One month ago today, on February 13, 2026, our guest was the Fred Harvey Harrington Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, Alfred McCoy. We discussed his latest book, COLD WAR ON FIVE CONTINENTS: A GLOBAL HISTORY OF EMPIRE AND ESPIONAGE, published by Haymarket Books.

With the US and Israel’s continuation of the war against Iran, which began last June, 2025 and lasted 12 days, and then recommenced on February 28, 2026, I asked him to return to share his insights and analysis.

For well over five decades he has specialized in the foreign policy of the United States, European colonization of Southeast Asia, and CIA covert operations and illegal international drug trade. In June of 1972, he testified before the US Senate Committee on Appropriations’ Foreign Operations Subcommittee, testifying that American officials were condoning and even cooperating with corrupt officials at the highest levels in Southeast Asia’s illegal drug trade out of political and military considerations. He testified that the CIA chartered Air America aircraft and helicopters in northern Laos to transport opium harvested by their “tribal mercenaries”.

His multiple awards winning books include, THE POLITICS OF HEROIN IN SOUTHEAST ASIA: CIA COMPLICITY IN THE GLOBAL DRUG TRADE; A QUESTION OF TORTURE: CIA INTERROGATION, FROM THE COLD WAR TO THE WAR ON TERROR; IN THE SHADOWS OF THE AMERICAN CENTURY: THE RISE AND DECLINE OF US GLOBAL POWER; and TO GOVERN THE GLOBE: WORLD ORDERS AND CATASTROPHIC CHANGE. He was also our guest when those last two were published in 2017 and 2021 respectively.
We spoke with him via Zoom on March 9, 2026.

Articles, etc. pertinent to this interview:

U.S. Navy Tells Shipping Industry Hormuz Escorts Not Possible For Now https://www.huffpost.com/entry/navy-shipping-industry-strait-of-hormuz_n_69b0e208e4b0f0830ae5ad8c

How Iran has used the strait of Hormuz to throttle oil and gas – a visual guide https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/11/how-iran-has-used-the-strait-of-hormuz-to-throttle-oil-and-gas-a-visual-guide

Hasty redeployment of US missiles from South Korea to Middle East leaves Seoul rattled https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/11/redeployment-us-missiles-thaad-south-korea-middle-east-seoul-iran

Russia Provided Iran With Information That Can Help Tehran Strike U.S. Military: AP Report https://www.huffpost.com/entry/russia-provided-iran-information-that-can-help-tehran-strike-us-military-ap-report_n_69ab27f8e4b0bda876a95108

Why Iran’s vital Kharg Island oil hub is still untouched by US-Israel bombers https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/11/why-irans-vital-kharg-island-oil-hub-is-still-untouched-by-us-israel-bombers

U.S. May Have Committed War Crime In Sinking Of Iranian Ship https://www.huffpost.com/entry/submarine-torpedo-geneva-conventions_n_69ab102ae4b03ae2f88670fb

‘A very dangerous person’: alarm as Pete Hegseth revels in carnage of Iran war https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/mar/08/pete-hegseth-pentagon-trump-iran

Timothy Snyder’s substack 3-8-26 https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/FMfcgzQfCMpRXkRbBnRgjCghVqTKhtFB

From Bush Sr to Trump: the risks, lessons and legacy of US interference in the Middle East https://www.theguardian.com/world/ng-interactive/2026/mar/08/us-interference-middle-east-iraq-iran-conflict-legacy-lessons

Trump vows to use US military force against cartels across Latin America https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/07/trump-military-cartels-latin-america-iran-00818070

Viral International Media Coverage of MRFF’s Revelation that End-Times-Happy Commanders are Telling Troops Iran War is Part of God’s Plan to Bring Jesus Back https://www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org/2026/03/viral-international-media-coverage-of-mrffs-revelation-that-end-times-happy-commanders-are-telling-troops-iran-war-is-part-of-gods-plan-to-bring-jesus-back/

US may not have capacity to take down full barrage of Iranian drones, officials warn https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/04/us-interceptors-iranian-drones

Trump’s “Warflation” Has Just Begun https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/FMfcgzQfCDWVDjXZwvgNhKSxHmbQdzst

The US/Israeli Attack Was to Prevent Peace Not Advance It https://www.counterpunch.org/2026/03/02/the-us-israeli-attack-was-to-prevent-peace-not-advance-it/

12 days: How 2025 Iran blueprint trapped US, Israel in longer war https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2026/3/11/12-days-how-2025-iran-blueprint-trapped-us-israel-in-longer-war

Trump Gutted the Minesweepers. Then Trump Started the Mine War. https://www.flyingpenguin.com/trump-gutted-the-minesweepers-then-trump-started-the-mine-war/

Supercarriers Deployed To The Middle East Leave The US Navy Spread Thin https://www.forbes.com/sites/petersuciu/2026/03/04/supercarriers-deployed-to-the-middle-east-leaves-the-us-navy-spread-thin/

The (ancient) history of now: Israel and Iran https://observer.co.uk/news/international/article/the-history-of-now-israel-and-iran