Recent Publications

Iraqi Security Forces and Lessons from Korea
December 1, 2006 — Author: Dr Sheila Miyoshi Jager Each month a member of the SSI faculty writes an editorial for our monthly newsletter. This is the Op-Ed for the December 2006 newsletter.Read Now MORE

Regional Fears of Western Primacy and the Future of U.S. Middle Eastern Basing Policy
December 1, 2006 — Author: Dr W Andrew Terrill The United States has a core national interest in maintaining peace and stability in the Middle East as well as containing or eliminating threats emanating from that region. Yet, there is often disagreement on the ways to best achieve these goals. The author seeks to present his analysis of how the United States and... MORE

Russian Nonproliferation Policy and the Korean Peninsula
December 1, 2006 — Authors: Dr Yong-Chool Ha, Dr Beom-Shik Shin Efforts to resolve the threat posed to Northeast Asia's security by North Korea's nuclear proliferation through six-party negotiations are proceeding with great difficulty. As in any multilateral process, a major problem is understanding the goals and perspectives of each of the participants. This... MORE

The NATO-Russia Partnership: A Marriage of Convenience or a Troubled Relationship?
November 1, 2006 — Author: Dr Stephen J Blank Four years after the NATO-Russia Council came into being, it represents a picture in ambivalence and incomplete realization of partnership. This monograph focuses on the Russian side of this growing estrangement. It finds the Russian roots of this ambivalence or alienation in the increasingly visible manifestations of an... MORE

Russia, Iran, and the Nuclear Question: The Putin Record
November 1, 2006 — Author: Dr Robert O Freedman The author analyzes the Russo-Iranian relationship through the spring of 2006. This issue is vitally important in U.S. foreign policy, not just as it relates to Iran and the overall issue of nonproliferation, especially in the Middle East, but also as U.S. foreign policy pertains to relations with Moscow. Thus this... MORE

Iran, Iraq, and the United States: The New Triangle’s Impact on Sectarianism and the Nuclear Threat
November 1, 2006 — Author: Dr Sherifa D Zuhur This monograph considers the issues of Iranian influence in Iraq, and its impact on continuing sectarian violence there. It also questions the claims that a Shi'a crescent of power is solidifying by examining the distinct features of Iraqi versus Iranian Shi'ism and political Islam. Iran and Iraq havehistorically... MORE

China-ASEAN Relations: Perspectives, Prospects, and Implications for U.S. Interests
October 1, 2006 — Author: Dr Jing-dong Yuan The author traces the evolution of China-ASEAN relations since the early 1990s and examines some of the key factors that have contributed to the positive developments in bilateral ties. He describes and analyzes how China and ASEAN have managed the territorial disputes through negotiation and compromises; looks at the... MORE

Ukraine After the Orange Revolution: Can It Complete Military Transformation and Join the U.S.-Led War on Terrorism?
October 1, 2006 — Author: Dr Deborah Sanders Ukraine can make two important contributions to the U.S.-led war on terror. It can consolidate its democracy and thereby be a force for peace and stability in the Eurasian region, and, second, through its military transformation, it can provide peacekeeping forces to zones of instability. In order to be an effective... MORE

Shaping China’s Security Environment: The Role of the People’s Liberation Army
October 1, 2006 — Authors: Dr Andrew Scobell, Dr Larry M Wortzel This volume addresses the role of the Chinese military in shaping its country’s security environment. The PLA itself is shaped and molded by both domestic and foreign influences. In the first decade of the 21st century, the PLA is not a central actor in China’s foreign policy the way it was just a few... MORE

North Korean Civil-Military Trends: Military-First Politics to a Point
September 1, 2006 — Author: Mr Ken E Gause Civil-military relations is one of the most challenging dimensions to deal with regarding North Korea. Since 1998, Pyongyang's foremost policy has been declared as "military-first." While experts debate the precise meaning and significance of this policy, considerable consensus exists that it gives the leading role to the... MORE

String of Pearls: Meeting the Challenge of China’s Rising Power Across the Asian Littoral
July 1, 2006 — Author: LTC Christopher J Pehrson China's rising maritime power is encountering American maritime power along the sea lines of communication (SLOCs) that connect China to vital energy resources in the Middle East and Africa. The "String of Pearls" describes the manifestation of China's rising geopolitical influence through efforts to increase... MORE

2006 Key Strategic Issues List (KSIL)
July 1, 2006 — Author: Dr Antulio J Echevarria II In today’s dynamic strategic environment, political changes can become challenges very quickly. Any list of key strategic issues must, therefore, include the broadest array of regional and functional concerns. This is a catalogue of significant issues, arranged as potential research topics, of concern to U.S... MORE