Carol J Williams

Carol J. Williams is a retired foreign correspondent with 30 years' reporting abroad for the Los Angeles Times and Associated Press. She has reported from more than 80 countries, with a focus on USSR/Russia and Eastern Europe.

Take the Bait? Iran-Backed Militias May Be Provoking US into a Fight

The attacks on U.S. military and diplomatic sites over the past week are suspected to have been orchestrated by Iran and designed to further sabotage prospects for a U.S.-brokered peace accord between Israel and Saudi Arabia.

Israel Stunned into War — And Dysfunctional Allies Struggle to Assist

There is no hope of diplomatic resolution of the crisis taking the lives of hundreds on both sides each day. Death tolls have soared beyond 2,000, with more bodies and atrocities being discovered as IDF reach massacre scenes and Hamas fighters dig out from the rubble of punishing Israeli aerial bombardment.

Putin’s Weakness: Losing Armenia

That failure just cost Putin a crucial regional ally and exposed him to further vulnerability to arrest for alleged war crimes.

Running on Empty: Putin goes Begging

The Kremlin leader has burned through Russia’s arsenal of sophisticated missiles in the 18 months since he launched his “special military operation” to conquer Ukraine. He now must rely on barter with impoverished Soviet-era allies to resupply his stalled war machine.

Putin’s Revenge: Plane Listing Prigozhin as Passenger Falls from the Sky

It was only a matter of time before Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin would pay with his life for his mutiny against Russian President Vladimir Putin and his disastrous war in Ukraine.

Putin’s New Arms Race Likely to End as Did the USSR’s — in Collapse

The new arms race threatens to end as did the old one more than three decades ago. Russian prioritizing of government investment in war-fighting capability over the needs of its population will end with the economic collapse of a state that can no longer afford to keep pace. The demise of the Soviet Union in 1991 was the result of Communist hubris that bankrupted the federation in its failed bid to out-power the United States.

Mounting: Putin’s Self-Inflicted Wounds

Punishing the Russian invasion’s more effective commanders for speaking truth to power is unlikely to reverse the damage Prigozhin’s mutiny inflicted on Putin’s posture as the strongest Russian leader since Peter the Great.

NATO’s Surprisingly Strong Show

“Vilnius has been a summit for implementation for the NATO of tomorrow,” the leaders’ statement proclaims. “A new generation of regional defense plans has been put in place, making the Alliance more capable to deter and defend itself than in recent decades.”

Curiouser and Curiouser: Prigozhin Mutiny Deal Seems to be Falling Apart

If any of the post-mutiny reports on Prigozhin’s whereabouts are true, that would represent a stunning departure from Putin’s response to far less serious challenges to his power.

Russia: A Day That Shook the World

Prigozhin’s drive toward the Russian capital — in his words a “march for justice” with unspecified intentions — reached to within 120 miles of Moscow before the surprise announcement late Saturday that a retreat had been brokered by Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko.

Latest