Fore!

While Barack Obama works on his putting, the rest of the world is not at rest;

We do believe there were air strikes undertaken in recent days by the UAE and Egypt inside Libya," Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby said at a news conference in Washington on Tuesday. The State Department reacted similarly, confirming the attacks but not saying whether the US was notified in advance - leading to an assumption that the country knew nothing of the strikes.

Several US officials are also being quoted in media reports saying Washington had been caught off guard by air strikes carried out by the UAE using Egyptian air bases. The lack of notification amounts to diplomatic embarrassment for the United States, since the UAE and Egypt are considered to be American allies. Washington is a significant provider of military aid to Egypt and is regularly involved in arms sales to the UAE.

Secret air strikes are "an astounding and unusual action," said William Lawrence of the Elliott School of International Affairs in Washington, adding that the US would not have approved of the move.

Moving east a little (even Martha Raddatz noticed);

President Obama admitted today that his administration does not yet have a strategy to combat the militant Islamic group ISIS that has seized large chunks of Iraq and Syria. 

Wonder if Putin would like to join the foursome;

Nato has accused Russia of a "blatant violation" of Ukraine's sovereignty and engaging in direct military operations to support pro-Russian rebels.

Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said that "despite hollow denials", it was now clear that Russia had illegally crossed Ukraine's border.

To which the POTUS had this to say;

“As a result of the action Russia has already taken and the major sanctions we’ve imposed,” Obama said, “Russia is already more isolated than any time since the end of the cold war.”

“The separatists are backed, trained, armed, financed by Russia. Throughout this process we’ve seen deep Russian involvement in everything that they’ve done,” Obama added.

That behavior, he added, “will only bring more cost and consequences to Russia.” After speaking with allies, Obama continued, he expects a new wave of sanctions to come soon. The president is expected to meet with NATO partners next week, and said the US “will continue to stand firm with our allies and partners” to protect Ukraine from further encroachment.

Summertime, and the livin' is easy.