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David KilcullenContributing Editor for Military Affairs

David Kilcullen served in the Australian Army from 1985 to 2007. He was a senior counter-insurgency adviser to General David Petraeus in Iraq in 2007-08, followed by special adviser for counter-insurgency to secretary of state Condoleezza Rice. He is the author of six books, including most recently The Dragons and the Snakes: How the Rest Learned to Fight the West.

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This file photo taken on 20/11/2008 shows US Army soldiers from 2-506 Infantry 101st Airborne Division and Afghan National Army soldiers taking positions after racing off the back of a UH-47 Chinook helicopter during the launch of Operation Shir Pacha into the Derezda Valley in the rugged Spira mountains in Khost province, along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, directly across the border from Pakistan's lawless Waziristan region.

Ghost of a chance in talks with Taliban

It’s in everyone’s interest to end the Afghan war — but the government in Kabul might prove to be a stumbling block.

David Kilcullen

COMMENTInquirer

TOPSHOT - US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump arrive to speak to members of the US military during an unannounced trip to Al Asad Air Base in Iraq on December 26, 2018. - President Donald Trump arrived in Iraq on his first visit to US troops deployed in a war zone since his election two years ago (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)

We’re still suckers, Mr President – but that could be fixed

Donald Trump should have linked his Syrian pullout and Afghan drawdown to moves towards stabilisation.

David Kilcullen

TOPSHOT - Turkish-backed Syrian fighters train in a camp in the Aleppo countryside, northern Syria, on December 16, 2018. - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his US counterpart Donald Trump agreed Friday to

Withdrawal symptoms

Critics ignore the merits of Donald Trump’s Syrian strategy.

David Kilcullen

(FILES): This September 11, 2001 file photo shows pedestrians running from the scene as one of the World Trade Center Towers collapses in New York City following a terrorist plane crash on the twin towers. Seventeen years after the September 11, 2001 attacks, the remains of a 26-year-old finance worker killed in New York has been formally identified thanks to advances in DNA testing, officials announced Wednesday, July 25, 2018. Scott Michael Johnson is the 1,642nd person to be identified of the 2,753 people killed when two passenger jets, hijacked by Al-Qaeda, destroyed the Twin Towers at the World Trade Center, the symbol of New York's financial wealth. Johnson worked as a securities analyst at investment banking company Keefe, Bruyette and Woods, New York's chief medical examiner Barbara Sampson said. / AFP PHOTO / DOUG KANTER

Al-Qa’ida’s not done with us yet

After 30 years, the deadly group’s cycle of violent successes and near-death experiences is yet to run its course.

David Kilcullen

JOINT BASE ANDREWS, MD - MAY 10: U.S. President Donald Trump walks with the three Americans just released from North Korea, Kim Dong Chul, Kim Hak-song and Tony Kim at Joint Base Andrews on May 9, 2018 in Maryland. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo traveled to North Korea and returned with the three men who had been detained for up to two years. The three U.S. citizens have been released as a goodwill gesture ahead of a planned summit between Trump and Kim Jong Un. Mark Wilson/Getty Images/AFP. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images) == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==

The man with the plan

The Iran decision reflects Trump’s animus towards Obama’s achievement. But is he merely spiteful — or a strategist?

David Kilcullen

World Commentary

This satellite image provided by DigitalGlobe shows the Him Shinshar Chemical Weapons Storage Facility in Syria on Saturday, April 14, 2018, following a U.S.-led allied missile attack. U.S., French and British warplanes and ships launched more than 100 missiles nearly unopposed by Syrian air defenses early Saturday. (Satellite Image Â©2018 DigitalGlobe via AP) THE DIGITALGLOBE WATERMARK MAY NOT BE REMOVED

The good and bad of limited hit

Like any operation, the US, French and British strike on Syria had its good, bad and ugly aspects.

David Kilcullen

A Syria Civil Defence member carries a wounded child in the besieged town of Hamoria, Eastern Ghouta, in Damascus, Syria Janauary 6, 2018. REUTERS/ Bassam Khabieh TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC1107A31B50

Trump’s red line moment in Syria

Can the Assad regime be suitably punished without an escalation that pits the US directly against Russia or Iran?

David Kilcullen

Men carry the coffin of a relative who died in Saturday's deadly suicide attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018. The deadly explosion caused by a suicide bomber driving an ambulance in the capital. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

Trump risks cycle of escalation

The Taliban isn’t about to capture Kabul but nor can it be bombed to the negotiating table.

David Kilcullen

Eric Lobbecke Inquirer illo for 30-12-17 COPYRIGHT: The Australian's artists each have different copyright agreements in place regarding re-use of their work in other publications.Please seek advice from the artists themselves or the Managing Editor of The Australian regarding re-use.

New Cold War looms for 2018

These are the conflict zones to watch in 2018 as the strongmen fight for dominance.

David Kilcullen

Eric Lobbecke Op Ed Cartoon for 30-09-2017. COPYRIGHT: The Australian's artists each have different copyright agreements in place regarding re-use of their work in other publications.Please seek advice from the artists themselves or the Managing Editor of The Australian regarding re-use.

Danger of opening ‘road to war’

The wild cards here are two leaders who are incapable of backing down.

David Kilcullen

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