Wings of Fire

WAITING ON CAIRO

— STRATFOR Intelligence Update, www. stratfor.com. 13 October 2000

— Within the Arab world, the Egyptians occupy a unique position, the very reason that they have been propelled to the center of the situation. Although it wields one of the largest Arab militaries, Cairo is also the largest Arab state to continue ties with Israel; even Morocco has called its diplomatic representative home for consultation..

… Arab nations-even those that have signed peace agreements with Israel-are under intense pressure to join together and take a unified stand against Israel…

U.S. AID FUELING THE DEVELOPMENT MODERN EGYPT

The Washington Post, December 26, 2000

— Egypt, a preoccupation of U.S. foreign policy for the last quarter-century, has been the second-largest recipient of American foreign aid during that period. The $52 billion program, so far, has rebuilt mosques, constructed new schools, promoted family planning and transferred high-tech weapons like F-16 warplanes and M1-A1 tanks at a $2-billion-a-year clip…

CONSEQUENCES A NEW U.S. DEFENSE STRATEGY

STRATFOR Global Intelligence Update, www.stratfor.com. I March 2001

— In Washington, an internal Pentagon review of American defense strategy is likely to call for a dramatic reduction in U.S. troops deployed overseas… Such a historic shift would reduce the vulnerability of U.S. forces to attack and lower the profile of a seemingly imperial military presence. Over the long term, however, such a strategy may force allies and adversaries alike to build new regional alliances or adopt independent, antagonistic defense strategies…

LIBYA: GAINING LEVERAGE IN CENTRAL AFRICA

STRATFOR, 5 June 2001

— Chad and Libya reportedly deployed several hundred troops, attack helicopters and other military equipment to the Central African Republic on May 30, the BBC reported…. The unsuccessful uprising has opened the door for Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi to send Libyan troops into central Africa and closer to Chad's southern oil fields…

AIR FORCE TURNS 747 INTO HOLSTER FOR GIANT LASER

— The Washington Post, July 22, 2001

— USAF plans to shoot down a Scud-type missile with a giant laser fired from a modified 747 within two years. That test would be to prove the feasibility of destroying an attacking missile in the "boost" phase shortly after launch.

3 STUDIES FOCUS ON CUTTING OVERSEAS DEPLOYMENTS

The Washington Times, July 25, 2001

— Secretary Rumsfeld ordered three Pentagon reviews of foreign troop engagements in order to determine how best to reduce the type of oyerseas deployments that mushroomed during the Clinton era.