Resources - News

This section includes the latest news relating to U.S. security policy around the world. Updated daily, the news provided in this searchable database highlights the most relevant security developments from around the world. 

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Peace in Colombia? Lessons From the Failed 1999-2002 Talks

Thursday, December 17, 2015
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos has wagered his legacy on the possibility of peace. He is not the first Colombian leader to do so, but Tuesday’s announcement of an agreement on restitution for the conflict’s victims, following a late September announcement of an agreement on transitional justice, has made it clear that the ongoing talks are making greater headway than ever before.English
Country(s): 
Colombia
Author(s): 
Tom Long
Publisher / Source: 
Latin America Goes Global
Tag(s): 
Peace Negotiations
Conflict

Visualising 40 Years of Organised Crime in Mexico: NarcoData

Thursday, December 17, 2015
How has Mexico moved from 2 cartels in the 1970s to 9 cartels today? That is the question the Mexican website Animal Político wanted to answer when in January 2015 they started to work on NarcoData, a data journalism project that shows the evolution of 40 years of drug dealing in Mexico, home to the most violent cartels in the world.English
Country(s): 
Mexico
Author(s): 
Carla Pedret
Publisher / Source: 
Online Journalism Blog
Tag(s): 
Drug Trade
Criminal Organizations

U.S. Says U.N. Not Doing Enough on Burundi Crisis

Thursday, December 17, 2015
Washington's envoy to the United Nations complained Wednesday that the international body was not doing enough to address the worsening crisis in Burundi. English
Country(s): 
Burundi
Publisher / Source: 
Yahoo News
Wire Service: 
AFP
Tag(s): 
Conflict
Conflict Resolution
U.N. Peacekeeping
Peace Negotiations

El Salvador Concerned Over Spike in Child Migration to U.S.

Thursday, December 17, 2015
El Salvador's foreign minister expressed concern Wednesday over a recent spike in the number of unaccompanied minors crossing into the U.S. through Mexico. Hugo Martinez warned that if the root causes of migration don't change, there could be a repeat of the 2014 crisis when tens of thousands of children and families streamed over the border. English
Country(s): 
El Salvador
Author(s): 
Marcos Aleman
Publisher / Source: 
ABC News
Wire Service: 
The Associated Press
Tag(s): 
Migration
Foreign Aid

U.S. Calls for Investigation of Shiite Deaths in Nigeria

Thursday, December 17, 2015
The State Department urged the Nigerian government on Wednesday to investigate reports of a large number of deaths over the weekend in clashes between the military and a Shiite Muslim sect. English
Country(s): 
Nigeria
Author(s): 
Sewell Chan
Publisher / Source: 
The New York Times
Tag(s): 
Human Rights
Conflict
Counterinsurgency
Civil-Military Relations

Iraq Declines U.S. Offer of More Troops, Attack Helicopters

Thursday, December 17, 2015
Defense Secretary Ash Carter traveled to Iraq's capital Wednesday with an offer to deploy more American troops and new attack helicopters to help the Iraqi army defeat the Islamic State group. English
Country(s): 
Iraq
Author(s): 
Andrew Tilghman
Publisher / Source: 
Military Times

U.S. Supplies Syrian Fighters Ahead of Push for Key ISIS Hub

Thursday, December 17, 2015
The United States has delivered a fresh supply of ammunition to Syrian Arab fighters ahead of an expected stiff battle with Islamic State as they push toward the Syrian town of al-Shadadi, a key logistics hub for the group, U.S. officials tell Reuters. English
Country(s): 
Syria
Publisher / Source: 
Newsweek
Wire Service: 
Reuters
Tag(s): 
Military Equipment

Congress Prepares to Vote on Omnibus

Thursday, December 17, 2015
The omnibus provides no funding for the Obama administration’s troubled Syria train-and-equip program, but would clear a path for the Pentagon to use other funds to train moderate Syrian rebels. The administration requested $600 million for the train-and-equip program this fiscal year, shifting its focus after the Pentagon acknowledged its plan to recruit a new force of Syrian rebels was a failure. English
Country(s): 
Syria
Author(s): 
Jeremy Herb
Publisher / Source: 
Politico

Dispatches: Finally Getting Tough on Azerbaijan

Thursday, December 17, 2015
Some of Azerbaijan’s international partners are finally taking exceptional steps to signal their alarm over the government’s serious crackdown on human rights.English
Country(s): 
Azerbaijan
Author(s): 
Jane Buchanan
Publisher / Source: 
Human Rights Watch
Tag(s): 
Human Rights

Tribunal Finds Mexico and U.S. Jointly Responsible for Human Rights Crisis Linked to Drug War

Thursday, December 17, 2015
An international jury of independent human rights experts and advocates has found Mexico, the U.S. and key countries of origin of migrants in transit jointly responsible for widespread human rights violations in Mexico, based on hearings held at New York University (NYU) in September 2015. The jury has called for the suspension of U.S. military and police aid to Mexico.English
Country(s): 
Mexico
Author(s): 
Azadeh Shahshahani
Publisher / Source: 
The Huffington Post
Tag(s): 
Human Rights

