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2892. A Few Thoughts on the Evolution of Infantry: Past, Present, Future
- Author:
- Lutz Unterseher
- Publication Date:
- 05-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Project on Defense Alternatives
- Abstract:
- During the Seven Years War a young, handsome and daring cavalryman in the Prussian Army was observed taking sexual liberties with his beautiful mare. This indiscretion was brought to the attention of King Frederic II. Advisors fretted as to what would become of the army as a fighting force, and of war in general, if such behavior were to spread across all ranks of mounted personnel. Many expected the king would have this deed punished in the most draconian manner. Frederic decided otherwise and simply ordered : “Transfer that chap to the infantry!”
- Topic:
- Security, Development, and War
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Prussia
2893. We Can See Clearly Now: The limits of foresight in the pre-World War II Revolution in Military Affairs (RMA)
- Author:
- Carl Conetta
- Publication Date:
- 03-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Project on Defense Alternatives
- Abstract:
- RMA narratives tend to depict today's policy struggle as pitting clear vision and foresight on one side against parochial interests and bureaucratic inertia on the other. For each of today's RMA schools the general contours of a prospective revolution seem clear. From within these perspectives, risk seems mostly associated with the prospect of failing to enact change in a timely fashion. But this view depreciates the very substantial uncertainty surrounding RMA prescriptions – not to mention the significant disagreements and discontinuities among the different transformation schools and service visions.
- Topic:
- Security, Foreign Policy, Education, and Government
2894. Prospects for energy cooperation in North-East Asia
- Author:
- Ernest Wyciszkiewicz
- Publication Date:
- 08-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The Polish Institute of International Affairs
- Abstract:
- The cooperation between the Russian Federation, the People's Republic of China, and Japan in the field of energy is one of the major factors defining the foreign policies of these countries and determining the strategic environment in Northeast Asia. For several years now, each of the three countries has been considering means of ensuring long-term energy security (Japan and China), and the appropriate use of existing energy potential to modernise the state and improve its international standing (Russia).Although the energy cooperation between these countries is still of a limited scope, the dynamic development of the regional energy markets is to be expected, given the fast changing international setting. The nature of future relations between the three powers (whether cooperative or confrontational) in the field of energy will have an impact on both regional and global security, particularly if one considers the growing political and economic significance of the Asia-Pacific region. An analysis of the present state of this cooperation and of its future prospects entails a discussion of the existing international and domestic conditions determining the policies of the three main actors: Russia, China, and Japan.
- Topic:
- Security and Energy Policy
- Political Geography:
- Russia, Japan, China, Israel, Northeast Asia, and Asia-Pacific
2895. Governance and the Military: Perspectives for Change in Turkey
- Author:
- Sami Faltas(ed.) and Sander Jansen(ed.)
- Publication Date:
- 05-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Centre for European Security Studies
- Abstract:
- Civil-military relations in Turkey are changing as the country prepares for EU membership, and they will continue to change as accession draws closer. The contributors to this book have all been involved in the international project on governance and the military in Turkey, which ran from June 2004 until the end of May 2006. In this introduction, we will bring together some of the principal points they will make in the following chapters and add some observations and comments of our own.
