Iranian skyline with mountains in the background. Photo Credit: Shutterstock. Iran’s approach to deterrence and grand strategy produces threats to different US foreign policy priorities: chiefly, non-proliferation, arms control, and regional stability, making it difficult for the United States to make and build consensus for an effective countering strategy. Iran’s desire to establish a nuclear … Continue reading Iran’s Approach to Deterrence
Author: Iakovos Balassi
Pursuing Peace in Sudan
Members of the SPLM-N riding in a technical. Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons. Sudan is in the midst of a political transition that many hope will fulfill the demands of the nation’s people for civilian government. Three decades of authoritarian rule under Omar al-Bashir, which sowed widespread popular distrust in the state and fueled longstanding social, … Continue reading Pursuing Peace in Sudan
Enhancing Regional Security Cooperation in the African Great Lakes Region
DRC soldiers on patrol. Photo Credit: Reuters. The African Great Lakes region requires a more comprehensive regional security framework and strategy to manage the threat of transnational militias. The Great Lakes region in Africa comprises the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania. There are numerous transnational militias operating … Continue reading Enhancing Regional Security Cooperation in the African Great Lakes Region
Strengthening Regional Engagement and Dialogue in East Africa
East and West of the Red Sea. Photo Credit: NASA image courtesy MODIS Rapid Response Team, Goddard Space Flight Center. By: Iakovos Balassi, Columnist East African states must take coordinated, proactive measures to deter exploitation and manage the impacts of foreign investments in the region. The geopolitics of East Africa are shifting, in large part due … Continue reading Strengthening Regional Engagement and Dialogue in East Africa
Assessing Challenges to AMISOM’s Exit
Senior military officers of the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and other international partners attend the closing session of the AMISOM Sector Commanders Conference in Mogadishu, Somalia, Feb. 15, 2019. Photo Credit: O. Abdisalan/AMISOM. By: Iakovos Balassi, Columnist While the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) has made progress towards weakening al-Shabaab, the force … Continue reading Assessing Challenges to AMISOM’s Exit