Don’t Rely on Syria’s ‘Moderate’ Fighting Force. It Doesn’t Exist

Thursday, December 17, 2015
In the runup to the vote on airstrikes in Syria, controversy revolved around David Cameron’s claim to parliament that “about 70,000” Syrian opposition fighters on the ground who do not belong to extremist groups could help fight Islamic State. English
Country(s): 
Syria
Author(s): 
Mowaffaq Safadi
Publisher / Source: 
The Guardian

U.S. Marines Strengthen Ugandan Capabilities for AMISOM

Thursday, December 17, 2015
The U.S. Marines and sailors with Special-Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force Crisis Response-Africa trained the UPDF in combat medicine, heavy equipment operations, mine-resistant, ambushed-protected vehicle maintenance and driving, utilities, communications, engineering and explosive ordnance training during the past two months. English
Country(s): 
Uganda
Author(s): 
Cpl. Olivia McDonald
Publisher / Source: 
The Globe and Mail
Tag(s): 
Conflict Resolution
Counterinsurgency
Military and Police Aid
Security Assistance

The West’s Best Ally Against ISIS

Thursday, December 17, 2015
For those of us in Kurdistan, the Islamic State is a daily reality we must confront. The pesh merga forces numbering more than 20,000 whom I have the honor of commanding look out from their trenches at an army of extremists bent on killing or enslaving all who oppose them.English
Country(s): 
Iraq
Author(s): 
Kemal Kirkuki
Publisher / Source: 
The New York Times
Tag(s): 
Military and Police Aid

The Urgent Need for Peace in Yemen

Thursday, December 17, 2015
There is a chance now to end the civil war in Yemen as the government of President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi and the Houthi rebels begin peace talks in Switzerland amid a cease-fire. English
Country(s): 
Yemen
Author(s): 
The Editorial Board
Publisher / Source: 
The New York Times
Tag(s): 
Peace Negotiations

U.S. Helping West African Troops Fight ISIS-Linked Boko Haram

Thursday, December 17, 2015
The U.S. quietly sent hundreds of troops to West Africa, where Islamic militants linked to ISIS are terrorizing villages in a campaign of murder and kidnapping. The Americans are there to help Cameroon's army hunt the terrorists along the Nigerian border. Balaclavas provide scant relief against the choking dust. English
Country(s): 
West Africa Regional
Author(s): 
Debora Patta
Publisher / Source: 
CBS News
Tag(s): 
Security Assistance
Terrorism
Counterinsurgency
Counterterrorism
Military

U.S. Special Forces Sent to Embattled Afghan Province

Thursday, December 17, 2015
The U.S. and Britain have deployed at least four special-operations teams to the Afghan province of Helmand, stepping up their direct intervention in support of struggling Afghan government forces trying to fight off advances by Taliban militants.English
Country(s): 
Afghanistan
Author(s): 
Jessica Donati
Habib Khan Totakhil
Publisher / Source: 
The Wall Street Journal
Tag(s): 
Military Cooperation
Military
Terrorism

Tajikistan: Hunt for Opposition Extended to Relatives

Thursday, December 17, 2015
Authorities in Tajikistan are now targeting family members of the crushed opposition Islamic Renaissance Party (IRPT) in their determination to stamp out all dissent.English
Country(s): 
Tajikistan
Publisher / Source: 
EurasiaNet
Tag(s): 
Conflict
Human Rights
Corruption

How to Break Free of the Drugs-Conflict Nexus in Colombia

Thursday, December 17, 2015
After nearly 80 years of war, Colombia is on the cusp of closing a historic peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia, FARC), the country’s largest guerrilla group. The parties have set a March 23, 2016 deadline to conclude talks. Drug cultivation and trafficking are crucial aspects of the deal, as drug profits have long enabled the country’s violent conflict.English
Country(s): 
Colombia
Author(s): 
Vanda Felbab-Brown
Publisher / Source: 
Brookings Institution
Tag(s): 
Drug Policy
Peace Negotiations

U.S., Tanzanian Planners Map Road to ALFS 2016

Thursday, December 17, 2015
Planners from U.S. Army Africa and the Tanzanian People’s Defense Force met Nov. 30-Dec. 4, 2015, to conduct the main planning event for the African Land Forces Summit 2016. English
Country(s): 
Tanzania
Publisher / Source: 
U.S. Army Africa
Tag(s): 
Military and Police Aid
Security Assistance
Military Cooperation

U.S. Defense Chief to Confer With Iraqi Officials in Campaign Against ISIS

Wednesday, December 16, 2015
Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter arrived here on Wednesday to confer with Iraq’s top leadership on steps to speed the American-led campaign against the Islamic State, including the Pentagon’s offer to support Iraqi forces with Apache helicopters.English
Country(s): 
Iraq
Author(s): 
Michael R. Gordon
Publisher / Source: 
The New York Times
Tag(s): 
Military Cooperation
Terrorism

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