Somalia: Ethiopian Air Force plane crashes in Mogadishu

BBC

An Ethiopian Air Force cargo plane has crashed and caught fire on landing at Mogadishu airport in Somalia.

Imagery suggests North Korea doubling its uranium enrichment capabilities

Jamie Crawford / CNN

North Korea may be increasing its ability to enrich uranium at its Yongbyon nuclear complex, according to an analysis of recent satellite imagery.

VOA Rolls Out Mobile App with News in 43 Languages

Voice of America

Getting the latest news from VOA’s many language services just got easier with the launch of new mobile and tablet apps that work on iPhones, iPads, and Android devices.

China to surpass US as top oil importer

Ben Geman / The Hill

China is about to supplant the United States as the world’s largest importer of oil, according to the Energy Department’s statistical forecasting arm.

The Sudden and Unexpected Return of the Drone War

Elias Groll / Foreign Policy

The drone war is back. Amid fears that al Qaeda-affiliated terrorists in Yemen are plotting a major attack, U.S. drones reportedly launched three strikes in the country on Thursday alone, killing 12 suspected al Qaeda militants.

OPEC Maintains Estimate for Global Oil Demand Growth in 2014

Grant Smith / Bloomberg

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries kept estimates for global oil demand growth in 2014 unchanged amid a stable outlook for the world economy.

With NSA and NYPD under scrutiny, is tide turning on surveillance?

Harry Bruinius / Christian Science Monitor

Government surveillance programs are on the defensive. On Wednesday, the New York Police Department agreed to expunge more than a half million names from its stop-and-frisk database.

ASP Recent Publications

Fact Sheet – American Competitiveness and National Security

Wes Reichart

The security of our nation inherently depends upon the strength of our ability to compete in the global market place while simultaneously raising living standards at home. “American Competitiveness” thus includes a wide array of interconnected issues, linking economic prosperity and national security imperatives.

Perspective- U.S. Public Diplomacy towards Iran

Livia Pontes Fialho and Matthew Wallin

This report explores several types of public c diplomacy aimed towards Iran, and looks in to some of the challenges and potential of these programs as part of an overall strategy for addressing U.S. national security interests.

Fact Sheet- U.S.-E.U. Trade and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership

Justin Winikoff

The U.S. and E.U. recently began negotiations on what would be, if completed, the largest trade agreement in world history.

On Our Flashpoint Blog

Loss of Louisiana Wetlands Increases Vulnerability to Climate Change

Nicholas Cunningham

Louisiana has experience its fair share of severe storms, but the loss of wetlands means the Gulf Coast is losing one of its key insurance policies against climate change.

Bay of Bengal- A Hotspot for Climate Insecurity

Andrew Holland

On the Bay of Bengal’s coast these problems of a changing climate combine with already existing social problems like religious strife, poverty, political uncertainty, high population density and rapid urbanization to create a very dangerous cocktail of already security threats.

Easing Jordan’s burden requires a targeted aid strategy

Ollie Engebretson

As the debate over supplying aid to the Syrian opposition continues, Jordan, the welcoming neighbor to the south, moves further and further towards socio-economic crisis.

The BBG gets three new members

Christian Mull

The Senate has recently confirmed three new members to the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), the U.S. government’s international broadcasting arm.

Linking climate change and conflict- new report stirs old debate

Andrew Holland

For national security planners and professionals, we don’t need a scientific consensus directly linking past changes in climate or temperature to violent conflict. When national security planners look at threats to our security, they know that you cannot act with certainty: once you have 100% certainty, it is too late to act. The truth is that so long as there’s a persuasive chance that climate change will cause conflict, prudent actions to mitigate that threat are in order.

Gauging the possibility for change in Iran’s nuclear stance

Chris Smith

While the Supreme Leader of Iran, Ali Khameni is ultimately responsible for the foreign policy of Iran, Rouhani will play an important foreign policy role as he is responsible for nominating individuals to fill important government positions.

ASP in the News

ASP’s Andrew Holland cited in Washington Post

Brad Plummer of the Washington Post’s WonkBlog wrote an interesting article on the ongoing academic research on the link between climate change and violence, and linked to a blog post written by ASP’s Andrew Holland.

Paul Rockower in the Huffington Post: The Public Diplomacy of Free France During WWII

ASP Adjunct Fellow Paul Rockower’s piece on Free France’s public diplomacy during WWII has subsequently appeared in the Huffington Post.

BGen Stephen Cheney publishes op-ed in Stars and Strips

ASP’s CEO wrote a piece in stars and Strips urging policy makers to fill high ranking diplomatic positions at the State department.