tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481Mon, 15 Jun 2009 11:10:05 +0000http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/noreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)Blogger73125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-7049123856302947Mon, 15 Jun 2009 10:43:00 +00002009-06-15T10:50:24.355ZMay 2009 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in EnglishIntroduction President Barack Obama made a major speech on US policy towards Islam and the Middle East on the occasion of his visit to the region at the end of May. The speech was given at the University of Cairo and was preceded by firm indications that it was intended to ease the tensions that had developed between the United http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2009/06/obama-cairo-speech-context-and.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-126474116166909726Fri, 15 May 2009 10:03:00 +00002009-06-15T11:10:05.866ZApril 2007 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishIntroductionOxford Research Group’s analysis of the risk of war with Iran has included a detailed paper on the possible consequences of a war (Iran: Consequences of a War, February 2006) and two previous briefings in this series (Drift to War, October 2007, and Israel and Iran – A Risk of Crisis, June 2008). The broad http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2009/05/israel-iran-and-nuclear-issue.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-5490988795765107112Fri, 17 Apr 2009 10:32:00 +00002009-05-15T10:30:53.731ZMarch 2009 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishIntroductionThe UK National Security Strategy (NSS) was published in March last year, and an initial assessment formed the basis for the ORG International Security Briefing for that month (Britain’s Security – A New Approach?). The Strategy was presented as an entirely new development in Britain’s approach to http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2009/04/britains-national-security-strategy-one.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-6060475254982684031Wed, 25 Mar 2009 17:15:00 +00002009-04-17T10:32:03.670ZFebruary 2009 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishIntroductionLast September’s briefing in this series (The Financial Crisis and Sustainable Security) focused on the banking crisis which arose out of the sub-prime problems in the United States but grew to affect the banking sector across much of the world. At that time, the main concerns in western countries were http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2009/03/from-recession-to-slump-crisis-or.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-6876009854763699291Wed, 11 Feb 2009 11:57:00 +00002009-02-25T10:27:03.250ZJanuary 2009 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishIntroductionThree weeks after the start of the attacks on Gaza, the Israeli government announced a unilateral ceasefire. Although a number of governments had worked to achieve a negotiated end to the conflict, this proved impossible. The Egyptians, in particular, were hugely conscious of the radicalising impact of http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2009/02/gaza-aftermath.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-2044726171897505925Tue, 13 Jan 2009 14:44:00 +00002009-01-20T12:10:57.281ZDacember 2008 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishIntroductionThe monthly ORG International Security Briefings normally relate precisely to the months in question, but this briefing is concerned with the sudden outbreak of fighting in the Gaza Strip which commenced with Israeli air strikes on Saturday 27 December and escalated with a major ground assault starting inhttp://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2009/01/gaza-conflict.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-3153536703678901628Tue, 16 Dec 2008 11:45:00 +00002008-12-16T12:01:15.378ZNovember 2008 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishIntroductionIn a directive issued by the US Deputy Defense Secretary, Gordon England, at the end of November, the Pentagon has acknowledged that combating terrorism and guerrilla warfare is now to be given equal status in terms of military planning and doctrine as potential conflicts against conventional forces of http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2008/12/irregular-warfare-and-revolts-from.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-2349165450931232845Wed, 12 Nov 2008 21:16:00 +00002008-11-12T21:58:17.333ZOctober 2008ORG did not publish a monthly briefing for October 2008. Instead see The Tipping Point? ORG International Security Report 2008, which was published in its place.http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2008/11/no-briefing-this-month.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-839039973555861604Wed, 08 Oct 2008 11:20:00 +00002008-11-12T22:19:37.192ZSeptember 2008 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishIntroductionOxford Research Group’s International Security Monthly Briefings focus primarily on issues such as the conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, the evolution of western counter-terrorism policies and the development of the al-Qaida movement. On occasions they also cover matters such as energy http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2008/10/financial-crisis-and-sustainable.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-6728839058232015835Fri, 05 Sep 2008 14:39:00 +00002008-10-08T11:19:32.606ZAugust 2008 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or Spanish In terms of international conflicts, August 2008 was dominated by a sudden outbreak of violence in Georgia and a further deterioration in security in Afghanistan and western Pakistan. While the situation in Iraq appeared to be showing some further signs of stabilisation, there were issues emerging over the status of http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2008/09/multiple-conflicts-and-old-thinking.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-1697837013616108192Mon, 11 Aug 2008 11:09:00 +00002008-08-21T09:08:03.655ZJuly 2008 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishIraqDuring the course of July, the violence in Iraq continued to ease, with a marked drop in US military casualties and also a decrease in civilian deaths. Even so, there were numerous violent incidents including high-casualty bomb attacks in Baghdad and Kirkuk, with most of these caused by Sunni militia groups, http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2008/08/shift-in-focus.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-3128366273697341684Thu, 17 Jul 2008 13:56:00 +00002008-08-21T09:06:59.747ZJune 2008 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishIntroductionSince the start of the Iraq War five years ago, one focus of Oxford Research Group’s work has been the risk of that war extending to Iran. As one response to this, ORG published an analysis of the possible consequences of a war two years ago and has also assessed the level of risk on a number of occasions in http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2008/07/israel-and-iran-risk-of-crisis.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-5112754505927621207Tue, 10 Jun 2008 11:33:00 +00002008-06-27T13:55:58.924ZMay 2008 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishIn its analysis of trends in global security, Oxford Research Group (ORG) has argued that there are four main factors that are likely to determine patterns of insecurity in the coming decades. These are:The widening socio-economic divide, leading to the marginalisation of the majority of the world’s people, even in the http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2008/06/food-poverty-and-security.