Lessons of Tunisia “Leaderless” Revolution

01/19/2011
By Dr. Harald Malmgren 01/19/2011 - The collapse of the 23+ year reign of Tunisia’s autocratic leadership was the result of a revolt in the streets without apparent political leadership. 21st Century technology enabled discontented citizens to interact and organize, in a kind of spontaneous combustion across the entire country.…

Balancing China Through Vietnam

01/13/2011
By Richard Weitz 01/13/2011 - The public display of China’s new J-20 stealth fighter, the expected appearance soon of China’s first aircraft carrier, and Secretary Gates’ troubled visit to the PRC reaffirm the importance for the United States of having good security relations with China’s neighbors. Defense ties with the…

Pakistan and the Afghan End Game

01/04/2011
[caption id="attachment_12920" align="alignleft" width="150" caption=" "][/caption] By Dr. Richard Weitz 12/22/2011 - Following the November 26 incident, the Pakistani government convened an emergency session of the Defence Committee of the Cabinet (DCC), Pakistan’s highest forum for defense policy consultation and coordination. The DCC decided to retaliate for the attack by…

Crafting Energy Security in the 21st Century: A German View of the Challenge

01/03/2011
By Caroline Mükusch 01/02/2011 - Securing the availability of energy resources – namely oil and gas – in accordance with environmental sustainability is a key challenge of the 21st century. (See treatment of the issue by the German Minister of Foreign Affairs) Also, history shows that conflicts over resources are…

Why UAVs Have Become the Anti-Terror Weapon of Choice in the Afghan-Pak Border

01/03/2011
[caption id="attachment_12897" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="Dr. Richard Weitz (Credit: The Hudson Institute)"][/caption] By Dr. Richard Weitz 01/02/2011 - In recent years, the main form of U.S. military operation in Pakistan, Yemen, and other terrorist havens has been the missiles launched from Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). These remotely piloted armed drones are…

Threats to UAVs: Putting the Toolset in Perspective

01/03/2011
[caption id="attachment_14105" align="alignleft" width="500" caption="UAV Crash (Credit: http://deepbluehorizon.blogspot.com/2009/04/no-one-dies-in-unmanned-uav-crash.html)"][/caption] 01/02/2011 - UAVs are key tools in the toolbox to support ground forces and to augment and or supplement manned aircraft.  Whether they are able to operate in the contested airspaces of post-Afghan military environments or even the threats posed by a…

The Longer Term Effects of the Ian King Letter

01/03/2011
No-One Likes A Harsh Awakening Defence Analysis Vol 13 No 12 (December 2010) 01/02/2011 - The Chairman of the House of Commons Treasury Select Committee expressed outrage at having “a gun held to the head” by BAES over the naval shipbuilding/support Terms of Business Agreement (ToBA) which includes the contract…