Strategy • Diplomacy • War
By Monica Duffy Toft
Leaving is going to hurt, no question. But the hurt we may suffer from leaving is far less than the hurt we and the Afghan people are certain to sustain if we refuse to face reality and continue to preside over a broken military intervention. There are alternatives to military force, let’s use them.
Read moreBy Aroop Mukharji Is the United States neglecting its neighborhood? According to the United Nations and the World Bank, the
Read moreBy Thomas Cavanna
This award-winning book written by Anand Toprani, Associate Professor at the Naval War College, examines the strategies that Britain and Germany developed during the years of 1918 to 1945 to restore their energy independence (as opposed to energy security, i.e., importing oil at reasonable prices), and how those efforts caused an “overextension” that accelerated London and Berlin’s “demise as great powers.”
Read moreThe Center for Strategic Studies hosted Annette Idler of Oxford University on November 24 to discuss her recent book, Borderland
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By Zoltan Feher
On October 27, 2020, James D. Boys was the guest speaker at the Research & Policy Seminar of the Center for Strategic Studies. Boys presented his paper “The Madman Theory: Intellectual and Cultural Origins,” which constitutes the third chapter in his anticipated ten-chapter book detailing the development of The Madman Theory and its implementation by Presidents Nixon and Trump.
Read moreThe CSS team held a virtual meeting on November 10 to discuss a new paper by Aroop Mukharji, who joined the center this year as a post-doctoral fellow after completing his PhD at the Harvard Kennedy School. The paper, “A Menace to our Peace,” offers a unique perspective on the causes of the 1898 Spanish–American War. While acknowledging humanitarian and other motivations, Mukharji highlights an overlooked reason for President William McKinley’s declaration of war on Spain: the fear that a violent stalemate in the Cuban War of Independence could create regional instability, thereby threatening American security.
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By Zoltan Feher
As part of the Engaging Practitioners series, on October 22, 2020, the Center for Strategic Studies (CSS) hosted Professor Joseph Nye, University Distinguished Service Professor at Harvard University, and former Dean of Harvard’s Kenny School of Government.
Read moreBy Stephen Moncrief
The American retreat from multilateralism, growing skepticism of the UN’s general efficacy, and the widespread harms generated by Covid-19 are all frustrating the UN’s efforts to achieve its organizational goals. Against this gloomy backdrop, the future of peacekeeping is a major topic among researchers and practitioners. With the United States responsible for a substantial portion of the UN’s peacekeeping budget, now is an excellent time to think systematically about the successes, limitations, and potential contributions of UN peacekeeping to the goal of world peace.
Read moreBy Monica Duffy Toft
Just under 5 million U.S. citizens live abroad, serving in the military and embassies or just living in another country. As a political scientist who studies demographics and politics, I have observed how different voting blocs, even small ones, can affect the outcome of elections. Three million people is more than enough people to decide a presidential or congressional race with narrow margins.
Read moreThe CSS team met virtually as part of the Research and Policy Seminar series to discuss a stand-alone article by Post-doctoral Fellow Stephen Moncrief, based on his dissertation research completed at Yale University. The article, “Statebuilding in Haiti,” discusses the evolving nature of UN missions from peacekeeping operations to statebuilding projects.
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