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RUSI Newsbrief
Concise briefings on contemporary issues and trends in international security
November 2019, Vol: 39 No: 10
From Schools to Total Defence Exercises: Best Practices in Greyzone Deterrence
RUSI Newsbrief, 15 November 2019, No: 10Elisabeth Braw
How NATO member states can develop societal resilience to combat modern threats.
Tags: Modern Deterrence, NATO, Resilience
The 2% Target: Spending Increases and the Russian Threat
RUSI Newsbrief, 8 November 2019, No: 10Malcolm Chalmers
While all NATO countries have increased defence spending since 2014, the Alliance’s new members have done the most.
Tags: Defence Spending, NATO, North America, Europe
The Paradox at the Heart of NATO’s Return to Article 5
RUSI Newsbrief, 1 November 2019, No: 10John R Deni
To respond effectively to the threats NATO faces in its eighth decade, and to safeguard the promise of collective defence enshrined in Article 5 of the Washington Treaty, the Alliance must refocus time and resources on fighting its adversaries in the grey zone.
Tags: NATO, Global Security Issues
A More Usable Army: Implications of Fusion Doctrine for Land Forces
RUSI Newsbrief, 25 October 2019, No: 9Oliver Major
The British Army must respond to calls for reform posed by Fusion Doctrine and Global Britain.
Tags: Armed Forces, Military Sciences, UK, Land Forces, UK Defence
Human Rights and Denuclearisation in North Korea: Two Sides of the Same Coin
RUSI Newsbrief, 18 October 2019, No: 9Cristina Varriale
If long-term peace is to be achieved and denuclearisation completed, addressing North Korea’s human rights situation must become part of the process. Without this, it will be impossible to remove all sources of perceived hostility and North Korea’s nuclear weapons.
Tags: North Korea, Proliferation and Nuclear Policy, Proliferation and Nuclear Policy
Gaming the System: Money Laundering Through Online Games
RUSI Newsbrief, 11 October 2019, No: 9Anton Moiseienko and Kayla Izenman
In-game artefacts and currencies often have real-life value and can be used to move or invest criminal proceeds. But there are no clear expectations of what game operators can or should do to identify criminal activity.
Tags: Centre for Financial Crime and Security Studies, AML/CTF
What About the Afghan State? US Interests Reach Beyond Counterterrorism
RUSI Newsbrief, 4 October 2019, No: 9James M Page
The cancellation of the US peace agreement with the Taliban not only reasserts the importance of elections in Afghanistan, but also wider US interests in the Afghan state.
Tags: Afghanistan
US (and Other Powers) Woo Central and Eastern Europe: A New Centre of Gravity?
RUSI Newsbrief, 20 September 2019, No: 8Igor Merheim-Eyre
Central and Eastern Europe is becoming an important place for geopolitics.
Tags: United States, US Defence Policy, Americas, Defence Policy, Europe
A Cryptic Challenge: Banking Virtual Currencies
RUSI Newsbrief, 13 September 2019, No: 8Tom Keatinge and Kayla Izenman
Banks, guardians of the integrity of the financial system, cannot hide from the risks posed by cryptocurrencies; they must learn to move on from a poor strategy of avoidance and de-risking.
Tags: Centre for Financial Crime and Security Studies, AML/CTF
How to Lose Friends and Influence People: Upsetting the Balance in Xi Jinping’s China
RUSI Newsbrief, 6 September 2019, No: 8Charles Parton
Through his clampdown on corruption, dissent and relative freedoms, Chinese President Xi Jinping has alienated various groups within society. However, in the absence of a serious economic downturn and a rift within the Party’s leadership, discontent is unlikely to unseat him for the foreseeable future.
Tags: China, Global Security Issues, Intelligence, Technology
Should Robots Kill? Towards a Moral Framework for Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems
RUSI Newsbrief, 22 August 2019, No: 7Tom Ascott
If lethal autonomous weapons systems are to be used in war, a moral framework to guide their ethical use is warranted. Despite the limitations it may pose on their capabilities, a rules-based moral framework is the best approach given the current state of technology.
Tags: Law and Ethics, Technology
Get Yourself Stress Tested
RUSI Newsbrief, 15 August 2019, No: 7Elisabeth Braw
Ordinary citizens in Western countries are under-prepared to deal with extended disruptions to power or the internet. To strengthen resilience to greyzone attacks, societies should start stress testing themselves.
Tags: Modern Deterrence
Retired Generals in Israeli Politics: Concerning Backstep or Status Quo?
RUSI Newsbrief, 8 August 2019, No: 7Ian Westerman
Concern over the political rise of former IDF Chief of Staff Benny Gantz is misplaced. The military’s role in Israeli politics has always served to reinforce democratic values, not erode them.
Tags: Civil–Military Relations, Israel, Global Security Issues
The Gathering Storm: As the Baltic States Prepare to Disconnect from the Russian Power Grid, the Kremlin is Ready to ‘Help’
RUSI Newsbrief, 2 August 2019, No: 7Justinas Juozaitis
With the Baltic states on-track to become independent from centralised Russian control over their power networks, the Kremlin has demonstrated an alarming potential to disconnect them from its power grid before they are ready to join the continental European network.
Tags: Modern Deterrence, Russia, Global Security Issues
‘Rasputitsa’: Why Railways and Roads are Russia’s Achilles’ Heel
RUSI Newsbrief, 26 July 2019, No: 6Emily Ferris
Ageing railways, poor-quality roads and an inadequate response by the authorities to calls for basic services are the weak underbelly of the Russian infrastructure system.
Tags: International Security Studies, Russia, Domestic Security, Global Security IssuesPages
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