Apr 2020 | Publications

Harith Hasan and Kheder Khaddour write that over the last two decades, the border area between the Bukamal in Syria and Qa’im in Iraq has become highly militarized and volatile. Indeed, it has developed into the focal point of a regional geopolitical rivalry populated by Iranian-backed militias and frequent US and Israeli airstrikes and drone attacks targeting them. In this publication, Hasan and Khaddour explore how this has come to pass and why this heavily securitized part of the border will likely remain a magnet for conflict for years to come.

Apr 2020 | Publications

Oliver Thränert writes that since its entry into force on 5 March 1970, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) has established an international norm against the proliferation of nuclear weapons and served as the basis for a comprehensive non-proliferation regime. However, the NPT has been mired in a crisis of credibility for years and there is little prospect for a successful review conference for the treaty in 2020, something which takes place every five years. In this analysis, Thränert looks back on the NPT’s history, its achievements, the role of Switzerland and more.

Apr 2020 | Publications

Kevin Kohler and Benjamin Scharte write that whether by predicting the global spread of the novel coronavirus originating from China or detecting wildfires in California, the use of artificial intelligence in civil protection promises to improve the prevention of, response to, and recovery from disasters. However, getting to this point requires the addressing of key challenges related to data, public sector access to AI talent, high-risk applications and more.

Apr 2020 | Publications

In this report, Marie Baezner looks at the structure, organization, development, and challenges of reserve forces in military cybersecurity in Estonia, Finland, France, Israel, Switzerland and the US. Baezner finds that while all of these countries are developing cyber units based on their reserve forces, this remains a work in progress. Furthermore, the contextually dependent way these forces are used means it is difficult for countries to replicate each other’s reserve models. Nevertheless, Baezner contends that cyber reserves are a way for armed forces to close the workforce gap for in cybersecurity.

Apr 2020 | Publications

Thomas Mahnken writes that in recent years, the US national security community has begun to focus on the need to compete with China and Russia. But in what way should the US move to embrace the return of great power competition? In this report, Mahnken reviews the US’ current national tools to compete and, if necessary, wage war by looking back on decades of US-Soviet rivalry to see if this past experience can still shed light on conditions today.