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This Week at the ISN

Our Weekly Content Roundup

2428 August 2015

JUMP TO Editorial Plan | Security Watch | Blog | Video

// Security Watch

This week, our hard power-centered Security Watch (SW) series focuses on the US' arms sales policy towards Taiwan;
the questionable effectiveness of Pakistan's Anti-Terrorism Act; Saudi Arabia's and Egypt's desire to buy Mistral vessels;
the merits of operational- versus tactical-level wargaming; and the limits and achievements of NORDEFCO and the
Visegrad Group. Then, in our second, more wide-ranging SW series, we look at how the Obama administration has
politicized the US State Department's 2015 Trafficking in Persons (TiP) report; how the fight against the so-called Islamic
State is complicating Kurdish aspirations for independence; how US power will remain preeminent for decades to come;
how the Ivory Coast is primed for religious radicalization; and how Algeria should confront its economic and security woes.

Obama's Policy on Arms Sales to Taiwan Needs Credibility and Clarity

24 August 2015

Why has the United States failed to sell arms to Taiwan since 2011? After trotting out four explanations that are popular,
logical and wrong, the Pacific Forum CSIS' Shirley Kan then provides three more realistic ones, all of which speak ill of US
policy-making and could in fact be illegal. More

When Economics Outweigh Human Rights

24 August 2015

Human rights groups are unhappy about the US State Department's 2015 Trafficking in Persons (TiP) report. They think
the Obama administration has politicized the report particularly in the case of Malaysia in order to advance the TransPacific Partnership (TPP), which is one of the US President's remaining foreign policy priorities. More

An Appraisal of Pakistan's Anti-Terrorism Act

25 August 2015

Re-configuring the Middle East: IS and Changing Demographics

25 August 2015

How is the fight against the so-called Islamic State complicating Kurdish aspirations for independence and Arab-Kurdish
relations? James Dorsey argues that the violence has led to unanticipated demographic shifts. Non-Kurdish refugees now
make up a third of Iraqi Kurdistan's population and that spells trouble for local separatists. More

Saudi Arabia and Egypt Covet New Assault Ships

26 August 2015

Given that its deal with Russia fell through, what should France do with its Mistral assault ships? One possible option,
according to Stratfor, is to sell them to the above countries. They apparently hope to create a joint Arab intervention force
that will be able to project military power from sea to shore. More

Is Global Power Shifting from Washington to Beijing?

26 August 2015

The answer, according to the five analysts featured in this text, is mostly no. The US may have lost its 'unipolar moment',
but that's not the same thing as losing its outsized power. However, even though China suffers from a host of structural
problems, we may soon live in a bipolar world that pits this Asian power, along with India, against the West. More

Waffles or Pancakes? Operational versus Tactical-Level Wargaming

27 August 2015

Is Cte d'Ivoire Facing Religious Radicalism?

27 August 2015

William Assanvo believes so. Given its mixture of Christian Pentecostal movements, competing branches of Islam, a
Lebanese diaspora with well-established ties to Hezbollah, and a host of political, military, socio-economic and identity
problems, all is not well in this African nation. More

Regional Governance in Security: NORDEFCO and the V4

28 August 2015

Are NORDEFCO and the Visegrad Group (V4) reliable antidotes to slumping military budgets and limited capabilities?
Although the record of these 'cooperation formats' has not matched the ambitions surrounding them, Pernille Rieker and
Marcin Terlikowski believe that past failures won't sabotage future effectiveness. More

Algeria Buffeted by Falling Oil Prices and Growing Social Unrest

28 August 2015

The title of this commentary says it all. What Francis Ghils does provide is specifics on 1) why Algeria's hydrocarbon
economy has been so hard hit lately, 2) the growing restiveness of the Algerian people, and 3) the economic reforms the
Algerian government should undertake. More

// Blog

ISIS-Linked Regional Activity (Institute for the Study of War)

24 August 2015

Our partners at the Institute for the Study of War provide highly useful annotated maps on the shifting status of forces in
violent hotspots such as Iraq, Syria and Ukraine. Today's map, for example, synopsizes the activities of the so-called
Islamic State and its wide-ranging affiliates in July 2015. More

Peace Goal Requires Bridge Building between Old and New Powers
25 August 2015

According to Louise Riis Andersen, the UN's pending Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) #16 will finally link security
and human development together. However, to mollify those nations that still worry about the unwarranted securitization of
the SDGs, Andersen believes three important principles must be followed. More

How Gulf States Have Undermined Israel's Case on Iran

26 August 2015

Is the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) talking out of both sides of its mouth? Its members have cautiously backed the
recent nuclear deal with Iran but they continue to insist that Tehran wants to "wreak havoc" on their region. Well, what do
GGC members really think and are their backdoor beliefs sabotaging Israeli policies? Read on for the answers. More

Endurance of Shining Path Shows Peace in Latin America a Long Road

27 August 2015

According to Miguel La Serna, Peru's Shining Path (SP) movement hasn't disappeared. Two-hundred active combatants
remain, they're "as dangerous as ever," and they raise an obvious question: is the SP still a revolutionary movement or, as
in the case of Columbia's FARC, has it become a band of drug-trafficking misfits? More

After Zarb-e-Azb: Now What?

28 August 2015

Pakistan's military operation against Islamist strongholds in North Waziristan is coming to an end. So, it's time to declare
"mission accomplished," right? Not according to Sachchal Ahmad. Where's the larger counterinsurgency campaign that
addresses political and social considerations, and even "regional and global exigencies"? More

// Video

The Future of Naval Capabilities

In today's video, Vice Admiral Joseph Aucoin and Rear Admiral Mathias Winter discuss the US Navy's (USN) ongoing
efforts to field new capabilities in its aircraft carrier groups, surface fleet and submarine force. While doing so, they also
talk about the organizations that manage the USN's research and development activities.
More

The National Idea in Russia and China: ? ?

In today's video, Ho-fung Hung and Nikolai Zlobin analyze 1) the conceptions of nationhood that define Russia and China,
and 2) how they shape both countries' foreign and domestic policies.
More

Cyber-Enabled Economic Warfare: An Evolving Challenge

In today's video, two groups review and debate "Cyber-Enabled Economic Warfare," a recent report that focuses on 1)
intellectual property piracy; 2) cyber warfare against the US' financial services and critical infrastructure; and 3) the
potential cyber security threats posed by China, Russia, Iran and North Korea.
More

// Multimedia Content
Here is a selection of this week's additions to the ISN Digital
Library:

Publications More
// Strengthening Access and Proximity to Serve the Needs of People in ConflictMore
// The Naval Alliance: Preparing NATO for a Maritime Century More
// Permanent Risk Reduction: A Roadmap for Replacing High-Risk Radioactive Sources and MaterialsMore

Videos More
// Shifting Great Power Relations in East Asia
More
/Assessing
/
the Iran Nuclear Agreement: Placing Sanctions in Context More
/
/ Examining Arctic Opportunities and Capabilities More

Audio / Podcasts More

// The Battle for Authenticity - The Future of News, Current Affairs and Documentary
More
// EU Differentiation and Israeli Settlements More
// ECFR's World in 30 Minutes: China Devalues its Currency and VJ Day 70th Anniversary More

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