"The US has withdrawn from Iraq
and is planning to do likewise from Afghanistan in 2014. This article argues
that the US has been fighting at least 5 wars, most of which are unannounced and
undeclared, and are fought with air power and robotics technology." "The US
still has some 70,000 troops deployed in Afghanistan, with withdrawal scheduled
by end-2014. And, while the US has officially withdrawn its forces from Iraq, it
maintains thousands of private contractors and State Department personnel in the
country and, in addition, has expanded its troop presence just across the border
in Kuwait. In addition to these two large-scale conflicts the US is also
fighting a number of unannounced and undeclared "wars". These unannounced wars
are fought mainly with air power and increasingly with drones rather than ground
troops. If we define war to include conflicts where the US is launching
extensive military incursions, including drone attacks, but that are not
officially "declared," then the US is directly involved in at least three wars –
in Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia – in addition to Iraq and Afghanistan. These
unannounced wars follow in the tradition of many previous covert US military
incursions, such as in Chile, Cuba, and Nicaragua. The difference is that
advanced military technology now enables the US to fight such wars in a
different way, which is far less transparent, and to sustain operations over
several years."