greta's gouge: Friday's Miscellany 12-19-2014

· DODIG-2014-055 (U) Investigation of a Hotline Allegation of a Questionable Intelligence Activity Concerning the Joint IED Defeat Organization (JIEDDO) Counter-IED Operations/Intelligence Integration Center (COIC) [redacted]

· DODIG-2015-047 Assessment of U.S. Government and Coalition Efforts to Develop the Logistics Sustainment Capability of the Afghan National Army

· DODIG-2015-060 U.S. Southern Command Government Purchase Card Controls Need Improvement to Prevent Improper Purchases

Department of Justice

· Guidance for Federal Law Enforcement Agencies Regarding the Use of Race, Ethnicity, Gender, National Origin, Religion, Sexual Orientation, or Gender Identity

Department of State

· Briefing on Changes in U.S. Policy Toward Cuba

· President Obama's New Cuba Policy Looks Forward, Not Back

· Remarks at a Security Council Debate on Terrorism and Cross Border Crime

· Remarks by Ambassador David Pressman,Alternate Representative to the United Nations for Special Political Affairs,at a Security Council Open Debate on Peace Operations, "The UN-AU Partnership and Its Evolution," December 16, 2014

· U.S. Nuclear Arms Control Policy

· U.S. Perspectives on the Opportunities and Challenges of Nuclear Disarmament

Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General

· Report No. 14-04705-62 Healthcare Inspection: Evaluation of the Veterans Health Administration’s National Consult Delay Review and Associated Fact Sheet

Doctors without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières)

· Speaking Out: MSF and North Korea 1995-1998

East-West Center

· Eyes on the Prize? The Philippines-US Alliance and Defense Modernization

· Mongolian Participation in an Upgraded Eurasian Energy and Transport Grid

Egmont Institute Royal Institute for International Relations

· 2014: A Centenary and a Discovery

· America’s Global Defence Predicament – Why the Asia ‘Rebalancing’ has Little Significance for European Security

· New Donors, New Partners? EU Strategic Partnerships and Development

Enough Project

· Starving War, Feeding Peace, and Setting the Table for National Dialogue in Sudan

EU Institute for Security Studies

· A Changing Global Environment

· The EU and the UN: Together for Peace

· Riding the Digital Wave – The Impact of Cyber Capacity Building on Human Development

European Council on Foreign Relations

· Post-Nuclear: The Future for Iran in Its Neighbourhood

· Your Investment, Our Economy

· What Will Happen with Eastern Ukraine?

· Why Europe Must Stop Outsourcing Its Security

European Parliamentary Research Service

· European Parliament: Facts and Figures

European Policy Centre (EPC)

· Juncker’s Investment Plan: a New Deal for the EU?

European Union Election Assessment Team

· Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Final Report Presidential Election 5 April and 14 June 2014

Financial Action Task Force (FATF)

· Many countries are still not able to freeze terrorists’ assets effectively, says FATF President Roger Wilkins, AO

· Norway’s Measures to Combat Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing

Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI)

· Does Democracy Matter? A Conference Report

· The Partition of Palestine

· Ruble Trouble: The Politics of Russia’s Financial Crisis

· Understanding the New Global Disorder: Three Tectonics

Foundation for International Development Study and Research (FERDI)

· Export Management and Incomplete VAT Rebates to Exporters: The Case of China

German Development Institute

· Advancing Female Education by Improving Democratic Institutions and Women’s Political Representation

· Can Supply Chain Initiatives Reduce Deforestation? A Comparative Analysis of Cases from Brazil and Indonesia

· Do Preferential Trade Agreements Increase Their Members’ Foreign Direct Investment?

· Measuring Green Growth: Why Standardisation is (Sometimes) not Desirable

German Institute of Global and Area Studies (GIGA)

· The Ontological (In)security of Similarity:Wahhabism versus Islamism in Saudi Foreign Policy

Government Accountability Office (GAO)

· Anthrax: Agency Approaches to Validation and Statistical Analyses Could Be Improved. GAO-15-80

· Defense Infrastructure: Risk Assessment Needed to Identify If Foreign Encroachment Threatens Test and Training Ranges. GAO-15-149

· Department of Homeland Security: Continued Action Needed to Strengthen Management of Administratively Uncontrollable Overtime. GAO-15-95

· Dodd-Frank Regulations: Regulators' Analytical and Coordination Efforts. GAO-15-81

· Electronic Submissions in Federal Procurement: Implementation by the Army Corps of Engineers and Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation. GAO-15-253R

· Emergency Preparedness: Opportunities Exist to Strengthen Interagency Assessments and Accountability for Closing Capability Gaps. GAO-15-20

