Monthly Archives: September 2022

The persecution of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar burgeoned into genocide in 2017 and has since then expanded into a full-blown humanitarian crisis in Bangladesh. This crisis is characterized by the approximately one million refugees who fled Myanmar to Bangladesh during the last five years. These refugees face internal conflict a lack of resources in an already poverty-stricken area. The political situation in Myanmar also remains dire as the government fails to address military corruption, violence, and human rights violations toward both the Rohingya and other ethnic groups within the country. These humanitarian and political crises threaten the stability of southeast Asia, the checks and balances on Chinese power, and human rights around the globe, and thereby impact United States interests and security.

Since February, global attention has continued to concentrate on the Russia-Ukraine conflict and its rippling impact, extending beyond its interference in the global supply chain or impulsion of refugees within Europe to the tensions in Eastern Asia between China (PRC) and Taiwan (ROC).

On September 8, 2022, after 70 years on the throne, Queen Elizabeth passed away. Queen Elizabeth was the longest reigning monarch in British history, with her death marking the end of an era. She had been queen since 1952, after the passing of her father, King George VI. Her legacy includes working with fifteen prime ministers, the first dating all the way back to Winston Churchill. She is known for playing an active role in government and foreign affairs beyond her duties as the symbolic head of state.

One year ago, the United States ended its longest war in Afghanistan. It was the end because the US pulled all military (and many other) personnel from the country. Following the US action, the Taliban quickly took control of the country. The speed of this takeover was surprising to the world.

The United States faces new difficulties to a clear terrorism policy. As it no longer has a physical presence in Afghanistan and seeks to continuously curb the influence of terror groups in the Middle East, the United States has utilized over-the-horizon drone strikes against terror leaders. This strategy had particular attention in the Trump and Biden administrations with drone strikes against Iranian general Qasem Soleimani and Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, respectively. Although over-the-horizon strikes provide a relatively simple alternative to on-the-ground forces, the problems raised by their extensive intelligence requirements and implications for U.S. involvement outside warzones makes this policy unsustainable. This article is meant to analyze both the history and probability of its implementation. Though over-the-horizon strikes can include the use of special forces groups, this definition will focus strictly on drone strikes.