Recent Articles

A collage of images from articles of the past week.

Democracy, Rule of Law, Justice: Lessons from 2021 for the Year Ahead?

A curated selection of Just Security articles offers insights for 2022 on issues of racial justice, democracy and the rule of law, diplomacy, foreign policy, and more.

Dec. 24, 2021 Just Security

Amid Civilian Harm Revelations, Defense Bill Takes Measured Steps on Oversight and Accountability

Recent months have seen a flood of revelations concerning civilian harm resulting from U.S. military operations. The last U.S. airstrike of the war in Afghanistan, which killed…

Dec. 23, 2021 John Ramming Chappell and Ari Tolany

Handcuffs lying on flat pile of US currency, with Benjamin Franklin's face in focus in the center of one handcuff loop.

Real Anti-Corruption Reform Requires a Role for Civil Society

A public beneficial ownership registry, accessible to civil society and journalists, is integral to anti-corruption efforts.

Dec. 23, 2021 Gabe Lezra and Jenna Grande

Early Edition: December 23, 2021

Signup to receive the Early Edition in your inbox here. A curated weekday guide to major national security news and developments over the past 24 hours. Here’s today’s news.…

Dec. 23, 2021 Florence Powell

Holiday Giving: Please Support Just Security with a Tax-Deductible Donation

We could very much use your support this end-of-year holiday season. Here's how to make a gift of any size.

Dec. 22, 2021 Tess Bridgeman and Ryan Goodman

With the American flag draped behind them and dark brown wooden elevated table, U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS) (C), chair of the select committee investigating the January 6 attack on the Capitol, speaks as (L-R) Reps. Pete Aguilar (D-CA), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Liz Cheney (R-WY), Adam Kinzinger (R-IL), Jamie Raskin (D-MD) and Elaine Luria (D-VA) listen during a committee business meeting at Cannon House Office Building on Capitol Hill October 19, 2021 in Washington, DC. The committee held the meeting and vote to hold former Trump adviser Stephen Bannon in criminal contempt for refusing to cooperate with the committee’s subpoena.

The Path to Real Accountability: The Timetable and Track Record of the Jan. 6 Select Committee

A snapshot of what the Committee has accomplished, at a quick pace, to establish the record, and what to expect next.

Dec. 22, 2021 Conor Shaw

(L-R) Germany's Social Democratic SPD outgoing party co-leader Norbert Walter-Borjans, designated German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, parliamentary group leader of Germany's social democratic SPD party Rolf Muetzenich, Germany's Social Democratic SPD party co-leader Saskia Esken, co-leader of Germany's The Greens (Die Gruenen) party and designated Minister for Economy and Climate Robert Habeck, Germany's Free Democratic Party (FDP) leader and designated Finance Minister Christian Lindner, parliamentary group co-leader of Germany's The Greens (Die Gruenen) party Katrin Goering-Eckardt (hidden), Federal Party Secretary of the Free Democratic Party (FDP) and designated Transport Minister Volker Wissing, co-leader of Germany's The Greens (Die Gruenen) party and designated Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and parliamentary group co-leader of Germany's The Greens (Die Gruenen) party Anton Hofreiter pose on stage after a signing ceremony in Berlin on December 7, 2021, where leading members of Germany's social democratic SPD party, the Greens and the free democratic FDP party sealed their coalition deal to form a new government. Olaf Scholz led his Social Democrats to victory against Angela Merkel's conservative CDU-CSU bloc in an landmark election in September 2021, as the veteran chancellor prepared to leave politics after four consecutive terms in office. (Photo by ODD ANDERSEN/AFP via Getty Images)

How Germany’s New Government Might Pursue Its “Values-Based” Foreign Policy in Europe

It aims to show that sticking to principles on the one hand and seeking constructive dialogue on the other are not mutually exclusive.

Dec. 22, 2021 Dominik Tolksdorf

Early Edition: December 22, 2021

Signup to receive the Early Edition in your inbox here. A curated weekday guide to major national security news and developments over the past 24 hours. Here’s today’s news.…

Dec. 22, 2021 Florence Powell

Members of the DC National Guard are deployed outside of the US Capitol in Washington DC on January 6, 2021. The troops are in formation with the words "DC National Guard" written clearly on the back of their bullet proof vests. It's nighttime.

Crisis of Command: The Pentagon, The President, and January 6

Pentagon restrained National Guard on Jan. 6 out of concern Trump would invoke Insurrection Act.

Dec. 21, 2021 Ryan Goodman and Justin Hendrix

Aerial view of an improvised camp of asylum seekers and refugees at El Chaparral border crossing in Tijuana, Baja California state, Mexico, on December 6, 2021. - The United States reimplemented the Migrant Protection Protocol (MPP) program, also known as Remain in Mexico, on December 6 after a court order. (Photo by GUILLERMO ARIAS/AFP via Getty Images)

The Fifth Circuit’s Interventionist Administrative Law and the Misguided Reinstatement of Remain in Mexico

Experts Cristina Rodríguez and Adam Cox identify flaws in the decision ordering reinstatement of the "Migrant Protection Protocols."

Dec. 21, 2021 Cristina Rodríguez and Adam Cox

Early Edition: December 21, 2021

Signup to receive the Early Edition in your inbox here. A curated weekday guide to major national security news and developments over the past 24 hours. Here’s today’s news.…

Dec. 21, 2021 Florence Powell

Chairman Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-MS,flanked by other members of Congress, speaks to the media following testimony during the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the US Capitol adjourned their first hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on July 27, 2021. - The committee heard testimony from members of the US Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department who tried to protect the Capitol against insurrectionists on January 6, 2021. (Photo by Olivier DOULIERY / AFP) (Photo by OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images)

How Stalling Tactics Could Still Constrain the January 6 Committee

Without a greater sense of urgency in the Jan. 6 investigation, it risks failing like every other effort to hold Trump accountable.

Dec. 20, 2021 Ambassador P. Michael McKinley (ret.)