Arms and Security Initiative: Latest Articles

Losing the Moral High Ground

Erin Drankoski — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 07:47:00 -0400

On the eighth anniversary of the launch of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, the spotlight is on the Obama administration's evolving war strategy in a nation long known as the "graveyard of empires."

The current discourse on what is now dubbed "Obama's War" focuses on the number and composition of troops, as well as the overarching strategy (counter-insurgency, rapid withdrawal, a mix of military and reconstruction operations).

Disarmament: The Long Road of Nuclear Hurdles, Hopes and Hard Work

Erin Drankoski — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:02:00 -0400

On the face of it, nuclear disarmament seems pretty straightforward--we have a bunch of things that we don't need any more, and let's get rid of them.

But, we can't just donate our old nuclear weapons to the Salvation Army for a tax write-off, or hand them down to our little sister like an old sweater set.

Anti-Missile Missiles and the Politics of Fear

Erin Drankoski — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 13:36:00 -0400

President Obama's sensible decision to pull the plug on the Bush administration's plan put missile defense components in Poland and the Czech Republic has-predictably-drawn howls of protest from Republican critics who argue that it will leave the U.S. and its European allies exposed to an Iranian missile attack. While they're at it, they note that the decision somehow involves "abandoning" our Polish and Czech allies, as if the deployment of a missile defense program were the only way to cement relations with two

Aiding and Abetting War Crimes

Erin Drankoski — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 05:18:00 -0400

"You feel like a child playing around with a magnifying glass, burning up ants." That is how one Israeli soldier described Operation Cast Lead, the Israeli Defense Force's (IDF) invasion of the Gaza Strip, which began in December 2008.

His is one of 54 testimonies collected by the Israeli organization Breaking the Silence in a 110-page report that paints a disturbing picture of urban warfare in one of the world's most densely populated areas, where more than 1.5 million people occupy a narrow strip of land between Israel and the sea.

Afghanistan: War Trumps Elections

Erin Drankoski — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 10:17:00 -0400

The official results of Afghanistan's presidential elections won't be known for weeks. The ballots cast around the country need to be brought to Kabul--some by donkey and helicopter--and counted. Nevertheless, U.S. officials have rushed to celebrate the process, and NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen heralded the elections as "a testimony to the determination of the Afghan people to build democracy." This, despite more than 75 reported incidents of violence throughout the