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-3878620323400171946Wed, 14 May 2008 14:31:00 +00002008-05-19T10:25:09.295ZApril 2008 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishThe March briefing in this series (Britain’s Security – A New Approach?) was concerned with a preliminary analysis of the UK National Security Strategy that was published earlier in the year. This followed a briefing in February that questioned whether the United States might be facing a “Suez moment”. As Britain had http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2008/05/different-surge.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-8893814208495372896Wed, 16 Apr 2008 14:02:00 +00002008-04-21T10:50:28.798ZMarch 2008 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishThe UK National Security Strategy (NSS), published in March, has been presented as an entirely new development in Britain’s approach to international security. It is designed to build on a revised version of the earlier Strategic Defence Review, along with the development of the cross-government counter-terrorism http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2008/04/britains-security-new-approach.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-5271901105872380012Thu, 13 Mar 2008 12:18:00 +00002008-03-20T12:56:19.071ZFerbuary 2008 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishIn the autumn of 1956, Britain embarked on a military operation to take control of the Suez Canal Zone. Earlier in the year, the Egyptians had nationalised the canal, mainly to bring in revenues to aid the development of the country, especially the building of the Aswan High Dam, but also as a sign of nationhood http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2008/03/suez-moment.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-3080843930789487359Tue, 19 Feb 2008 14:57:00 +00002008-03-14T10:03:18.992ZJanuary 2008 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishBy the end of January, security problems in Afghanistan and Pakistan were leading to a potential crisis for NATO three months ahead of a major meeting of the alliance. At the same time, there were indications of a deterioration in the security situation in Iraq sufficient to suggest that this year’s planned withdrawalhttp://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2008/02/nato-sense-of-crisis.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-7861419115704654723Mon, 14 Jan 2008 14:59:00 +00002008-01-16T23:27:23.949ZDecember 2007 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or Spanish In four countries, from Iraq to Iran and on to Afghanistan and Pakistan, there were major developments in December 2007, all with consequences for the future of George Bush’s war on terror. All, furthermore, were relevant to the developing contest in the United States over the nominations for the 2008 Presidential http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2008/01/change-from-iraq-to-pakistan.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-2952075081635075042Tue, 04 Dec 2007 12:40:00 +00002008-01-16T23:26:25.990ZNovember 2007 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or Spanish Cold War OriginsOxford Research Group (ORG) was founded twenty-five years ago at the height of one of the most dangerous phases of the Cold War. Ronald Reagan had been elected two years earlier and had dubbed the Warsaw Pact the “evil empire”, yet the Soviet Union was in the midst of a prolonged leadership crisis. http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2007/12/from-evil-empire-to-axis-of-evil.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-1809413766192358643Wed, 07 Nov 2007 12:19:00 +00002007-11-09T14:13:47.476ZOctober 2007 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishThere was a decrease in US military casualties in Iraq during October. A decline in civilian casualties was also claimed by the US military authorities but other agencies, including Iraqi government sources, were less positive. These other reports were more plausible given the huge increase in the use of air power by http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2007/11/drift-to-war.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-3994134019810358626Wed, 17 Oct 2007 14:54:00 +00002007-11-07T10:56:44.403ZSeptember 2007 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishSeptember marked the beginning of the seventh year of the “war on terror” that followed the suicide attacks of 11 September 2001. Contrary to expectations in Washington at that time, there is now every sign that the war will extend at least into a second decade and perhaps beyond. Because of this it is relevant to http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2007/10/into-year-seven.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-5442119543193105800Mon, 17 Sep 2007 12:03:00 +00002007-10-17T15:10:37.368ZAugust 2007 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishIn late 2006 the Baker-Hamilton Report recommended a change of policy for the Bush Administration over Iraq. The two main proposals were that the United States should work towards a large-scale military withdrawal from the country and that it should do so in parallel with an engagement with regional powers to ensure http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2007/09/iraq-after-surge.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-2969125295076629846Mon, 06 Aug 2007 13:05:00 +00002007-10-17T15:09:18.218ZJuly 2007 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishThe first month of the Gordon Brown administration in Britain was marked by a number of decisions that gave mixed signals on defence and security policy. As last month’s briefing (Change in Pakistan and Britain) indicated, Mr Brown faced an immediate crisis in the form of a double attempted car bombing in Central London http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2007/08/mixed-messages-from-brown-government.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-599617350703679678Tue, 10 Jul 2007 14:22:00 +00002007-07-16T11:51:00.513ZJune 2007 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishThe last briefing put forward the argument that both the United States and the al-Qaida movement have motivations that transcend short-term issues in the war on terror and ensure that the current confrontation could last for some decades (A Thirty Year War, May 2007). From the US perspective, it is necessary to maintain http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2007/07/change-in-pakistan-and-britain.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1467520590206323481.post-2840905478038282221Fri, 08 Jun 2007 11:30:00 +00002007-06-08T11:33:22.725ZMay 2007 - Paul Rogers Download this briefing as a PDF in English or SpanishOn 1 May 2003, President Bush made his speech on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, declaring that combat operations in Iraq were nearing an end. He did not use the phrase “mission accomplished”, although the speech was delivered with that banner as a backdrop and it became known by that name. What was http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/monthly_briefings/2007/06/thirty-year-war.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Oxford Research Group)