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This Week at ISN

21 25 April 2014

Our Weekly Editorial Roundup

JUMP TO Editorial Plan | Security Watch | Blog | Video

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To What Extent is Climate Change Now a Threat to International Security?
Both senior policymakers and general publics
have concluded that climate change now poses a threat to international security. But just how real is this perceived threat? And does it follow that bodies such as the UN Security Council should focus on the problem, or are there other agencies and organizations that are better suited for the task? The United States military, for example, is already using data-specific satellites to determine how climate change might impact its future operations, especially in those regions that are most vulnerable to large-scale environmental disruptions. More

Trends and Triggers:Climate Change and Interstate Conflict

21 April 2014

Cullen Hendrix and others have no doubts water scarcity caused by climate change can lead to outbreaks of interstate violence. However, their research also suggests that if such shortages are shared ones, a lack of rain may actually have conflict-inhibiting effects. More

Six Reasons Why the UN Security Council Should Not Discuss Climate Change
22 April 2014

Its irrational to disconnect climate change from the work of the UN Security Council, right? Wrong, says Dhanasree Jayaram. She believes that there are six reasons why tackling this problem should remain the preserve of other transnational entities and organizations. More

More than Weather

23 April 2014

While the debate continues over

whether climate change is a genuine source of instability and conflict, the US
military is taking no chances. Today, Andrew Pfluger and William Wright outline
how the Pentagon is using environmental monitoring satellites to plan and shape
its military operations. More

Bay of Bengal: a Hotspot for Climate Insecurity

24 April 2014

We can now add climate change to the dangerous mix of security threats facing the Bay of Bengal region, argues Andrew Holland. But the dangers arent just confined to the areas littoral zone. Chinas dominance of the Himalayas and Tibetan plateau also complicates the regions access to fresh water. More

Chinese Drought, Wheat, and the Egyptian Uprising

25 April 2014

Did climate change play an indirect role in the political upheavals that rocked Egypt in 2011? Absolutely, says Troy Sternberg. As he sees it, a once-in-a-century drought in China dramatically reduced global wheat supplies and sent prices skyrocketing in the worlds largest wheat importer. More

// Security Watch
The Cost of the Security Sector: How the Money Question can Lead to Questions about Purpose
21 April 2014

Nicholas Borroz believes the Sino-Burmese pipelines project could yield significant economic and political benefits for Beijing and Naypyidaw. Yet, there are problems that both countries need to keep in mind, including that the pipelines will pass through some of Burma's more restive provinces. More

Jihadists in Syria: Indonesian Extremists Giving Support?

22 April 2014

International media coverage of the Middle East continues to underplay two worrying trends, writes Patrick Balbierz. Muslims have become deeply polarized and rifts between religious and secular political parties are threatening the region at a crucial point in its transformation. More

Ethnic Somalis Under Pressure in Kenyan Capital

23 April 2014

Kenya claims that its crackdown on its Somali community is in response to a series of explosions that have rocked Nairobi. IRIN reports, however, that local community leaders have a different explanation for whats happening. They see it as yet another heavy-handed measure that unfairly targets ethnic Somalis. More

NATO on Edge
24 April 2014

How can NATO transform itself into a global security alliance and yet respond to the local challenges posed by a resurgent Russia? In anticipation of the Alliance Summit scheduled for next September, Richard Weitz outlines the steps Brussels needs to take if it wants to be dual capable. More

The Philippines' South China Sea Memorial: Sailing into the Wind
25 April 2014

The Philippines has put its disputed territorial claims before an arbitration tribunal in The Hague. According to Gregory Polin, Manilas arguments against Chinas nine-dash line and rival claims are entirely justified. Its now up to the tribunal to weigh in and convince Beijing of these facts. More

// Blog
Dancing with the Word Genocide
21 April 2014

While there have been numerous instances of extreme political violence over the past 20 years, none of them can compare with the Rwandan genocide. Today, Christoph Vogel uses this anniversary to ponder what constitutes genocide and how the international community might respond to it today. More

Is Transnistria the Next Crimea

22 April 2014

This paper provides an overview of the internal and external threats to the Association Agreement (AA) between the EU and Moldova to be signed in June 2014. The author illustrates how political and economic pressures, as well as Russian efforts to destabilize Moldova and the region of Transnistria are posing a viable threat to Moldova's association process. In concluding, she also provides recommendations for strengthening EU-Moldovan cooperation and ties. More

Obama Administration Decision Weakens New START Implementation

23 April 2014

The Obama administration has decided not to destroy 50 non-operational ICBM silos. Thats not good, argues Hans Kristensen. It reneges on the Pentagons original plan, it threatens the implementation of the New START Treaty, and it damages the USs credibility as an advocate of nuclear arms reductions. More

Kosovo: Time for a Restart between Pristina and the North?

24 April 2014

Kosovo and Serbia may be getting along better but Pristinas ties with its Serbian-dominated north remain mired in mistrust and suspicion. The CSS Matthias Bieri is nevertheless guardedly optimistic. Things could improve quickly if Kosovos upcoming parliamentary elections lead to a new government. More

A New Plan to Halt the Downward Spiral of the SA Defence Force

25 April 2014

Helmoed Heitman agrees with South Africas most recent defense review the countrys security sector needs to be repaired quickly. Thats because years of under-spending and the mismatching of missions and funding have taken a heavy toll on Pretorias defense capabilities. More

// Video
Tropic
of Chaos: Climate Change and the New Geography of Violence
In this Video, Christian Parenti explores how climate change is interacting with the after effects of economic neoliberalism and Cold War militarism to aggravate violence in the Global South. More

Asia's
Cauldron: The South China Sea and the End of a Stable Pacific
In this video, noted strategist and security analyst Robert Kaplan discusses his book "Asia's Cauldron: The South China Sea and the End of a Stable Pacific," which provides 'a vivid snapshot' of the conflicts brewing in the South China Sea region, the stakeholders involved, and the US's evolving role in the area. More

How Is Climate Change Affecting Migration?

In this
video, Veena Ravichandran, who is a senior research advisor to the Climate and
Development Knowledge Network (CDKN), explores the connections between climate
change and migration. In doing so, she also insists that researchers need to
focus more on the psycho-social and gender-based dimensions of urbanization. More

Coming Up
Next week's theme: The Environment and Security

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