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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U.S. Nuclear Scientist Jailed for Trying to Sell Secrets

Thursday, January 29, 2015
A former scientist at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in the US has been sentenced to five years in jail for attempting to pass nuclear bomb-making secrets to Venezuela.English
Country(s): 
Venezuela
Publisher / Source: 
BBC

The Dilemma of an African Soldier

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Two days before the world entered 2015, a handful of former officers from the Gambian Armed Forces attacked the State House in Banjul, The Gambia. Published accounts call Lamin S. Sanneh, a former Gambian military officer, the ringleader of the aborted coup. English
Country(s): 
The Gambia
Author(s): 
Jeffrey Meiser
Publisher / Source: 
War on the Rocks
Tag(s): 
Military and Police Aid

Kazakhstan Mulls Construction of Two Nuclear Plants

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
A new draft law on the use of atomic energy in Kazakhstan was presented on 15 January to the country's lower house of parliament, the Majilis. The draft aims to update an existing law adopted 15 years ago, during which time Kazakhstan has joined a number of international conventions in the nuclear sector, accumulated significant changes to its national legislation and identified gaps in the regulation of safety in the use of nuclear energy.English
Country(s): 
Kazakhstan
Publisher / Source: 
World Nuclear News

Conservatives Take Credit For Delay On Border Bill

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
The bill from Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) was approved last week by the House Committee on Homeland Security, which he chairs. It would require that the department attain full operational control of highly trafficked areas of the U.S.-Mexico border within two years, and the rest of the southwest border within five years. English
Country(s): 
Mexico
Author(s): 
Elise Foley
Publisher / Source: 
Huffington Post
Tag(s): 
Border Control
U.S. Policy

Obama Cuts Off Syrian Rebels’ Cash

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
In the past several months, many of the Syrian rebel groups previously favored by the CIA have had their money and supplies cut off or substantially reduced, even as President Obama touted the strategic importance of American support for the rebels in his State of the Union address.English
Country(s): 
Iraq
Syria
Program(s): 
Foreign Military Financing
Author(s): 
Jamie Dettmer
Tim Mak
Publisher / Source: 
The Daily Beast
Tag(s): 
Terrorism

Chad Rides to the Rescue in Nigeria – But Which Chad Will Turn Up?

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
A convoy of 400 Chadian military vehicles and hundreds of soldiers is en route to Cameroon and north-eastern Nigeria. The target: Boko Haram, which is running rings around Nigeria’s own security forces. But which Chad will turn up? English
Country(s): 
Chad
Author(s): 
Simon Allison
Publisher / Source: 
Daily Maverick
Tag(s): 
Terrorism
Military Cooperation

The Lesson from Yemen

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
What happened in Yemen is not very different from the stories of other Arab nations shaken by the “Arab Spring” revolutions. U.S. military intervention hasn’t checked the disintegration, nor has American retreat. This history is being written by the Arabs, not outsiders. Foreign assistance can help strong, broadly based governments but not fragile, polarized ones.English
Program(s): 
Foreign Military Financing
Author(s): 
David Ignatius
Publisher / Source: 
The Washington Post

Top Venezuelan Bodyguard Defects to U.S.

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
A former bodyguard to Diosdado Cabello, the powerful president of congress and a leader of Venezuela’s military wing, defected to the U.S. to cooperate with officials investigating drug-trafficking, Venezuelan authorities said. English
Country(s): 
Venezuela
Author(s): 
Kejal Vyas
Juan Forero
Publisher / Source: 
The Wall Street Journal
Tag(s): 
Drug Trade

Too Soon to Say 'Mission Accomplished' in Kobani

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Kurdish fighters' expulsion of Islamic State forces from the Syrian town of Kobani helped stop the momentum of the Islamist group but is not a significant turning point in the overall campaign, a senior State Department official said on Tuesday.English
Country(s): 
Iraq
Syria
Author(s): 
Lesley Wroughton
Publisher / Source: 
Reuters
Tag(s): 
Terrorism

Burundian Army Accused of Murdering Rebels

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
The rebels, with hands raised, were lined up on the edge of the cliff before being killed, one witness said. Burundi's army denied the allegation. English
Country(s): 
Burundi
Author(s): 
Maud Jullien
Publisher / Source: 
BBC
Tag(s): 
Military
Human Rights

