Key Reads

Malcolm Turnbull Defeats Tony Abbott to Become Party Leader and Prime Minister of Australia

Michelle Innis / The New York Times
Malcolm Turnbull, a former investment banker and lawyer, became the prime minister of Australia on Monday night after defeating Tony Abbott in a vote of Liberal Party lawmakers.

E.U. Internal Affairs Ministers Prepare to Meet on Migrant Crisis

James Kanter / The New York Times
European Union home affairs ministers will seek to reconcile the bloc’s conflicting approaches to the huge number of migrants crossing their southern and eastern borders at an emergency session to be held here on Monday afternoon. The ministers are gathering after Germany reversed course over the weekend and imposed temporary border restrictions, cutting off rail service from Austria and instituting spot checks on cars.

American Competitiveness

Lesson for Fed: Higher Interest Rates Haven’t Been Sticking
Harriet Torry, Jon Hilsenrath / The Wall Street Journal
In the seven years since the world’s central banks responded to the financial crisis by slashing interest rates, more than a dozen banks in the advanced world have tried to raise them again. All have been forced to retreat.

The Brics Collapse, the South Staggers: and the Almighty Dollar is Back
The Guardian
Brazil, which saw its credit rating downgraded to junk last week, is only the latest Brics economy to crumble in the face of a strong dollar, a global trade slowdown and the prospect of higher U.S. interest rates.

National Security & Strategy

Russian Flights Over Iraq and Iran Escalate Tension with U.S.

Eric Schmitt, Michael R. Gordon / The New York Times
Russia is using an air corridor over Iraq and Iran to fly military equipment and personnel to a new air hub in Syria, openly defying American efforts to block the shipments and significantly increasing tensions with Washington.

U.S. and Iran Both Conflict and Converge
Time Arango, David D. Kirkpatrick / The New York Times
American troops advising Iraqi security forces in restive Anbar Province are sharing a base with odd bedfellows: an Iranian-backed militia that once killed United States soldiers. Both are fighting the militants of the Islamic State.

Belgium ‘Ready’ to Send Troops to Syria After Order is Restored
Agence France-Presse
Belgium is ready to send ground troops to Syria as part of an international coalition but “we must first re-establish order,” the country’s defense minister, Steven Vandeput, said on Saturday.

Asymmetric Operations

Afghan Taliban Storm Ghazni Prison, Free Hundreds
Ehsanullah Amiri, Margherita Stancati / The Wall Street Journal
Taliban insurgents stormed a prison in central Afghanistan on Monday, freeing hundreds of inmates in the largest jailbreak in the country in years.

Egypt Security Forces Accidentally Kill 12, Including Mexican Tourists
Ahmed Mohamed Hassan / Reuters
Egyptian Security forces killed 12 Mexicans and Egyptians and injured 10 “by accident” on Monday in an attack after mistaking a tourist convoy for militants they were pursuing in the country’s western desert, the ministry of interior said.

Syrian Media: 20 Killed in Car Bomb Explosion in Northeast
Albert Aji / Associated Press
Syria’s state media are reporting that a car bomb explosion killed at least 20 people, including a woman and her two children, in the predominantly Kurdish northeastern city of Hassakeh.

Did Centcom Cook the Books in the War Against the Islamic State?
Dan De Luce / Foreign Policy
He has Eluded the public spotlight in his ascent to the top echelons of the U.S. military, quietly honing his skills as an intelligence officer in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars before taking his current high-stakes position – overseeing reports on the fight against the Islamic State.

Climate Security

Gov. Jerry Brown Declares State of Emergency as Wildfires Destroy Hundreds of Homes in California 

Rina Marie Doctor / Tech Times
Gov. Jerry brown of California has placed both Lake and Napa counties under a state of emergency on Sunday, Sept. 13 as wildfires continued to destroy hundreds of homes and buildings and forced thousands of people to evacuate.

Climate Change in Google Maps? Los Angeles is Underwater
Horia Ungureanu / Tech Times
Information about the climate impact of human activity has gotten Google jumping into the serious discussion about the issue through Google Maps. The latest version of Google Maps now offers a literal view of the situation, providing an insight into the effect of increased ocean levels.

Energy Security

Russian Controlled Gas Pipelines Bad for Europe Energy Security, According to Ukraine
Kenneth Rapoza / Forbes
Ukraine state-owned energy giant, Naftogaz, warned Friday that the Gazprom-led Natural gas pipelines currently connecting Europe to Russian gas fields is more bad news than good.

OPEC Has Victory in its Sights in Oil Price War with US Shale
Andrew Critchlow / The Telegraph
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has given the clearest signal yet that it believes it is winning its oil price war with the US shale industry. The group of 12 mainly Middle Eastern producers has said that output from outside the cartel in 2016 will be over 100,000 barrels per day (bpd) lower than it had previously predicted, as lower prices shut down more production.

Nuclear Security

Poll: Americans Skeptical Iran Will Stick to Nuclear Deal
Jennifer Agiesta / CNN

President Barack Obama’s big policy win this week – preventing Congress from blocking the nuclear agreement with Iran – may do little to improve his sagging approval ratings. A new CNN/ORC poll finds 59% disapprove of the way Obama is handling the U.S. relationship with Iran, and about half would have preferred Congress reject the deal. Few believe Iran will abide by its terms, and a growing number consider the country a serious threat to the U.S.

On Our Flashpoint Blog

Admiral Fallon Testifies Before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs

Sam Hickey

On September 09, ASP Board Member Admiral William Fallon testified on the Implications of a Nuclear Agreement with Iran before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. He was joined in testifying before members of Congress by General Charles Wald, Vice Admiral John Bird, and Leon Wieseltier who is the Isaiah Berlin Senior Fellow in Culture and Policy at the Brookings Institute.

Brigadier General Stephen A. Cheney Interviewed on Climate Change

Ngoc H. Le

Brigadier General Stephen Cheney, USMC (Ret.) CEO of the American Security Project talked about climate change in an exclusive Climate TV interview for The Climate Group.

Understanding the Importance of Iraqi Unity

Asha Castleberry

My return home from the Middle East confronted me with a major U.S. foreign policy debate: how to counter the Islamic State of Iraq (ISIL), also known as “Daesh.” In DC, policy critics are overwhelmingly fixated on the Obama Administration’s alleged lack of strategy, but actions in Iraq by Iraqis will be the deciding factor in this fight.

Syrian Refugee Crisis Threatens the Security and Stability of the Middle East

Anil Powers

The civil war in Syria is in its fourth year with no clear end in sight.  While battles rage on between the forces of the Assad regime and rebel groups, civilians leave their homes and flee the country.  With millions having already fled Syria and still more to follow, a major refugee crisis exists that threatens the security and stability of the entire Middle East.

Upcoming Events

Conference – Cyber Security: Risk, Recovery, Resilience

September 16 @ 12:00pm – 5:00pm

ASP will host a half day conference to discuss the issues surrounding cyber security and challenges we will face moving forward.

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