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Michael Shurkin

@michaelshurkin

Ex-CIA, Ex-RAND, ex-historian. I post on things related to defense, national security, Africa (esp. the Sahel), and all things French military. Sometimes troll antisemites.

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Latest posts by Michael Shurkin @michaelshurkin

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Historian here history first time as tragedy the second time as farce.

05.03.2026 14:11 πŸ‘ 5331 πŸ” 1875 πŸ’¬ 99 πŸ“Œ 107
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West African states to create 2,000-strong anti-jihadist force The new ECOWAS mission will be deployed in response to terrorism threats, the expansion of organised crime and persistent maritime insecurity.

Pretty big news out of ECOWAS aimed at combatting that looks aimed to combat and mitigate the spread of JNIM, ISGS, ISWAP, and others. Intent appears to be to cooperate with the Alliance of Sahel States (Mali, Niger, & Burkina Faso) as well.

05.03.2026 17:01 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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01.03.2026 01:52 πŸ‘ 11 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

I meant to write Khamenei. But Khomeini as well.

01.03.2026 01:45 πŸ‘ 8 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Things simultaneously true:
1. Iran's regime is evil. F*ck Khomeini.
2. Blowing stuff up seldom has strategic value.
3. POTUS's ability to initiate a war like this despite the Constitution should worry all Americans whether we approve of this instance or not

01.03.2026 01:33 πŸ‘ 31 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 2 πŸ“Œ 0

If only I had reason to believe the people in charge knew what they were doing.

01.03.2026 00:56 πŸ‘ 24 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Frankly, I expected better from a FIFA Peace prize winner

28.02.2026 16:19 πŸ‘ 2677 πŸ” 483 πŸ’¬ 40 πŸ“Œ 14

I remember when trying to forgive student loans was massive overreach of Presidential power.

28.02.2026 18:00 πŸ‘ 3620 πŸ” 976 πŸ’¬ 43 πŸ“Œ 15
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Kostiantynivka

This is not a movie scene.
This is a Ukrainian city that Russia is systematically erasing.
They want it to disappear β€” physically and from the world’s memory.
Please, don’t stay SILENT

πŸŽ₯ libkos, 28th Mechanized Brigade

27.02.2026 08:39 πŸ‘ 111 πŸ” 76 πŸ’¬ 2 πŸ“Œ 10
A conversation with Sasho Todorov about what casualty data tell us about battle.
A conversation with Sasho Todorov about what casualty data tell us about battle. YouTube video by Pax Americana

I talked to @sashotodorov.bsky.social about casualty data and what they tell us about Ukraine and the death of decisive battle. Check it out.

youtu.be/ZdKasf8UH_U

26.02.2026 23:34 πŸ‘ 12 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
A conversation with Sasho Todorov about what casualty data tell us about battle.
A conversation with Sasho Todorov about what casualty data tell us about battle. YouTube video by Pax Americana

I talked to @sashotodorov.bsky.social about casualty data and what they tell us about Ukraine and the death of decisive battle. Check it out.

youtu.be/ZdKasf8UH_U

26.02.2026 23:34 πŸ‘ 12 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

According to that logic then America is only truly safe if it occupies Canada

26.02.2026 13:28 πŸ‘ 94 πŸ” 28 πŸ’¬ 15 πŸ“Œ 4
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Never forget:

26.02.2026 16:52 πŸ‘ 13 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
U2 - Yours Eternally ft. Ed Sheeran and Taras Topolia (Documentary Short Film)
U2 - Yours Eternally ft. Ed Sheeran and Taras Topolia (Documentary Short Film) YouTube video by U2

"Dearest friends or whatever
We are calling ourselves these days
My current location
I cannot disclose
Geographically
It's nowhere that I’ve been before
But emotionally
We’re on the same road"

www.youtube.com/watch?v=p92N...

26.02.2026 10:10 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 2 πŸ“Œ 0

I've been deep into the muck of Medicare on behalf of my father. Takeaway: The US system is an evil blend of Kafka and Calvin. Kafka provides the bureaucratic absurdity and opacity. Calvin is responsible for the clear message that runs throughout it all: "You're poor? F*ck you, you suck."

25.02.2026 22:29 πŸ‘ 20 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Busy editing an interview I just did with @sashotodorov.bsky.social about Ukraine and the death of battle in modern warfare. Stay tuned!

25.02.2026 22:20 πŸ‘ 6 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

That's exactly what I was thinking

25.02.2026 20:46 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

This is wonderful.

24.02.2026 23:54 πŸ‘ 11 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

The challenge is picking which season to watch. The finale of season 1 is great, but it's only in season 2 that things really get going. You know, when Spike and Dru appear. Of course the best of all the badies is Glory, who's in season 5. The season 5 finale is among the best TV ever made.

25.02.2026 02:53 πŸ‘ 5 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Anyone watching the SOTU tonight has to do some deep reflection as to why they passed on the opportunity to rewatch Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

25.02.2026 02:22 πŸ‘ 23 πŸ” 4 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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They Don’t Believe It Either. The Gaza Genocide as Ideological Performance

This is excellent.

open.substack.com/pub/maartenb...

24.02.2026 17:51 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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The Danish Government announced it will increase the Defence budget with 21.6bn DKK (2.9bn EUR) in 2027 or a total of 255.4bn DKK (34.2bn EUR) to 2033.

This will raise the budget permanently to 3.5% of GDP by 2030.

It also aims to increase other related budgets to 1.5% by 2030

24.02.2026 10:48 πŸ‘ 32 πŸ” 8 πŸ’¬ 2 πŸ“Œ 1

Thank you.

23.02.2026 18:29 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Smug judgementalism cut with left antisemitism. I find it no less odious than the crap I see over there. I guess the problem isnt the app but the fact that the humans using them are well, humans. And we kinda suck.

23.02.2026 15:48 πŸ‘ 3 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
Networked Warfare and Mission Command: IDF Lessons
Networked Warfare and Mission Command: IDF Lessons YouTube video by Pax Americana

IDF answers to French Army questions about the effect of networked warfare tech on Mission Command. Check it out.

youtu.be/wsv4qzX-Q44

23.02.2026 13:37 πŸ‘ 6 πŸ” 3 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Wow.

23.02.2026 13:36 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

This is precisely why I don't like bluesky and prefer Twitter. The smug judgmentalism.

23.02.2026 13:15 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 4 πŸ“Œ 0

As a Pennsylvanian, I've never understood this either.

22.02.2026 23:25 πŸ‘ 0 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Pax Americana The official website and shop of Pax Americana. Find the latest content, buy merch, and support your favorite creator.

My YouTube channel now has Merch! Here is the first round of offerings. You know what to do!

pax-americana-shop.fourthwall.com

22.02.2026 13:06 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Un Γ©pisode avec @simnasr.bsky.social pour garder un Ε“il rΓ©gulier sur ce qui est en train de se passer au Sahel et notamment au Mali (et en Syrie) un peu plus loin des camΓ©ras, mais comme souvent quand il s'agit de jihadistes en train de conquΓ©rir un pays, c'est pas mal de ne pas oublier le sujet.

20.02.2026 17:12 πŸ‘ 67 πŸ” 14 πŸ’¬ 2 πŸ“Œ 1