- Topic:
- Security, Defense Policy, and Civil Society
- Political Geography:
- Turkey
2896. China and the Global Economy: Medium-term Issues and Options - A Synthesis Report
- Author:
- Ricardo Hausmann, Edwin Lim, and Michael Spence
- Publication Date:
- 07-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
- Abstract:
- China's economic and social achievements since the beginning of reform and opening are unprecedented in global history. Managing the growth process in this continuously changing environment has required great skill and the use of unconventional economic policy. Now China has entered a new era in its development process with a set of challenges largely different from those of the recent past. Some problems - such as growing internal and external structural imbalances, increasing income and regional inequality – have arisen from, or been exacerbated by, the very pattern and success of high growth since reforms began. Others are newly posed by rapid changes in the global economy. These challenges can best be tackled in an integrated and coordinated fashion. This report, supported by the China Economic Research and Advisory Programme (CERAP), identifies the primary challenges facing China today and presents options for meeting them.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Security, and Globalization
- Political Geography:
- China and Asia
2897. Precaution Against Terrorism
- Author:
- Jessica Stern and Jonathan B. Wiener
- Publication Date:
- 05-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
- Abstract:
- Stunned by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the Bush administration adopted a new National Security Strategy in September 2002. The UK government took a similar stance. This new strategy calls for anticipatory attacks against potential enemies with uncertain capacities and intentions, even before their threat is imminent. Rather than wait for evidence of weapons of mass destruction, it shifts the burden of proof, obliging “rogue” states to show that they do not harbor weapons of mass destruction or terrorist cells, or else face the possibility of attack. This new strategy amounts to the adoption of the Precautionary Principle against the risk of terrorism. We offer two main conclusions about precaution against terrorism. First, any action taken to reduce a target risk always poses the introduction of countervailing risks. Moreover, a precautionary approach to terrorism is likely to entail larger, more expensive interventions, so the expected opportunity costs are likely to be higher. While considering worst-case scenarios is important for the development of sound policy, taking action based only on worst-case thinking can introduce unforeseen dangers and costs. We argue that a better approach to managing risk involves an assessment of the full portfolio of risks – those reduced by the proposed intervention, as well as those increased. We argue that decision makers developing counterterrorism measures need mechanisms to ensure that sensible risk analysis precedes precautionary actions. Such a mechanism currently exists to review and improve or reject proposed precautionary measures against health and environmental risks, but not, so far, for counterterrorism and national security policies. We urge the creation of such a review mechanism.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Security, and Terrorism
- Political Geography:
- United States
2898. The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy
- Author:
- John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt
- Publication Date:
- 03-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
- Abstract:
- U.S. foreign policy shapes events in every corner of the globe. Nowhere is this truer than in the Middle East, a region of recurring instability and enormous strategic importance. Most recently, the Bush Administration's attempt to transform the region in t o a community of democracies has helped produce a resilient ins urgency in Iraq, a sharp rise in world oil prices, and terrorist bombings in Madrid, London, and Amman. With so much at stake for so many, all countries need to understand the forces that drive U.S. Middle East Policy.
- Topic:
- Security and Foreign Policy
- Political Geography:
- Middle East
2899. Immigration and Insecurity: Post-9/11 Fear in the United States
- Author:
- John Tirman
- Publication Date:
- 06-2006
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- MIT Center for International Studies
- Abstract:
- The attacks of September 11, 2001, transformed the landscape of global security, none more than borders and immigration. The topography of citizenship, belonging, and suspicion instantly changed for Arab and Muslim communities in the United States. They drew the sharp attention of U.S. law enforcement and intelligence services, and that continues. But the public's focus has swung south to scrutinize the U.S.-Mexican border as a source of insecurity. For the most part, the alarms about immigrants as threats are exaggerated. And the policy choices driven by these concerns—much larger border security measures in particular—are costly in a globalized economy and unnecessary for security in any case.
- Topic:
- Security, Migration, and Politics
- Political Geography:
- United States, Arab Countries, North America, and Mexico
2900. Budgets to Make America Safer
- Author:
- Cindy Williams
- Publication Date:
- 06-2006
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- MIT Center for International Studies
- Abstract:
- Since September 2001, federal budgets for national security have climbed more than 50 percent in real terms. Unfortunately, much of the added money reflects “business as usual” rather than programs aimed at making the nation safer from today's threats. Compared with past decades, national security spending makes up a relatively small share of the U.S. economy. Nevertheless, with the federal debt growing rapidly and as large numbers of baby boomers approach retirement age, many observers expect future federal budgets to be tight. Thus it is critically important to ensure that national security funds go to projects that make the nation more secure. This article examines broad changes in national security budgets since September 2001. It first reviews the three categories of federal spending for national security. It then examines how budgets in those categories have changed since September 2001. It ends with a look at alternatives that seem more relevant in an era of international mass-casualty terrorism.
- Topic:
- Security, Economics, and Politics
- Political Geography:
- America and North America