Statelet of Survivors: The Making of a Semi-Autonomous Region in Northeast Syria: US Options in the New Phase of the Syrian Conflict
Speaker: Dr. Amy Austin Holmes (George Washington University) Date: 28 August 2024 Speaker Session Summary The political overtures made by Turkish President Erdogan to normalize relations with the Assad regime are reshaping the dynamics of the Syrian civil war. These overtures have more closely aligned Turkish, Russian, and Iranian interests in the region. As evidence, […]
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Climate Change as an Indirect Contributor to Terrorism
Speaker: Madeline Romm (National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START), University of Maryland) Date: 21 August 2024 Speaker Session Summary Climate change is now widely recognized as a significant national security threat multiplier that exacerbates existing state and regional vulnerabilities, increasing the likelihood of conflict. Environmental stress intensifies human, economic, […]
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Irregular Warfare in Strategic Competition and Gray Zones: Prosecuting Authoritarian Subversion and Exploitative Use of Corruption and Criminality to Weaken Democracy
Speakers: David Luna (Luna Global Networks & Convergence Strategies, LLC) Date: 22 August 2024 (Time TBD) Speaker Session Summary US adversaries, including China, Russia, and Iran, aim to diminish Western influence while expanding their own in many countries. They employ various strategies, such as leveraging proxies, transnational organized crime and kleptocrats, which can undermine democracies […]
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Public Support for Self-Defence in Taiwan: The Current State of Research
Speakers: Dr. Charles K.S. Wu, Fang-Yu Chen, and Yao-Yuan Yeh (University of Southern Alabama) Date: 14 August 2024 Speaker Session Summary Chinese President Xi Jinping has indicated that an invasion of Taiwan by 2027 is a distinct possibility, if not imminent. The concern of a Chinese invasion from the international community intensified following the Russian […]
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Russia’s Cyber Power Base: From Cybercriminals to Private Contractors
Speaker: Justin Sherman (Global Cyber Strategies) Date: 7 August 2024 Speaker Session Summary Justin Sherman spoke to the SMA audience about Russia’s cyber power base—not just the state and intelligence actors, but also the private contractors and private sector companies that play an important role in Russia’s cyber power. To begin, Mr. Sherman emphasized that […]
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Perspectives on Integrated Deterrence Among US Allies and Partners in Europe
Author: Dr. Sabrina Polansky (NSI, Inc.) Publication Preview: This work was situated within the broader Strategic Multilayer Assessment Strategic Deterrence Frameworks (SDF) study, which incorporated four lines of effort (LOEs) and was initiated at the request of US Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM). The present LOE4 study was oriented around two guiding questions in a supplementary project […]
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Global Influence Operations
Speakers: Patrick Alley (Author, Terrible Humans) with Guest Host Jack Gaines (One CA Podcast) Date: 31 July 2024 Speaker Session Summary Global Witness employs a strategy of research, exposure, and advocacy to dismantle autocratic and kleptocratic regimes, such as Charles Taylor’s regime in Liberia. Patrick Alley and guest host Jack Gaines discussed how Global Witness […]
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The Next Quantum Superpower? US-China Quantum Competition and the New Global Quantum Scramble Quantum Computing
Speaker: Brandon Williams (LLNL) Date: 30 July 2024 Speaker Session Summary The race to achieve quantum computing has significant implications for the future security landscape. Dr. Williams highlighted the current progress, challenges, and opportunities for growth in the quantum computing field. He also discussed China’s rapid progress in quantum computing and emphasized the steps the […]
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Climate, Peace, and Security in Latin America and the Caribbean – A Perspective from UNDP
Speaker: Adam Forbes (United Nations Development Programme) Date: 18 July 2024 Speaker Session Summary Since 2008, the discourse on the relationship between climate change effects, conflict, and security has significantly evolved. Mr. Forbes elaborated on how this nexus impacts Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change by […]
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Shades of Grim: Scenarios for Ukraine and Global Order
Speakers: Prof. Luis Simón & Ms. Lotje Boswinkel (Centre for Security, Diplomacy and Strategy at the Brussels School of Governance, Vrije Universiteit Brussel) Date: 16 July 2024 Speaker Session Summary The ongoing war in Ukraine remains unresolved, and its outcome is widely debated among politicians, researchers, and military practitioners. In their recent CSDS paper “Shades […]
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