As Covid-19 reshapes the world and Britain begins its Integrated Defence and Security Review, what does the word “security” really mean in 2020 Read more
Abigail Watson is joined by Camilla Molyneux and Mark Goodwin-Hudson to discuss the Overseas Operations Bill. Read more
Megan Karlshoej-Pedersen is joined by Ewan Lawson, an ORG Fellow, and Save the Children's Amanda Brydon to discuss the importance of incorporating a strong focus on the protection of civilians into UK policy. Read more
Ahead of the Integrated Review, this final briefing in a series looks at how the UK should measure the success of military interventions. Read more
Our work focuses on areas where the military is responding to conflict and instability. Breaking out of a cycle of violence requires military interventions that contribute to the conditions needed for lasting peace settlements. Otherwise, as we see too often, warfare exists to serve itself, with catastrophic consequences. We work closely with partners in military, government, parliamentary and expert communities to help build effective, accountable and sustainable approaches to defence and security.
This means analysing and understanding the contemporary defence environment. We have seen long wars in Iraq and Afghanistan decrease the risk appetite for military intervention among politicians, parliaments, and publics. When combined with major developments in military technology and an increasing focus on counter-terrorism, this creates an incentive for the British government to take a remote approach to warfare. This involves supporting local groups – who are now doing the bulk of the frontline fighting against terrorist groups – in an attempt to counter threats without putting large numbers of British boots on the ground. The effectiveness of this approach has been under-explored, and efforts to study it are complicated by a lack of government transparency.
In order to fill this gap, we commission and conduct research on the opportunities, risks and costs of remote warfare. By engaging with a broad range of experts in troop-contributing countries as well as on the ground in conflict zones we make sure that our research and policy recommendations are robust, fair, and applicable to contemporary priorities and challenges. This means tailoring our work for the policy-makers, military decision-makers, and parliamentarians that have the power and the responsibility to improve defence and security policy.
Drawing upon extensive research, this piece calls for a healthier level of debate on the issue of UK Special Forces oversight. Read more
Hijab Shah of CSIS and Dorith Kool from HCSS join the Remote Warfare Programme team to discuss partner legitimacy, security force assistance and security sector reform. Read more
This report examines the serious challenges remote warfare poses to the protection of civilians in modern conflict and outlines how these issues can be resolved. Read more
Ali Altiok and Saferworld's Jordan Street join the podcast to discuss the emergence of the four pillar of the United Nations, counter-terrorism. Read more
The best way to address near-peer threats is often through national strategies which unite military and non-military activity with an overall political aim, grounded in British values and not contradictory of the efforts of allies. Read more
This article makes the case for Sustainable Security, incorporating a broader range of risk drivers and responses than the national security approach. Embracing this would be an opportunity for the UK to strategise a more secure society and world after Covid-19. Read more
In this episode Christopher Kinsey and Helene Olsen from Kings College London join the podcast to discuss private military and security contractors and their role in remote warfare. Read more
Jolle Demmers and Lauren Gould from Utrecht University discuss the use of remote warfare by democratic states, the reasons why they have chosen to use this type of military engagement and the problems yielded by this practice. Read more
The UK needs to better conceptualise its understanding of national security. By acknowledging and accounting for all the drivers of conflict and insecurity the UK can ensure that all its engagements work towards a more peaceful and prosperous world. Read more
Emily Knowles and Jahara Matisek join Abigail Watson to discuss security force assistance and it can be used as a peacebuilding tool. Read more
Abigail Watson is joined by Mary Harper, the BBC's Africa Editor, to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on Somalia and how the pandemic may affect the prospects for peace in the country. Read more
CIVIC's Daniel Mahanty and Beatrice Godefoy of join the podcast to discuss the protection of civilians in partnered operations. Read more
This explainer will focus specifically on the UK’s special forces examining what we do know about them, what they do, their history, what they cost, and the UK’s policies towards them.. Read more
This article discusses what direction Labour's security polices could take under Keir Starmer's leadership. Read more
Liam Walpole and Megan Karlshoej-Pedersen discuss the latest defence and security policy developments in UK politics. Read more
This article will examine how COVID-19 contributes to domestic and international drivers of instability. It will argue that the best way to address these challenges is through improved dialogue at the international and local level. Read more
Liam Walpole is joined by two experts from the Danish Institute for International Studies to examine the importance of effective protection of civilians, looking at case studies from the Sahel and West Africa. Read more
Ahead of the upcoming Integrated Review, this briefing addresses how the Review can take into account the key challenges remote warfare could present in the future. Read more
This Explainer will explore what the Integrated Review is, why it is being done and what it might contain. Read more