American Security Project Special Reports
Climate Change and the Threats to the American Midwest
American Security Project
The climate is changing – the shift in global temperatures and their impacts on weather patterns is scientifically proven, though the extent of future change is subject to uncertainty about future emissions and the sensitivity of the system to increasing concentrations of emissions.
Africa – Promoting Investment and Extending America’s Security
Giancarlo Lima & Sophia Dahodwala
The American Security Project hosted a high-level conference to discuss the mutually beneficial impacts of U.S. private investment on the African continent, opportunities for practical investment, and how to effectively manage the accompanying risk.
International News Coverage
Middle East, ISIL, Counterterrorism
The Secret Casualties of Iraq’s Abandoned Chemical Weapons
C.J. Chivers | The New York Times
The Pentagon kept silent as munitions left over from Saddam Hussein’s war with Iran found new targets from 2004 to 2011: American and Iraqi troops.
C.I.A. Study of Covert Aid Fueled Skepticism About Helping Syrian Rebels
Mark Mazzetti | The New York Times
The continuing C.I.A. effort to train Syrian rebels is just the latest example of an American president becoming enticed by the prospect of using the spy agency to covertly arm and train rebel groups.
How to defeat Islamic State’s war machine
Metin Turcan | Al Monitor
Although much as been written to explain the tactical military successes of the Islamic State (IS), there has not yet been a comprehensive assessment of how, since June 2014, IS has managed to rule over terrain larger than Lebanon to include 8 million Iraqis and Syrians.
Operation against the Islamic State to be called Inherent Resolve
Dan Lamothe | Washington Post
After more than two motnsh of airstrikes against the Islamic State, the Pentagon has given its operation against the militant group a name: Inherent Resolve.
Airstrikes, street battles in Syrian Kurdish town
Lefteris Pitarakis & Albert Aji | AP
Bolstered by intensified U.S.-led coalition airstrikes targeting militants from the Islamic State group, Kurdish militiamen fought pitched battles Wednesday with the extremists in a Syrian Kurdish border town near Turkey, making small advances, activists and officials said.
Al-Qaida and Shiite rebels clash in south Yemen
Ahmed Al-Haj | AP
Yemen’s Shiite rebels pushing to seize more territory across the country were locked in fierce battles with al-Qaida militants on Wednesday in a province south of the capital, Sanaa, security officials said.
Energy
Lockheed says makes breakthrough on fusion energy project
Andrea Shalal | Reuters
Lockheed Martin Corp said on Wednesday it had made a technological breakthrough in developing a power source based on nuclear fusion, and the first reactors, small enough to fit on the back of a truck, could be ready for use in a decade.
Nuclear Security
Russia Hints Deadline For Iran Nuclear Deal May Be Extended
Reuters | Business Insider
Russia has joined Iran in suggesting that a late November deadline for reaching an agreement to end a long-running dispute over Tehran’s nuclear program may need to be extended.
Climate Change
Pentagon Warns of Immediate National Security Threats From Climate Change
Robert S. Eshelman | Vice News
Risings sea levels, hotter global temperatures, wildly fluctuating precipitation patterns, and more frequent extreme weather systems will likely intensify global instability, hunger, and poverty. Those are the sobering themes of a new report on climate change, authored not by scientists or environmentalists, but by uniformed personnel at the US Department of Defense.
Immediate Risk to National Security Posed by Global Warming
Lisa Friedman & ClimateWire | Scientific American
The Pentagon released a landmark report yesterday declaring climate change an “immediate risk” to national security and outlining how it intends to protect bases, prepare for humanitarian disasters and plan for global conflicts.
Ebola
Second Texas healthcare worker diagnosed with Ebola virus
Lauren Gambino | The Guardian
A second Texas healthcare worker who treated Thomas Eric Duncan, the first patient in the US to be diagnosed with Ebola, has tested positive for the virus, the department of state health services said on Wednesday.
Second Texas Nurse with Ebola had traveled by plane
Lisa Maria Garza & Terry Wade | Reuters
A second Texas nurse who tested positive for Ebola after caring for a patient with the virus had traveled by jetliner a day before she reported symptoms, U.S. and airline officials said on Wednesday.
Russia & Ukraine
Russia boosts global ‘media offensive’
Stephen Ennis |BBC
Russia’s flagship international broadcaster RT is set to get a major cash injection as the Kremlin steps up attempts to sway global opinion amid the growing rift with the West over the Ukraine crisis.
On Our Flashpoint Blog
Lockheed Martin Reveals Compact Fusion Reactor Details
Caroline Julia von Wurden
Lockheed Martin Corp. announced that its Skunk Works® team had made a breakthrough on a compact fusion reactor (CFR).
ASP Board Member Whitman pushes for wider nuclear power use
Caroline Julia von Wurden
Christine Todd Whitman, former Republican Governor of New Jersey, administrator of the EPA under George W. Bush, and American Security board member, is pushing for wider use of nuclear power in the US.
Holland on low oil production costs in Saudi Arabia
Caroline Julia von Wurden
ASP’s Senior Fellow for Energy and Climate Andrew Holland was quoted in an article, Declining oil prices benefit Saudi Arabia most: Experts.
Hagel Announces Climate Change Adaptation Roadmap
AJ Degarmo
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, a former board member of the American Security Project, attended the 11th Conference of the Defense Ministers of the Americas during a six-day, three-country trip to Latin America that began on October 9, 2014.
Upcoming Events
Indianapolis Event – Climate Change: Risks for National Security
October 15 7:00PM – 9:00PM
Location: Anderson University, 1100 E Fifth St., Anderson, IN 46012 Hartung Hall, Room 101
Today the U.S. Navy is preparing for an open Arctic, the Marines are deploying in response to historic typhoons, and the army is preparing its bases to use less energy than they produce. Climate change is already a major consideration for US military planners. Meanwhile, American politicians continue to ignore the issue. Join us for a discussion with senior flag officers as they discuss the steps the US military has taken and future implications for our national security.
Geography 2050: Mounting an Expedition to the Future
November 19
Location: Low Memorial Library, Columbia University, 2960 Broadway, Manhattan, NY 10027
The one-day inaugural event, to be held at Columbia’s Low Library in Manhattan, offers an opportunity for thought leaders in industry, government, the social sector, and academe to come together to think about collectively exploring the future, and to examine how geography, geographic thinking, and geospatial data and technologies will enable this new age of exploration.
About the American Security Project: The American Security Project is a non-profit, non-partisan public policy and research organization dedicated to fostering knowledge and understanding of a range of national security issues, promoting debate about the appropriate use of American power, and cultivating strategic responses to 21st century challenges.
For more information, visit www.americansecurityproject.org info@americansecurityproject.org
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