The military’s restricted reporting policy for sexual assaults–permitting members of the armed services to seek help without initiating a formal investigation–has helped victims and investigators alike. But state law exceptions, like California’s, counteract some of these gains. Here’s why, and how, the exception should be overturned.
Tony Carr* As Congress returns for a lame-duck session that promises to be equal parts theatrical and unproductive, President Obama is making a promise of his own: to pursue a new Authorization for the Use of Military Force (AUMF) legitimizing action against ISIS. Notwithstanding the division and skepticism of the current political moment, the AUMF represents a critical opportunity […]
By Brandt Pasco* A signature national security priority of President Barack Obama’s Administration, and an area that has generated rare broad-based bipartisan support, is export control reform. At the request of Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, in August 2009 President Obama directed the National Security Council and National Economic Council to jointly review the overall export control system.[1] Now five […]
Daniel D’Isidoro* Introduction Members of the intelligence community receive different whistleblower protections than most federal employees, in large part due to the classified nature of their work. Though recent reforms have sought to shore up whistleblower protections, regulatory gaps remain. The following piece explores some of those gaps through examples, and suggests reforms to address them. Needed reforms include providing […]
Volume 5, Issue 2 of the Harvard National Security Journal is now available! Read here!
By Louis René Beres* In early 2014, Washington and Moscow competed openly for influence in Egypt: Putin even promised expansive arms packages to now-President Sisi. With this in mind, Sisi is apt to play the U.S. and Russia off against each other, a cold war strategy that has implications for Israel’s security doctrine, including perhaps its nuclear doctrine.(1) Israel operates […]
Volume 5, Issue 1 of the Harvard National Security Journal is now available online!
By Laurie R. Blank* This is the final article in a three-part series on the Ukrainian crisis’s implications and lessons for the international law of armed conflict. You can read Part 1 and Part 2 here. Recent events in eastern Ukraine highlight the challenges of identifying the groups involved. Pro-Russian separatists, militants, pro-Ukrainian “street fighters”, nationalists, terrorists — many terms have been used […]
Read more ›Series Introduction Following a new outbreak of violence in eastern Ukraine on Thursday, tensions in Ukraine and between Russia and the United States and NATO countries are high ahead of Ukraine’s presidential elections Sunday. Russian troops remain along Ukraine’s eastern border, notwithstanding Moscow’s promise of withdrawal. In this murky situation, however, it is crucial to rely on several foundational principles of international […]
Read more ›Emory Law Professor Laurie R. Blank argues that the conflict in Ukraine demonstrates the importance of sustaining the strict separation between the law of armed conflict (LOAC) and the jus ad bellum, a low threshold for recognition of international armed conflict, and the principle of distinction in today’s conflicts.
Read more ›Amien Kacou, attorney at GPI Law PLLC, argues that analogies from the use of lethal force against hostage-takers or fleeing felons to justify targeted killings of suspected al Qaeda terrorists are misguided. Image courtesy of Marie-Lan Nguyen / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY 2.5.
Read more ›Katherine Earle of AEI discusses the recent Crimean referendum to join Russia and the associated security implications. Image courtesy of Getty Images.
Read more ›The Harvard National Security Journal is launching a new initiative. Each month, panelists will comment on a question posed by the NSJ staff. This month’s topic: metadata. Image courtesy of NASA.
Read more ›Mitchell S. Kominsky, Counsel for the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, discusses the state of cybersecurity legislation and the evolving nature of cyber policy. Image courtesy of Getty Images.
Read more ›Corri Zoli and Emily Schneider untangle the infighting between rival groups in Syria and the calls to use Shari’a to mediate the conflicts on the battlefield. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
Read more ›Lieutenant Joseph Hatfield discusses the merits of a “reverse draft” in bridging the growing disconnect between civilian society and the military. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia
Read more ›Professor Louis René Beres brings to bear two classical traditions to apply them to Israeli strategic planning. In this article, he takes a fresh look at Sun-Tzu’s The Art of War and weaves in Greek dialectical reasoning. Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
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