RESEARCH
April 17, 2024
Great Power Competition In The Twenty-First Century
Rather than a new phenomenon, competition, and hence the possibility of conflict, between states – as well as cooperation – has existed as long as states have interacted. While the particularities of great power competition have ebbed and flowed over the past decades, the twenty-first century has seen a return to “normal” as competition between states has translated into open conflict, such as the war in Ukraine, while interdependence due to globalization,…...
READ MORE
January 29, 2024
Identities Destroyed, Histories Revised: The Targeting of Cultural Heritage and Soft Targets by Illicit Actors
On May 27, 1993, a car bomb blasted through the side of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy, killing five and wounding around thirty others, and destroying hundreds of priceless pieces of art in the gallery’s collection. Many contend that the gallery was targeted by the Cosa Nostra, or the Sicilian Mafia, not just in retaliation for crackdowns on the organization, but also due to the gallery’s embodiment of Italian culture and…...
READ MORE
October 30, 2023
Operation Black Lion: Challenges That Lay Ahead of Somalia’s Second Phase of the Offensive
Following a series of clan uprisings against al-Shabaab in the central regions of the country, in August 2022 the federal government of Somalia, working alongside clan militias known collectively as the Macawiisley, launched an offensive against the group. Much of this fighting has been concentrated in the central regions of the country, particularly in the Federal Member States (FMS) of Hirshabelle and Galmudug. Partnered with clan militia and supported by foreign actors,…...
READ MORE
September 14, 2023
Citizens for Leverage: Navigating State Hostage-Taking in a Shifting Geopolitical Landscape
A number of states today are unlawfully detaining foreign nationals within their criminal justice systems for use as foreign policy leverage. Often referred to as “hostage diplomacy,” or state hostage-taking, this form of coercive diplomacy is not new in international politics, but its growing prevalence has raised alarm bells among many states, especially Western nations and their allies. This cruel practice places individual citizens at the center of a complicated calculus where…...
READ MORE
July 06, 2023
TSC Insights: France’s Missed Moments In Mali
Why did France fail in Mali? French President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to withdraw his country’s remaining troops from Mali in August 2022 followed a nearly decade-long military mission to combat jihadist insurgents, particularly in the country’s north. France’s failure reflected an inability to define clear and achievable counterterrorism objectives during Operation Barkhane, misaligned public opinion and relations within France and Mali, and indecision among senior policymakers regarding the political status of Sahelian…...
READ MORE