Online Edition
Overseeing or Interfering? A Functional Alternative to Congressional Oversight in Intelligence and Operations
by Major Sean B. Zehtab—How should we design oversight of cyber-operations and intelligence gathering as such operations will increasingly take place at the tactical level? Major Sean B. Zehtab of the U.S. Army argues that we should look to the Command Operations Review Board of the U.S. Special Operations Command for guidance.
Water Scarcity: The Most Understated Global Security Risk
By Major David J. Stuckenberg and Dr. Anthony L. Contento — This Article examines the global state of freshwater scarcity and the often-neglected linkages of water scarcity to economic, social, political, legal, and security consequences arising from disruptions, failures, or attacks on water access and distribution systems. Poorly understood links between access to adequate water and national stability pose severe global security risks.
The Ebola Fighters: Uncharted Territory, or a Repeat of Past Shortcomings?
By Maj. Richard Hossfeld; Brooke Hossfeld; Maj. David Dixon — Instead of waiting passively for effective WHO reform, the United States Government—which currently provides more funding to the WHO than any other member—should act as the authority to influence disease response coordination and declare epidemic and/or pandemic outbreak on behalf of the world.
Drones as Crime-Fighting Tools in 2020: Legal and Normative Considerations
It’s 2020 and Boston has become a haven for homicide. Believing that an uptick in drug trafficking is responsible for the uptick in homicides—and left behind by its inability to break into the traffickers’ encrypted devices and communications—the Boston Police Department has a potential solution to its unsolved homicide problem: drones.
India’s Distressed Justice Sector: A Matter of U.S. National Security Concern
By Dan E. Stigall — This Article highlights the degree to which institutional frailty in the Indian justice sector poses a national security risk to the United States, and illuminates policy choices that can serve to mitigate this potential threat to U.S. persons and national interests. In particular, this Article demonstrates that a revitalized Indian justice sector would help create a bulwark against regional instability and the pernicious threat posed by global jihadist groups currently seeking a foothold in South Asia.
Lancelot in the Sky: Protecting Wounded Combatants from Incidental Harm
By Major R. Scott Adams. This Article will show that LOAC does not transform combatants into noncombatants under the hors de combat concept. It will then show that current U.S. policy is overly restrictive by erroneously granting noncombatant status to persons hors de combat.
The Aviation Insider Threat: An Assessment of Vulnerabilities and Countermeasures
Threats against aviation change constantly; countermeasures developed to combat emergent threats will become obsolete as new threats appear. Therefore, it is imperative for security practitioners to stay ahead of their enemies by identifying potential threats. This Article discusses ways in which current procedures fall short and should be reassessed.
Quis custodiet ipsos custodies?: Who Watches the Watchlisters?
This article summarizes the nature and purpose of the government’s terrorist watchlists, discusses the rules followed by agency screeners, explores the civil liberties implications of watchlisting, and identifies the need for oversight of the process.
Why Declarations of War Matter
By Maj. Gen. Charles J. Dunlap, Jr., USAF (Ret.)* The Washington Post recently ran a story entitled “Would declaring ‘war’ on ISIS make victory more certain—or would it even matter?”[1] Among other things, it stated that today, “[m]ost legal scholars find a war...
Partially Unwinding Sanctions: The Problematic Construct of Sanctions Relief in the JCPOA
By Sahand Moarefy By partially unwinding the sanctions regime against Iran, the United States has sought to achieve two goals: provide Iran some meaningful level of economic relief such that it carries through with its commitment to scale back its nuclear program,...