To: Central Military Commission Chairman, Xi Jinping

From: Vice Chairman, Gen. Fan Changlong / Vice Chairman, Gen. Xu Qiliang / Minister of National Defense, Gen. Chang Wanquan / Chief of PLA General Staff, Gen. Fang Fenghui

As the leaders of NATO's 28 countries gather this week for their annual summit, they will intone, as usual, their catechism of alliance solidarity. As at previous meetings, they will commit to policy initiatives aimed at better coordinating their collective defense. They may even condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

There are many military solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; the problem is that none of them are particularly good outcomes. In fact, they are so draconian as to admit the proposition that there is no practical or sustainable solution that is solely military. That, however, is the case for most wars. Any war that stops short of killing every single member of the opposing society accepts a political solution.

Let's get this straight: The Western governments that overthrew Muammar al-Qaddafi but declined to disarm the militia that would predictably wreak havoc in Libya are now condemning the efforts of allied regional governments intervening to stanch the rise of Islamists who are dictating political outcomes contrary to election results.