Recent Publications

U.S. Military Engagement with Transcaucasia and Central Asia
June 1, 2000 — Author: Dr Stephen J Blank The Clinton administration has proclaimed a strategy to engage and enlarge the democratic community of states. By virtue of their strategic location adjacent to Russia, the Middle East, and Europe s periphery, and their large-scale oil and natural gas deposits, Transcaucasia and Central Asia have become important testing... MORE

Transnational Threats from the Middle East: Crying Wolf or Crying Havoc?
May 31, 1999 — Author: Prof Anthony H Cordesman There is no doubt that the Middle East can present significant potential threats to the West. The author of this monograph examines these threats in order to put them into perspective--to distinguish between "crying wolf" and "crying havoc." After thorough analysis, he contends that the problems caused by narcotics... MORE

Security Implications of the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction in the Middle East
December 1, 1998 — Author: Dr Sami G Hajjar This monograph addresses the important question of the security implications for the nations of the region of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East. The Strategic Studies Institute is pleased to offer the monograph as a contribution to the national security debate on this important issue. The... MORE

Assessing the Costs of Failure
June 26, 1997 — Authors: Dr Stephen C Pelletiere, Prof Shibley Telhami, Mr Lawrence R Velte As of mid-1997, the fate of the Arab-Israeli peace process is dangerously uncertain. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's decision to begin work on a new Jewish settlement in Jerusalem has so enraged Palestinians that they have effectively walked out of the negotiations... MORE

Yemen and Stability in the Persian Gulf: Confronting the Threat from Within
May 1, 1996 — Author: Dr Stephen C Pelletiere Yemen is one of the oldest societies in the Middle East. It sits athwart one of the world's most strategic waterways, and hence, throughout the Cold War, the United States and Soviet Union contended for influence over it. With the end of the Cold War, Yemen's fortunes sank. Soviet support vanished, and the United... MORE

A Theory of Fundamentalism: An Inquiry into the Origin and Development of the Movement
September 28, 1995 — Author: Dr Stephen C Pelletiere Islamic fundamentalism is growing at such a rapid rate that many believe it threatens to take over the Middle East. To prevent this, enormous resources have been summoned, not only from within the region, but in the West as well. Yet, for all the efforts to contain, if not turn back the fundamentalists, the movement... MORE

Terrorism: National Security Policy and the Home Front
May 1, 1995 — Author: Dr Stephen C Pelletiere The recent bombing of the Federal Building in Oklahoma has highlighted the complexity of the phenomenon of political extremism. Until this occurred, inside the United States foreign terrorists were the focus of attention, particularly the so-called Islamic fundamentalists. Undue emphasis on the "foreign connection"... MORE

Energy, Economics, and Security in Central Asia: Russia and Its Rivals
March 1, 1995 — Author: Dr Stephen J Blank The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 led to the creation of five new states in Central Asia. These states: Kazkahstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Kyrgyzstan, have become both the object of international rivalries in Central Asia and the sources of new political forces as they act to enlarge their... MORE

Assad and the Peace Process: The Pivotal Role of Lebanon
February 1, 1995 — Author: Dr Stephen C Pelletiere The world is waiting for peace in the Middle East. At present the possibility of a settlement is delayed by differences between Israel and Syria. The two are far apart on how to solve one of the thornier problems of the negotiations--the eventual status of the Golan Heights. That Syria's President Assad and Israel's... MORE