Region Related Event Feeds

Critical Questions for 2012

ian — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0500

From international security and regional study to global challenges, CSIS experts will address many of the world's most difficult policy concerns and critical questions in 2012. To kick off the new year, we asked 25 of our scholars to identity what worries them most and what are the biggest opportunities in their respective areas of study.

Leading from the Front: Europe and the New Libya

ian — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 00:00:00 -0400

Libyan Endgame?

After six months of inconclusive fighting accompanied by both criticism and adulation of Western support, Libyan rebels penetrated the capital city of Tripoli with NATO support on August 21.

Conference Report: Planning for Post-Gadhafi Libya

mDziuban — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 00:00:00 -0400

On July 25, CSIS convened approximately 50 experts from the government, diplomatic and expert communities to analyze the way forward in Libya. Among the key conclusions of the speakers are:

Capacity and Resolve

jdunton — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 00:00:00 -0400

The last decade has seen the United States involved in two wars, an ongoing worldwide struggle against terrorism, and more recently a severe economic recession. This period has exposed two great structural challenges facing the United States. First, in a globalized world, vectors of prosperity quickly become vectors of insecurity. And second, the center of gravity in world affairs is shifting to Asia.

What Libya Tells Us about the Future of Multilateralism?

ian — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 00:00:00 -0400

The UN-mandated, NATO-led military action in Libya highlights a number of fundamental characteristics of multilateral politics. Libya reminds us of the continued relevance of and need for multilateral institutions to help states do together what they cannot or will not do alone.

Debt Or Defense? Difficult Choices Of A Financially Constrained NATO

ian — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 00:00:00 -0400

Imagine if the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan only consisted of 11 contributing nations as opposed to the 48 that contribute today. Imagine if ISAF had only 90,000 American soldiers at its disposal rather than the 132,000 troops and 37 European countries currently engaged.

Libya: “No Fly” to “Unstable Stalemate” or “Regime Kill?”

mentman — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 00:00:00 -0400

It is hard to get at the reality of US and allied operations in Libya, in part because there have to be serious limits to public disclosures of both the full nature of those operations and the real mission.

The Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR)

amausner — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 00:00:00 -0500

There are times to be polite about a dismal bureaucratic failure. Wartime is not one of them.

America’s Wars in Afghanistan, Pakistan, And Iraq

amausner — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 00:00:00 -0500

Attached at http://csis.org/files/publication/101213_Iraq_and_Afghan_Talk_Edited.pdf is a speech given to the discusses the Industrial College of the Armed Forces on December 10th, 2010. It discisses the December Review from a grand strategic viewpoint, as well as the conflict in Iraq. These issue

The NATO Summit: Updated Strategy, Phased Transition in Afghanistan, Reset with Russia

ian — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 00:00:00 -0500

On November 19–20, President Obama and the leaders of the 28 member nations of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) will gather in Lisbon, Portugal, to approve an updated strategy, a set of priority military capabilities, plans to strengthen partnerships, and a number of internal reforms all designed to ensure that the alliance is able to safeguard the security of its member

European Defense Trends

jdunton — Thu, 04 Nov 2010 00:00:00 -0400

The international security challenges facing European governments are more complex than ever. In parallel, the economic recession has forced governments to make difficult choices in their defense budgets that will greatly affect their near- and long-term military capabilities.

Afghanistan and the December Review

amausner — Tue, 02 Nov 2010 00:00:00 -0400

One should never judge whether the glass is half empty or half full while it is still being poured. The review of progress in Afghanistan due in December 2010 is definitely a case of prematurely assessing the situation and can provide only a limited picture of whether the new strategy will work.

Georgian Lessons

jdunton — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 00:00:00 -0400

Russia’s invasion, occupation, and partition of Georgia in August 2008 initially sent shock waves throughout Europe and NATO and appeared to signal a new confrontational phase in Moscow’s relations with the West.

Iran, Iraq, and the Changing Face of Defense Cooperation in the Gulf

amausner — Mon, 01 Nov 2010 00:00:00 -0400

The Southern Gulf states, the region, and the US all face a rapidly changing threat environment in the Gulf, and a sharply rising need for defense cooperation. These needs, and the changes in threat and military balance that shape them, are described in detail in a new analysis developed by the Arleigh A.

Grand Strategy in the Afghan, Pakistan, and Iraq Wars

amausner — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 00:00:00 -0400

Grand strategy is not an American strength, and it is far too easy to become obsessed with day-to-day issues. In the case of Iraq, this means a focus on US withdrawal and the formation of a new Iraqi government.

