Star Wars Redux: Space, Security & Technology
Editors’ Note:
As the situation in Iraq dominates the public debate in the United States and around the world, the Journal’s insightful treatment of international affairs is vindicated. From ethics in military intervention to nation-building, the Journal has brought you perspectives on international affairs that were ahead of their time.
Keeping with out tradition of covering tomorrow’s central issues today, this issue addresses a growing challenge to U.S. and international security. As space becomes increasingly important to U.S. military power and new technologies allow for new uses of space, how will the United States and other major power deal with the promise, and threat, that deploying weapons in space may produce?
We hope this issue will bring you the fresh ideas and insights that you need to better understand the world of international affairs.
– Emile El-Hokayem & Aaron Wessells
Forum
- Star Wars Redux Introduction by the Editors | Buy
Space has perhaps never been as important to a state’s national interest and as integral to its foreign policy as it is today. The major powers’ increased reliance on space technology makes the security of national commercial and military space assets indispensable. Yet, the future of space policy and the role of the military in space is uncertain. Space has already been militarized, with satellites used for reconnaissance, warning, and military communications. Should it be weaponized, that is, populated with space-based munitions and lasers, ABM systems, and anti-satellite technologies?
- Space Assurance or Space Weapons? by Michael Krepon | Read
- Czars and Company Men: The Wrong Way to Run Space Acquisition by Eugene Gholz | Read
- Space-Based Interceptors: Still Not a Good Idea by Theresa Hitchens and Victoria Samson | Read
Business & Finance
- The Threat of Agroterrorism: Economics of Bioterrorism by Mark G. Polyak | Read
Bioterrorism could be more devastating than many realize.
Conflict & Security
- Domestic Disputes: Pakistani Internal Security by C. Christine Fair and Peter Chalk | Read
Pakistan needs to adapt its internal security apparatus to new threats.
- Rhetoric vs. Reality: ASEAN’s Clouded Future by Nicholas Khoo | Read
ASEAN’s grandiose dreams reamin distant realities.
Culture & Society
- Beyond the Burqa: The Future of Afghan Women’s Rights by Isobel Coleman | Read
Afghan women still face daunting challenges.
Law & Ethics
- Cloning and Culture: Legislation at Home and Abroad by David A. Prentice | Read
There is a striking diversity of perspectives on human cloning worldwide.
Politics & Diplomacy
- EU Expansion and Democracy: A Lost Opportunity by Heather Grabbe | Read
EU accession has done little to promote democracy in Central and Easter Europe.
- Reinvesting in the Art of NATO: The President’s Best Strategic Option by David Abshire and S. Wesley Cross | Read
NATO’s value as a diplomatic tool is being overlooked.
- A Global Perspective Interview with Christiane Amanpour | Read
The United States should reassess its approach to the world and its problems.
Science & Technology
- Assessing China’s Technology Potential by Richard P. Suttmeier | Read
Examining technology as a driver of development in China.
Books
- Anti-Americanism in Latin America by Michael Shifter | Read
Review of Alan L. McPherson’s Yankee No! Anti-Americanism in U.S.-Latin American Relations.
- The Art of Diplomacy by Melissa Reed | Read
Review of Howard B. Schaffer’s Ellsworth Bunker: Global Troubleshooter, Vietnam Hawk.
View from the Ground
- The True Agents of Change in Africa: Communities and Youth by Eric Pohlman | Read
International aid in East Africa: Getting it right.
A Look Back
- Lessons from the Rwandan Genocide by David Scheffer | Read
The Rwandan genocide highlights the need for flexible response mechanisms.