The use of military forces in the fight against all criminal threats that affect democracies is viable and necessary, but the important thing is to know when and how force can be used as a first option in order not to incur in an illegitimate and illegal act. This article develops the assertion by first recognizing the terms "human rights" and "international humanitarian law" and how the actions of the armed forces can be applied and restrained within the territory of a country. In addition, it recognizes the danger of the type of non-traditional warfare currently occurring against the populations of some countries, and how the mission of police and military forces must be re-evaluated and adapted to the new operating environments. Finally, this article addresses the daunting questions of how to complete these new missions successfully within legal parameters, and how to respond to "enemy" allegations and attacks that may take the form of political and judicial tactics
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The subject of strategic leadership has had a spectacular development in the world of business management, where much literature has been published to explain its scope, forms of operation and its relationship with strategic planning and the decision-making process. All this information, which would ensure the success of a company, has been an extremely useful reference for the field of defense and security, even though everything written is not exactly applicable to the strategic scenario in which we operate. Indeed, the specificities of the political office, of the Armed Forces and of the type of conflict this sector is involved in, make it necessary to redefine the essential aspects of strategic leadership in the field we are concerned with.
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The permanent evolution of the relationship between states and the complexity of intra-state conflicts, challenges to innovate in security and defense policies from the position of international organizations, political will of member countries, in addition to the incorporation of other actors for cooperation and institutionalization of solutions to instability. Under this condition, the role of women is paramount, since from the classic concepts of specific functions and perfect society to their victimization in the latest humanitarian tragedies, their role should be more strongly inscribed in the construction of society through certain elements: their protagonism, product of effective public policies of national, regional and global scope, translated into robust and comprehensive institutions.
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This presentation by the Secretary General for Defense Policy of the Spanish Ministry of Defense was given at the Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies (CHDS) on January 14, 2011.
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This paper examines the threat of cyber espionage to the national security of the United States. Cyber espionage in this paper focuses on the theft of information via the Internet, networks, or individual computers. It is just one facet of the larger cyber threat landscape to be considered by national security professionals. The threat exists to government and commercial interests. This paper uses the Risk Analysis Methodology of the Department of Homeland Security as discussed in the Congressional Research Service Report to Congress (Masse, O'Neill, & Rollins, 2007). This approach to risk considers the factors of threat, vulnerability, and consequences. The formulation is then considered in light of recent incidents such as GhostNet and Google. Finally, the paper proposes possible technical and policy options for leaders to implement to mitigate the risk to national security from cyber espionage.
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This work proposes a conflict-analysis methodology, supported by a solid conceptual framework for formulating security policy and strategy. The differential in the methodology, already successfully applied in several countries, lies in a sophisticated deconstruction of the decision-making environment along seven axes of analysis and its subsequent reconstruction, while simultaneously developing trend projections, to identify the critical dynamics of areas of insecurity. The methodology was developed to be applied collaboratively by specialists in the various fields of expertise connected with security, and is easily adaptable to each country's specific policy and strategy-making practice.
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This article seeks to analyze the frameworks and forms of cooperation between military and police forces in a contemporary world characterized by a growing militarization of the field of public security. The correlation between military and police has not only occurred in peace-building missions under the baton of multilateral organizations such as the UN and NATO, but also in the fight against organized crime, illegal trafficking, insurgency and terrorism that have intermingled, forcing governments to provide coordinated interagency responses, which has led to a blurring of the boundary between plain defense and pure citizen security. This proposal analyzes these two variants of police-military cooperation and coordination. Despite differences in ethos, culture, missions and firepower, the combined actions of both bodies have been essential to reestablish, first, the rule of law and institutional reconstruction and, second, to confront new threats to national security. However, little is known about combined military-police actions in Latin America against terrorism and drug trafficking. This project seeks to delve in detail into the latter aspect.
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