Putting the Air War in Pakistan in Perspective

amausner — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 00:00:00 -0400

It is scarcely a secret that the US is fighting an air war in Pakistan at at least four different levels. It is using unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) to support US forces in “hot pursuit” in the border area. It is using them to attack Taliban and other insurgent forces near the border to limit their capability to operate in Afghanistan.

DIIG Current Issues No. 22: Rare Earth Elements

gsanders — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 00:00:00 -0400

On 23rd September 2010, exports of rare earth elements (REEs) from China to Japan apparently stopped due to a dispute over maritime boundaries. This use of economic leverage to influence policy raised concerns about the impact of China’s strategic hold on these precious metals.

Role of Nuclear Weapons in NATO Security

sherry — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 00:00:00 -0400

NATO remains a collective security alliance whose purpose, as embodied in Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, is to defend the territorial integrity of all of its member states.

Reforming ANSF Metrics

amausner — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 00:00:00 -0400

The new Commanders Unit Assessment Tool (CUAT) for measuring the capabilities of the ANSF represents a significant improvement over the old Capability Milestone (CM) system. The old system was too rigid, too narrowly quantitative, and measured only a handful of relatively unimportant metrics.

"Unplanning" for Uncertainty

amausner — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 00:00:00 -0400

This brief is a part of series prepared by the Burke Chair in Strategy on current issues in defense budgeting and strategy. The full breif can be downloaded at: http://csis.org/files/publication/100805_Unplanning_for_Uncertainty.pdf

Other briefs within this series include:

The Need for Public Transparency and Integrity

amausner — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 00:00:00 -0400

So far, the main impact of the Wikileaks release of some 90,000 classified documents on Afghanistan has been a fruitless search for new headlines and some form of “smoking gun” that reveals a secret no one has known in the past. The net result has been an almost relentless effort to spin largely historical documents into the kind of revelations they don’t provide.

If Petraeus and Eikenberry Can Win

amausner — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 00:00:00 -0400

It may be interesting to propose new strategies for the war in Afghanistan, but it is also pointless. The change in the military command in Afghanistan has occurred at a time where the campaign is already underway, and where present strategy has to work, or else the next set of decisions will be the tactics of how to leave.

Reforming ANSF Metrics

amausner — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 00:00:00 -0400

The development of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) is one of the most critical aspects of the war. NATO/ISAF simply cannot bring this war to a successful conclusion without transitioning responsibility for security to the Afghans.

The Afghan War: Metrics, Narratives, and Winning the War

amausner — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 00:00:00 -0400

Finding the Path to Victory: The Afghan Campaign and the Tools Needed to Win It

The Afghan War: A Campaign Overview

amausner — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 00:00:00 -0400

Finding the Path to Victory: The Afghan Campaign and the Tools Needed to Win It

The Afghan War

amausner — Mon, 24 May 2010 00:00:00 -0400

No one can visit Afghanistan without seeing both the threat and the progress. After eight years of failing to respond, the US, its allies, and the Afghan government are finally preparing for the kind of campaign that might win the war. The necessary resources are gradually being put in place.

Department of Defense, State Department, USAID, and NSC Reporting on the Afghan War

amausner — Wed, 19 May 2010 00:00:00 -0400

Eight years into the war in Afghanistan, and at a time our country is still involved in two wars, the US government still has failed to establish both transparency and credibility in the way it is conducting either conflict.

European Defense Trends: Annotated Brief

gsanders — Tue, 18 May 2010 00:00:00 -0400

An in-depth understanding of the supply and demand sides of the European defense market and the regulatory framework that governs it is critical to assessing broader European defense policies and capabilities.

CSIS-EKEM Policy Report Number Two

bbocka — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 00:00:00 -0400

The fall of communism and the ensuing Yugoslav wars of the 1990s rendered the region especially vulnerable to organized crime, human trafficking, smuggling, and corruption. Officially tolerated or politically sponsored criminality was commonplace due to the enduring legacy of communism and international sanctions during the wars of Yugoslav succession.

Shaping the War in Afghanistan

amausner — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 00:00:00 -0400

It has taken some six months, but the Department of Defense has now begun to issue meaningful and up-to-date data on both the course of the Afghan conflict and the implementation of the new strategy. This reporting includes a range of tables, maps, and charts (“metrics”) that cover many of the most important aspects of the War.

