News + Media
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In the NewsJanuary 10, 2022Where things stand between the US and RussiaNECNMonday the US and Russia kicked off security talks, in an effort to defuse soaring tensions over Russia’s military buildup on its border with Ukraine. Sue O’Connell spoke with Carol Saivetz, a senior advisor for the Security Studies Program at MIT. |
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In the NewsJanuary 3, 2022Does Japan aspire to be a superpower?Alec DubroForeign Policy in Focus (FPIF)Quoted: But a huge defense budget alone is not a reliable measure of power, according to Richard Samuels, director of MIT’s Japan Program and of its Center for International Studies. Said Samuels, “Japan is unlikely to be ever be able to deter China on its own (short of nuclear breakout), and is therefore being diligent in hugging the US and cultivating relations with other countries in the region—and, you will have noticed, in Europe as well.” |
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Analysis + OpinionJanuary 2, 2022Letting go of Afghanistan: Presidents Biden and Trump were rightBarry PosenThe National InterestThe carnival of recrimination that erupted since the collapse of the Afghan government serves mainly to cover the tracks of years of US mistakes and set the stage for future misguided interventions. |
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Analysis + OpinionDecember 23, 2021Americas alliances: Achieving common endsBarry PosenKoch InstituteBarry Posen joins Rajan Menon, Kori Schake, and Tom Wright to debate the future of American security commitments in the 21st Century. Alex Ward moderated the Koch Institute event. Posen argues that US alliances must be reexamined because they no longer serve US strategic interests. His remarks (lightly edited) are provided here along with a link to the entire debate on YouTube. |
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In the NewsDecember 17, 2021Putting ideas into actionRichard ByrneTechnology ReviewMelissa Nobles’s research has unearthed numerous cases of police violence against Blacks in the early-to-mid 20th century, and she is using those materials to develop a new archive with the Civil Rights and Restorative Justice project (CRRJ), a program at Northeastern University. She has also written on the interplay of citizenship and racial categories in the census process, and on the politics of formal government apologies for past injustices. |
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In the NewsDecember 16, 2021Kim Jong-un defied father's dying wish with alleged assassination of older brotherJoel DayExpressQuoted: Vipin Narang, a politics professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said: “The reason to do it publicly is to leave a calling card, to show the world that Kim Jong-un is not afraid to use a weapon of mass destruction at a crowded international airport.” |
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Analysis + OpinionDecember 15, 2021US-China first strike showdown: Rising nuclear tensionsNational Committee on US-China RelationsWhy is China rapidly bulking up its nuclear arsenal, and why now? What does this spell for an already fraught US-China security relationship? And how should the United States respond in its efforts to maintain "strategic stability”? Taylor Fravel weighs in at a recent event sponsored by the National Committee on US-China Relations. |
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Analysis + OpinionDecember 10, 2021Can the world change course on climate?SHASS CommunicationsPolitical scientist Nazli Choucri discusses challenges and hopes for global coordination on climate issues — and the role of political science in the process. |
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In the NewsDecember 7, 2021Why Japan needs more forceful defenceThe EconomistQuoted: “Some people focus on the limits,” says Richard Samuels, a security expert at MIT. “But those are pretty flexible limits: an existential threat is what you call an existential threat.” |
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In the NewsNovember 29, 2021Community policing in the Global SouthStephanie M McPherson, IDSS MIT NewsCommunity policing is meant to combat citizen mistrust of the police force. The concept was developed in the mid-20th century to help officers become part of the communities they are responsible for. Fotini Christia is part of a team examining the challenges of implementing community policing across a range of countries. |