well as the many United States and South Vietnamese personnel who came into contact with him. This is the story, untold to date, of these first 76 members of RTFV, of Suggy and his men, how the unit came into being, and of the first nine months of its existence - a period of operations which in some ways was quite different to those of the remaining seven years the unit was deployed in South Vietnam.

The Iraq War has been the costliest U.S. conflict since the Vietnam War. To date, few official studies have been conducted to review what happened, why it happened, and what lessons should be drawn. The U.S. Army in the Iraq War is the Army's initial operational level analysis of this conflict, written in narrative format, with assessments and lessons embedded throughout the work. This study reviews the conflict from a Landpower perspective and includes the contributions of coalition allies, the U.S. Marine Corps, and special operations forces. Presented principally from the point of view of the commanders in Baghdad, the narrative examines the interaction of the operational and strategic levels, as well as the creation of theater level strategy and its implementation at the tactical level. Volume 1 begins in the truce tent at Safwan Airfield in southern Iraq at the end of Operation DESERT STORM and briefly examines actions by U.S. and Iraqi forces during the interwar years. The narrative continues by examining the road to war, the initially successful invasion, and the rise of Iraqi insurgent groups before exploring the country's slide toward civil war. This volume concludes with a review of the decision by the George W. Bush administration to "surge" additional forces to Iraq, placing the conduct of the "surge" and its aftermath in the second volume.This study was constructed over a span of 4 years and relied on nearly 30,000 pages of hand-picked declassified documents, hundreds of hours of original interviews, and thousands of hours of previously unavailable interviews. Original interviews conducted by the team included President George W. Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Secretaries of Defense Leon Panetta and Robert Gates, Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and every theater commander for the war, among many others. With its release, this publication, The U.S. Army in the Iraq War, represents the U.S. Government's longest and most detailed study of the Iraq conflict thus far.

The Iraq War has been the costliest U.S. conflict since the Vietnam War. To date, few official studies have been conducted to review what happened, why it happened, and what lessons should be drawn. The U.S. Army in the Iraq War is the Army's initial operational level analysis of this conflict, written in narrative format, with assessments and lessons embedded throughout the work. This study reviews the conflict from a Landpower perspective and includes the contributions of coalition allies, the U.S. Marine Corps, and special operations forces. Presented principally from the point of view of the commanders in Baghdad, the narrative examines the interaction of the operational and strategic levels, as well as the creation of theater level strategy and its implementation at the tactical level. Volume 1 begins in the truce tent at Safwan Airfield in southern Iraq at the end of Operation DESERT STORM and briefly examines actions by U.S. and Iraqi forces during the interwar years. The narrative continues by examining the road to war, the initially successful invasion, and the rise of Iraqi insurgent groups before exploring the country's slide toward civil war. This volume concludes with a review of the decision by the George W. Bush administration to "surge" additional forces to Iraq, placing the conduct of the "surge" and its aftermath in the second volume.This study was constructed over a span of 4 years and relied on nearly 30,000 pages of hand-picked declassified documents, hundreds of hours of original interviews, and thousands of hours of previously unavailable interviews. Original interviews conducted by the team included President George W. Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Secretaries of Defense Leon Panetta and Robert Gates, Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and every theater commander for the war, among many others. With its release, this publication, The U.S. Army in the Iraq War, represents the U.S. Government's longest and most detailed study of the Iraq conflict thus far.

Echoes of Vietnam captures an American soldier's memories of the journey from the comforts of home, to the jungles of Southeast Asia, and the grim realities of war. A retrospective five decades in the making, Echoes includes a first-person assessment of our nation's leaders in their role as overseers of the Vietnam war.Against the backdrop of our nation's current struggle to retain a constitutional republic, Echoes provides timeless insight into leadership shortcomings which can erase citizen confidence and erode the very freedoms our soldiers fought to protect.Echoes provides a soldier's analysis and comparison of Vietnam and Afghanistan end-of-conflict scenarios, and probes America's subsequent involvement in the Russia/Ukraine war.

On July 31, the U.S. Navy destroyer USS Maddox (DD-731) began a reconnaissance cruise off the coast of North Vietnam. On August 2, three North Vietnamese torpedo boats attacked the ship. On the night of August 4, the Maddox and another destroyer, the USS Turner Joy (DD-951), expecting to be attacked, saw what they interpreted as hostile torpedo boats on their radars and reported themselves under attack. The following day, the United States bombed North Vietnam in retaliation. Congress promptly passed, almost unanimously and with little debate, a resolution granting President Lyndon Johnson authority to take "all necessary measures" to deal with aggression in Vietnam. The incident of August 4, 1964, is at the heart of this book. The author interviewed numerous Americans who were present. Most believed in the moment that an attack was occurring. By the time they were interviewed, there were more doubters than believers, but the ones who still believed were more confident in their opinions. Factoring in degree of assurance, one could say that the witnesses were split right down the middle on this fundamental question. A careful and rigorous examination of the other forms of evidence, including intercepted North Vietnamese naval communications, interrogations of North Vietnamese torpedo boat personnel captured later in the war, and the destroyers' detailed records of the location and duration of radar contacts, lead the author to conclude that no attack occurred that night.

"Given the length of time the United States spent in Iraq, there is a perception that there was no consideration before the war of what should be done after coalition forces arrived in Baghdad and removed Saddam Hussein. However as this unofficial history reveals, there was a great deal of planning to address how to achieve the policy objectives for Iraq set by the Bush administration. Kevin Benson -- director of plans for the United States Third Army, the ground forces command headquarters for GEN Franks' Central Command, at the start of the war -- details the development of the invasion plan and its subsequent execution from D-Day in March 2003 until the change of command of operations in Iraq and the departure of Third Army in June 2003. He addresses the persistent trope that 'the Army did no planning' for 'Phase IV, ' revealing that extensive plans were proposed, and were met with very little interest in Washington. The book covers the difficulties encountered in dealing with Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, from getting his approval on the number of forces requested to conducting the campaign to find the 'smoking gun' of WMD; the instructions given to Army, Marine and coalition forces; and the daily secure video teleconferences with Central Command and the Pentagon, and the rather remarkable conversations and guidance that came from these meetings."--

Examines the development of Soviet legacy MBTs by Ukraine in the post-Soviet era into models including the Bulat and Oplot, and the refurbishment and modernization of T-64, T-72 and T-80 models.The two largest heirs to the massive Soviet tank force that faced NATO during the Cold War - Russia and Ukraine - have been fighting one another since 2014 in what has now become the largest war in Europe since 1945.Volume 5 of the War in Ukraine series examines the development of Soviet legacy MBTs by Ukraine in the post- Soviet era into models including the Bulat and Oplot, and the refurbishment and modernization of T-64, T-72 and T-80 models to meet the need to respond to the war ongoing since 2014. Furthermore, this volume examines the organization and training of the opposed Russian and Ukrainian MBT forces and presents a number of case studies of their employment since 2014. The volume is completed with appendices on Explosive Reactive Armor as used in its various forms in this conflict, and the various types of 125mm gun ammunition and gun-launched anti-tank guided missiles used by both sides.This volume, extensively illustrated with full color images, is essential reading for the reader interested in post-Soviet Ukrainian MBT design, and the forces employed by both sides in the current war in Ukraine. The full history of the Russo-Ukrainian War remains to be written, but this book aims to at least give a background and a glimpse into one particular aspect of the war, as well as the role the MBT has played in the largest war of the twenty-first century so far.