Trial of Bahrain's Opposition Leader to Start

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
The trial of Bahrain's top opposition leader is set to begin on Wednesday, in a case that has seen tensions flare after the government charged him with multiple offences, including inciting a "change of government by force, spreading hatred among a segment of society and insulting the interior ministry".English
Country(s): 
Bahrain
Author(s): 
Ismaeel Naar
Publisher / Source: 
Al Jazeera
Tag(s): 
Human Rights

3,000 child soldiers to be freed in war-torn South Sudan

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
About 3,000 child soldiers will be gradually released from an armed group in South Sudan, the United Nations children's agency said after 280 children were freed on Tuesday.English
Country(s): 
South Sudan
Author(s): 
Charlton Doki
Rodney Muhumuza
Publisher / Source: 
Stars and Stripes
Wire Service: 
AP
Tag(s): 
United Nations

AFRICOM Commander Wants Full Counterinsurgency Plan for Boko Haram

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
The top commander of U.S. troops in Africa said he would like the U.S. military to do more to fight the terrorist group Boko Haram, but that it’s up to Nigerian and U.S. policy officials to decide how much they’re willing to change the trajectory of that group’s violent stronghold on the region.English
Country(s): 
Nigeria
Author(s): 
Kevin Baron
Molly O'Toole
Publisher / Source: 
Defense One
Tag(s): 
Terrorism

Colombia Angers Venezuela With Call to Free Jailed Opponent

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos is taking a tougher line with Venezuela's socialist government, urging it to free a prominent opposition leader.English
Country(s): 
Colombia
Venezuela
Author(s): 
Jacobo G. Garcia
Publisher / Source: 
ABC
Wire Service: 
Associated Press
Tag(s): 
Human Rights

U.S. Military Aid to Uzbekistan Seen As Triumph of Realpolitik Over Values

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Last week U.S. officials announced that they were donating over 300 Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles to Uzbekistan; it will be the biggest ever transfer of American military equipment to a Central Asian country. It was surprising in many ways: American military interest in Central Asia had appeared to be on the wane, and U.S. military aid to Uzbekistan -- one of the worst human rights violators on the planet -- was at a largely token level, with little apparent justification for Washington to change that. English
Country(s): 
Uzbekistan
Author(s): 
Joshua Kucera
Publisher / Source: 
EurasiaNet

Mexico not Planning to Extradite Drug Kingpin Guzman: Official

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Mexico is not planning to extradite to the United States captured drug lord Joaquin Guzman because he will first have to serve out jail time at home, an official at the federal attorney general's office said on Tuesday. English
Author(s): 
Dave Graham
Tomas Sarmiento
Publisher / Source: 
Reuters
Tag(s): 
Drug Trade
Extraditions

UN Envoy Slams Kazakhstan’s Curbs on Free Assembly

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
A UN rapporteur has issued some damning findings on civil liberties in Kazakhstan, following a visit to monitor how Astana is upholding its commitments to freedom of assembly. English
Country(s): 
Kazakhstan
Author(s): 
Joanna Lillis
Publisher / Source: 
EurasiaNet
Tag(s): 
Human Rights
Human Rights

FARC Says Army Attacks Put Colombia Peace at Risk

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
The FARC guerrilla group warned Tuesday that army attacks have resulted in 20 deaths since a unilateral rebel ceasefire went into effect last month, putting peace talks in jeopardy.English
Country(s): 
Colombia
Publisher / Source: 
The Peninsula
Wire Service: 
Associated Press
Tag(s): 
Peace Negotiations
Conflict

Russia Says Army Should Be Strengthened In 'Outpost' Tajikistan

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
senior Russian military official says Moscow wants to strengthen the Tajik army as "an outpost of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) in Central Asia."English
Publisher / Source: 
Radio Free Europe/ Radio Liberty

The Lesson From Yemen

Wednesday, January 28, 2015
What went wrong for the U.S.-backed government in Yemen, and what are the consequences for counterterrorism operations there against al-Qaeda’s most dangerous affiliate? Both questions have disturbing answers.English
Country(s): 
Yemen
Author(s): 
David Ignatius
Publisher / Source: 
The Washington Post
Tag(s): 
Counterterrorism
Military Cooperation

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