Shaping Afghan National Security Forces

amausner — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 00:00:00 -0400

No one element is critical to the success of the new strategy in Afghanistan. ISAF and Afghan security forces must show they can shape their operations in ways that clear and hold Afghan population centers. Major improvement must take place in the quality and integrity of Afghan governance at every level.

Afghanistan and Obama

amausner — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 00:00:00 -0400

It has been over a year since President Obama announced the outline of a new strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, and well over half a year since the appoint of General McChrystal and Ambassador Eikenberry has led to newefforts to define and implement that strategy in practical terms.

Regaining European Foreign Policy Visibility and the London Conference on Afghanistan

ian — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0500

Q1: What were the British foreign secretary, David Miliband, and the new EU high representative for foreign policy, Lady Catherine Ashton, doing in Washington last week?

How the US Must Expand and Redefine International Cooperation in Fighting Terrorism

amausner — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0500

As Americans we naturally focus on the most direct threats to the United States, and what all too many in the West have seen as a clash between civilizations. It is important, however, to keep what is happening in perspective.

Afghan Metrics

amausner — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 00:00:00 -0500

Nine months after President Obama announced a new strategy in Afghanistan, the US still seems undecided as to how to actually shape and implement that strategy and how to measure its success. President Obama may have made his decisions, but it is far from clear that his Administration has agreed on how to act upon them, or has the right mix of civil-military capabilities to do so.

Iran as a Nuclear Weapons Power

amausner — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0500

The latest discoveries regarding Iran’s nuclear program are simply the next development in a process that has been going on since the Iran-Iraq War, and Khomeini’s decision to resume nuclear research once Iran came under chemical weapons attack from Iraq.

The Afghan Strategy Checklist

amausner — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0500

President Obama must now make a decision that will define his presidency. President Obama will have to take personal responsibility for the outcome of the war in Afghanistan, betting his historical reputation and second term on the outcome.

Afghan National Security Forces

amausner — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Afghan National Security forces: Forging the Right Key to Victory

Iraq: Security and the Challenges of Lasting "Victory"

amausner — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0400

The Changing Challenge to Iraqi Security

DIIG Current Issues No. 15: Implications of European Defense Acquisition Reform

jhofbauer — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0400

The European defense market is undergoing profound changes. Four distinct trends are altering the landscape of European defense acquisition, with some of them underscoring the shift of defense matters from national capitals towards the European Union (EU). First, participation in international operations is substantially affecting acquisition priorities.

US Strategy in Afghanistan

amausner — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0400

The last few weeks have done at least as much to reveal the critical weaknesses in US strategic thinking as they have done to clarify them.

Iraqi Trends and Afghan Resources

amausner — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0400

The Burke Chair at CSIS is issuing two new reports on the Iraq and Afghan Wars.

The Iraq report Recent Trends in the Iraq War: Maps and Graphs can be downloaded here.

The Levin "Plan"

amausner — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400

The United States and its allies face critical challenges in Afghanistan. Most of these are self-inflicted by eight years of failing to properly resource the war. The U.S.

The 2010 Quadrennial Defense Review

amausner — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400

In 2010, the Obama administration will release its first Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR). A strategic framework for the Department of Defense as it confronts current and future challenges, the QDR is intended to serve as a means to develop new policies, capabilities and initiatives. However, these intentions have so far been unrealized.

Resourcing For Defeat

amausner — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 00:00:00 -0400

The United States is now losing the war in Afghanistan, and is failing to consolidate its victory in Iraq. Reversing this situation requires changes in strategy, but it also requires significant additional resources.

The Afghan War

amausner — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0400

The Afghan-Pakistan conflict is a complex conflict that covers two countries and has ideological, political, governance, economic, military, and security dimensions that are extremely difficult to measure and portray in summary form.

Legitimacy and the Afghan Elections

amausner — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0400

Shape, Clear, Hold, and Build

amausner — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0400

The US experience in the Afghan and Iraq Wars is scarcely over. It has, however, already produced a wide range of lessons. Some are narrow and apply largely at the tactical or technical level.

The New Metrics of Afghanistan

amausner — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0400

No one who works with the unclassified data on Afghanistan can fail to be aware of how poor and contradictory much of that data now are. In general, no NATO/ISDAF government – including the United States – has yet provided an honest or meaningful picture of the war.

Resourcing for Defeat

sherry — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 00:00:00 -0400