Recent Publications

Going to War With the Allies You Have: Allies, Counterinsurgency, and the War on Terrorism
November 1, 2005 — Author: Dr Daniel Byman Washington must recognize that its allies, including those in the security forces, are often the source of counterinsurgency problems as well as the heart of any solution. The author argues that the ally's structural problems and distinct interests have daunting implications for successful U.S. counterinsurgency efforts. The... MORE

Balik Terrorism: The Return of the Abu Sayyaf
September 1, 2005 — Author: Dr Zachary Abuza The author warns that despite the regeneration of the ASG as a bonafide terrorist organization, the primary security threat confronting the GRP comes from the Communist Party of the Philippines and their armed wing, the New People's Army. To that end, the GRP will focus on the ASG and MILF in as much as they expect it to... MORE

Saudi Arabia: Islamic Threat, Political Reform, and the Global War on Terror
March 1, 2005 — Author: Dr Sherifa D Zuhur This monograph examines the convergence of the war on terror on Saudi soil, calls for and modest programs of political reform, and heightened post-9/11 tensions with the United States. Saudi Arabia has been condemned for its Wahhabist version of Islam, and linked to the growth of salafist extremism operating locally,... MORE

Strategic Implications of Intercommunal Warfare in Iraq
February 1, 2005 — Author: Dr W Andrew Terrill In the post-Saddam era, differences among Iraqi ethnic and religious groups will either emerge as a barrier to political cooperation and national unity, or they will instead be mitigated as part of the struggle to define a new and more inclusive system of government. Should Iraqi ethnic and sectarian differences become... MORE

Bounding the Global War on Terrorism
December 1, 2003 — Author: Dr Jeffrey Record The author examines three features of the war on terrorism as currently defined and conducted: (1) the administration's postulation of the terrorist threat, (2) the scope and feasibility of U.S. war aims, and (3) the war's political, fiscal, and military sustainability. He believes that the war on terrorism--as opposed to... MORE

Globalization and the Nature of War
March 1, 2003 — Author: Dr Antulio J Echevarria II The author explores the nature of war, and how it has changed as a result of globalization. He uses the Clausewitzian model of war's trinity (political guidance, chance, and enmity) as a framework for understanding the nature of war, a concept that has been only vaguely represented in defense literature. He then... MORE