Image Source: Wikimedia Commons On March 9, 2023, the Biden administration submitted its Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 defense budget request to Congress, totaling $842 billion. This budget represents a $26 billion increase over the FY 2023 budget and largely centers on deterrence and warfighting vis-à-vis China in the Indo-Pacific region. Despite widespread agreement on the … Continue reading To Centralize or Not to Centralize? For Defense Budgeting, that is the (Unwritten) Question
Zambia: A Beacon of Democracy in Africa
Image Source: Salim Dawood/AFP/ via Getty Images, on PBS. US Vice President Kamala Harris and Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema. President Joe Biden convened the second Summit for Democracy last month. This time, the U.S. government co-hosted the virtual event with regional partners, including the governments of Costa Rica, the Netherlands, South Korea, and Zambia. The … Continue reading Zambia: A Beacon of Democracy in Africa
Raids, Rockets, and Riots: The Accelerating Cycle of Violence in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Image Source: BBC On April 5, violence broke out between local Israeli police and Palestinians at al-Aqsa mosque in the Old City of East Jerusalem, resulting in at least 12 Palestinians injured and at least 400 arrested. Every year tensions between Palestinians and Israeli citizens as well as Israeli security forces flare up during the … Continue reading Raids, Rockets, and Riots: The Accelerating Cycle of Violence in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Climate Change and Boots on the Ground: A New Frontier for Humanitarian Intervention?
Image source: Department of Defense. U.S. Marines and Nepalese soldiers unload tarps off of a UH-1Y Venom helicopter at Orang, Nepal, during Operation Sahayogi Haat, May 2015. Climate change is now at the forefront of the Pentagon’s priorities. So far, the U.S. military’s mission on climate change mitigation has focused on cleaning up and developing … Continue reading Climate Change and Boots on the Ground: A New Frontier for Humanitarian Intervention?
PeaceBot: ChatGPT’s Role in Conflict Prevention & Resolution
Image Source: University of Pennsylvania Our ways of waging war have evolved; it is time our ways of waging peace do as well. It’s been over a year since Russia started its war against Ukraine, and it’s not likely to end anytime soon. Despite the odds, Ukraine has managed to hold its ground, thanks in … Continue reading PeaceBot: ChatGPT’s Role in Conflict Prevention & Resolution
The United States Rights a Wrong with Critical Minerals Agreements
Image Source: California Chamber of Commerce The Biden administration’s 2022 National Security Strategy (NSS) says China is “America’s most consequential geopolitical challenge” and “the only competitor with both the intent to reshape the international order and, increasingly, the economic, diplomatic, military, and technological power to do it.” Two key parts of the U.S. strategy towards … Continue reading The United States Rights a Wrong with Critical Minerals Agreements
Can Office Work Destroy the Taliban?
Image Source: World Press Photo In August 2021, the United States and its allies evacuated Kabul after twenty years of what the Department of Defense (DoD) described as waging “a necessary war of self-defense” following the September 11 attacks. In the words of former U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz in 2002, the United … Continue reading Can Office Work Destroy the Taliban?
GSSR Interview: Under Secretary of the Army Hon. Gabe Camarillo
Image Source: U.S. Army Official Photo The Georgetown Security Studies Review recently had the privilege of conducting an interview with Hon. Gabe Camarillo, the under secretary of the Army. The broad topics covered reflect the most pressing issues facing the U.S. Army, as well as the under secretary’s recent trip to Eastern Europe. In light … Continue reading GSSR Interview: Under Secretary of the Army Hon. Gabe Camarillo
T-minus 6 Seconds: Starship (and Humanity’s) Next Major Step Into Space
Image Source: Screenshot from SpaceX livefeed of April 20 Starship Launch NASA liked to brag when its Space Launch System (SLS) rocket launched last fall that its 8.8 million pounds of thrust made it the most powerful rocket to ever take off. That record was broken on April 20 when at T-minus six seconds SpaceX’s … Continue reading T-minus 6 Seconds: Starship (and Humanity’s) Next Major Step Into Space
China, Too, Is Gearing Up for Tech Competition
Xi Jinping takes his oath of office to begin his third term as president of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Source: Reuters It is no secret that the United States views the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as a near-peer competitor. As the Biden administration describes, China has both the intent and the capability … Continue reading China, Too, Is Gearing Up for Tech Competition