The objective of this paper is to analyze, apply and then contrast the four theoretical pillars of terrorism to the war against narcoterrorism that the Mexican government has developed between 2007 and 2011. The central hypothesis proposes that there is no terrorism in Mexico, because the core elements that support this concept, such as political motivation, premeditation, attack on civilians and generalized terror, are not seen in reality.
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Does US military aid buy recipient state compliance? In this study, we systematically investigate the effects of U.S. military assistance on recipient state behavior toward the United States. We present and test three different models—Arms for Influence, Lonely Superpower, and Reverse Leverage—that might capture the relationship between military aid and recipient state cooperation. Using innovative events data that measure cooperation between the United States and recipient states between 1990 and 2004, we test seven hypotheses using a combination of simultaneous equation, cross-sectional time series, and Heckman selection models. We find, with limited exceptions, support for the Reverse Leverage model: increasing levels of US military aid significantly reduce cooperative foreign policy behavior with the United States. U.S. reaction to recipient state behavior is also counterintuitive; our results show that recipient state cooperation is likely to lead to subsequent reductions in US military assistance, rather than proving the theory of success based on a carrot and stick approach.
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This paper analyzes the evolution of the institution of self-defense and its relationship with the prohibition of the use of force. It studies the path towards the consolidation of the classical concept of self-defense, its elements and its requirements. Subsequently, he presents three positions on the evolution of this legal institution towards an anticipatory scheme, from the position of states and the instruments of international law. Finally, it shows the road ahead for the establishment and consolidation of the notion of preventive self-defense.
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The role of women in combat has been a controversial issue in the U.S. armed forces for decades. Yet, it has been only 30 years since the first women graduated from the US Military Academy, and only since 9/11 have large numbers of them served in combat zones alongside their male counterparts. This article examines the all-too-brief life of one of them, 2LT Emily Perez, who was the first female graduate of West Point to be killed in the line of fire in Iraq and the first member of the "Class of 9/11" to die in combat. A statistical comparison of female representation at the three major U.S. service academies is included, along with a discussion of the emergence of minorities. An African-American with paternal roots in Puerto Rico, this soldier epitomized all that is right about women serving in combat, willing to sacrifice their lives for the interests of their country. 2LT Perez's legacy lives on today among her family, friends, classmates, fellow soldiers, and the unique charitable causes promoting the values she held dear. The following is a tribute to "Emily's Way."
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