Photos Credit: US Navy By: Taylor Clausen, Columnist Uniformed military forces today are widely considered to be the primary individuals tasked with employing the use of state-sanctioned force. However, in the history of warfare, the soldier has rarely had this monopoly. Mercenaries – today called private military contractors - have continuously been employed by states … Continue reading Force for Hire: The Private Market for Special Operations Forces
Category: Military & Defense
The Red Sea Insurgency: The Asymmetrical Houthi Threat to the Strategic Waterway
The Houthis’ ongoing asymmetric maritime insurgent tactics threaten security in the southern Red Sea, allowing the Houthis and their Iranian backers to challenge their adversaries in the strategically vital waterway. Photo Credit: AFP By Kevin Truitte, Columnist The war in Yemen approaches its fourth year with little major movement towards a peaceful resolution. Since early 2015, … Continue reading The Red Sea Insurgency: The Asymmetrical Houthi Threat to the Strategic Waterway
REPORT: SSP Trip to Naval Station Norfolk
SSP students on the deck of the USS James E. Williams DDG-95, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer. By: Liana Mitlyng Day, Reporter Naval Station Norfolk is the largest naval base in the world[i], and is home to the headquarters of the Navy’s Atlantic Fleet as well as Fleet Forces Command that manages and supports global naval … Continue reading REPORT: SSP Trip to Naval Station Norfolk
Internal Splits In and External Defeats May Bring the Houthis to the Negotiating Table
Followers of the Houthi demonstrate against the Saudi-led air strikes on Yemen, in Sanaa on April 1, 2015. Photo Credit: Khaled Abdullah Ali Al Mahdi / Reuters By: Tim Cook, Columnist The Houthi movement in Yemen may concede to negotiating a settlement with the Saudi-led coalition due to internal rifts and the Saudi-led coalition’s near … Continue reading Internal Splits In and External Defeats May Bring the Houthis to the Negotiating Table
The Egyptian Government and U.S. Government Should Attempt Integration, Not Extermination, Against the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. Photo Credit: Associated Press By: Jordan Abu-Sirriya, Columnist In October and November of 2018, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi unleashed another crackdown on the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood and its followers. As usual, this entailed “a mass arrest campaign, rounding up at least 40 political activists, lawyers and human rights workers.”[i] … Continue reading The Egyptian Government and U.S. Government Should Attempt Integration, Not Extermination, Against the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood
Beyond Icebreakers: Bridging the US Polar Icebreaking Gap
A curious Adelie penguin stands near the Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star on McMurdo Sound, Antarctica, Jan. 7, 2016. Photo Credit: USCG By: Ashley Postler, Columnist Despite predictions that the Arctic Ocean will be ice-free during the late-summer months by 2040,[i] there remains a need for the U.S. to maintain icebreaking capabilities in order to … Continue reading Beyond Icebreakers: Bridging the US Polar Icebreaking Gap
Getting the Most Out of Drones Requires Coherent Policy
Graffiti in Yemen. Photo Credit: CNN By: Kathryn Long, Columnist During the Obama administration, drone strikes, or the use of unmanned aerial vehicles to attack ground targets, became a crucial tool in US counterterrorism strategy.[i] Unmanned aerial vehicles have been in use since the 1980s, but it was not until shortly after the September 11 … Continue reading Getting the Most Out of Drones Requires Coherent Policy
The Security Repercussions of Brexit and the Possibility of “Irexit”
Competing Brexit demonstrations last week outside Parliament. Photo Credit: Adrian Dennis/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images By: Krystel Von Kumberg, Columnist In June 2016, Britain voted to leave the European Union: 51.9% to 48.1%. [i] The key issue with the referendum is that the United Kingdom has historically been ruled by Parliament, not through direct democracy. … Continue reading The Security Repercussions of Brexit and the Possibility of “Irexit”
Europe Grows Up: Taking the United States’ Temperature on the Emergence of a ‘True European Army’
French President Emmanuel Macron. Photo Credit: The Independent By: Austin Parenteau, Columnist French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s recent calls for a “true European Army,” the likes of which could grant Europe defense autonomy from the United States, have quickly attracted both scorn and euphoria.[i] [ii] Many see such a step as … Continue reading Europe Grows Up: Taking the United States’ Temperature on the Emergence of a ‘True European Army’
Saudi Arabia’s Naval Blockade on Yemen Increases Animosity Towards the United States
A view of the Red Sea port of Hodeidah, Yemen. Photo Credit: Reuters By: Jordan Abu-Sirriya, Columnist The horrendous Yemeni Civil War began in March 2015 as the Houthis—a Shia militia and Iranian proxy—attempted to seize control of the Yemeni government led by President Hadi. Saudi Arabia—the Middle East’s Sunni capital—and other Sunni-majority states hastily entered … Continue reading Saudi Arabia’s Naval Blockade on Yemen Increases Animosity Towards the United States