In the latest issue of Harper's magazine, longtime foreign policy analysts and authors Christopher Layne and Benjamin Schwarz make the argument that the United States basically set up the war in Ukraine through a series of its own foreign interventions and geopolitical meddling in pursuit of global hegemony and dominance that went well beyond NATO expansion. They build this case that Russia had not only been the target of American hubris but had been watching the U.S. with growing uneasiness in other actions — the invasion of Panama in 1989, the bombing of Serbia in 1999, its regime change wars in Iraq and Libya. We talk to them about why they chose to write this essay, risking criticism as Russian apologists, and their fears about where this war is going.
In the first segment, Kelley & Dan talk about a new Costs of War report that finds that upwards of 4.6 million deaths worldwide can be attributed directly or indirectly to America's post-9/11 wars.
More from Christopher Layne & Benjamin Schwarz:
Why are we in Ukraine: on the dangers of American Hubris, Harper's, May 2023.
The War in Ukraine is a testament to American Hubris: Benjamin Schwarz and Chris Layne, discuss