Serving NATO And The Navy, James Stavridis Looked To These Leaders For Lessons

Published October 14, 2019 at 11:00 AM EDT

U.S. Admiral James Stavridis, NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe, looks on during the Global Forum conference in Wroclaw, Poland, Friday, Oct. 8, 2010. (Alik Keplicz/AP)

A meditation on character and leadership from former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO James Stavridis. The new book is “Sailing True North.”

Guest

Adm. James Stavridis, retired four-star Navy admiral with a career spanning more than 30 years. Former allied commander at NATO, where he oversaw operations in Afghanistan, Libya, Syria, the Balkans and piracy off the coast of Africa. Dean emeritus of The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. Operating Executive at The Carlyle Group. (@stavridisj)

Author of “Sailing True North: Ten Admirals and the Voyage of Character” and “Sea Power: The History and Geopolitics of the World’s Oceans.”

From The Reading List

Excerpt from “Sailing True North” by James Stavridis

Newsweek: “Retired Admiral Warns Trump’s Syria Withdrawal ‘Will Absolutely’ Allow ISIS To Reform” — “Retired U.S. Navy Admiral James Stavridis has warned that President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw troops from northern Syria ‘will absolutely’ allow the extremist group the Islamic State (ISIS) to reform.

“‘Pulling them out will absolutely allow the reforming of that mass of Islamic State fighters,’ Stavridis, who previously served as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) Supreme Allied Commander, said during a segment of MSNBC’s Morning Joe on Thursday. He had previously pointed out that intelligence reports show that 20,000 to 30,000 ISIS fighters had simply ‘melted away’ and remained in the region.

“The four-star admiral also warned that Trump’s controversial pull-out sent a bad message to U.S. allies and could embolden other U.S. adversaries, such as Iran and Russia, which are both involved in the Syrian conflict. He asserted that it was a difficult moment for U.S. troops who had developed bonds with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) troops whom they have fought alongside.”

MSNBC: “Admiral James Stavridis: I watched the airplane hit the Pentagon” — “18 years after the 9/11 attacks, Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Admiral James Stavridis reflects on his experience at the Pentagon.”

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.