· Federal Emergency Management Agency: Opportunities Exist to Strengthen Oversight of Administrative Costs for Major Disasters. GAO-15-65

· Federal Food Safety Oversight: Additional Actions Needed to Improve Planning and Collaboration. GAO-15-180

· Ground Radar and Guided Munitions: Increased Oversight and Cooperation Can Help Avoid Duplication among the Services' Programs. GAO-15-103

· Hanford Cleanup: Condition of Tanks May Further Limit DOE's Ability to Respond to Leaks and Intrusions. GAO-15-40

· Nuclear Regulatory Commission: NRC Needs to Improve Its Cost Estimates by Incorporating More Best Practices. GAO-15-98

Henley Putnam University

· Journal of Strategic Security, Winter 2014, v. 7, no. 4

· Future Challenges in Drone Geopolitics

· Pandora’s Presumption: Drones and the Problematic Ethics of Techno-War

· Drones: The American Controversy

· Lost in Debate: The Safety of Domestic Unmanned Aircraft Systems

· Help Wanted: American Drone Program Needs Multifaceted Support to be Effective

· The “Surgical” Legitimacy of Drone Strikes? Issues of Sovereignty and Human Rights in the Use of Unmanned Aerial Systems in Pakistan

· Investigating the Relationship Between Drone Warfare and Civilian Casualties in Gaza

· The Strategy of Drone Warfare

Heritage Foundation

· Addressing Russia’s Continued Pernicious Actions Abroad

· Congress Should Continue to Oppose Arms Trade Treaty As It Enters Into Force

· Creating Opportunity in the Workplace

· Eight Myths About FCC Regulation of the Internet

· Four Conservative Tax Plans with Equivalent Economic Results

· Russian Military Activity in the Arctic: A Cause for Concern

· Top 11 Areas for Congressional Action on the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty in 2015

Human Rights Watch

· License to Harm: Violence and Harassment against LGBT People and Activists in Russia

· Toxic Water, Tainted Justice: Thailand’s Delays in Cleaning Up Klity Creek

Institute of National Security Studies (Israel)

· The Currency of the Islamic State: The Political and Symbolic Significance of an Economic Move

Institute for Defense Analyses (IDA)

· Africa Watch, December 18,2014

o China in Somalia—Reopening Its Embassy and Building Trust

o Security Changes in Kenya Prompt Counterterrorism Debate

Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS)

· Case Study: Iranian Illicit Financing for Quds Force’s Overseas Purchases

· Update on IR-5 Centrifuge Issue: Taking Stock

Institute for Security & Development Policy

· Vietnam's Proactive Foreign Relations

Institute for the Study of War

· The Assad Regime Under Stress: Conscription and Protest among Alawite and Minority Populations in Syria

· Control of Terrain in Iraq

o December 19, 2014

o December 21, 2014

· Iraq Situation Report

o December 13-14, 2014

o December 15, 2014

o December 16-17, 2014

o December 17-19,2014

o December 19-21,2014

· ISIS's Future Global Footprint: A Historical Perspective from the Sinjar Records

· ISIS's Global Messaging Strategy Fact Sheet: December 2014

· Jabhat al-Nusra in Syria

· Syria Update: December 9-16, 2014

Integrity

· Trends and Patterns in Suicide Bombings in Iraq: September/October 2014

International Crisis Group

· Eastern Ukraine: A Dangerous Winter

· Guinea’s Other Emergency: Organising Elections

· Tunisia’s Elections: Old Wounds, New Fears

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

· Cashing in for Growth: Corporate Cash Holdings as an Opportunity for Investment in Japan

· Congo: Ending the Status Quo

· Corporate Vulnerabilities in India and Banks' Loan Performance

· The Development of Local Capital Markets:Rationale and Challenges

· Das Public Kapital: How Much Would Higher German Public Investment Help Germany and the Euro Area?

· Does Inflation Slow Long-Run Growth in India?

· Does Lower Debt Buy Higher Growth? The Impact of Debt Relief Initiatives on Growth

· Islamic Banking Regulation and Supervision:Survey Results and Challenges

· Oil Price Volatility and the Role of Speculation

· Reform of the Policy on Public Debt Limits in Fund-Supported Programs

· Regulation and Supervision of Islamic Banks

· Revisiting Tourism Flows to the Caribbean:What is Driving Arrivals?

· The Rich and the Great Recession

International Peace Institute (IPI)

· Libya’s Political Transition: The Challenges of Mediation

Jamestown Foundation

· China Brief, December 19, 2014, v. 14, no. 24

o China’s Foreign Policy in 2014: A Year to Harvest Partnerships and the Silk Road

o Does China’s Charm Offensive Pose a Dilemma for South Korea?

o China Overhauls Diplomacy to Consolidate Regional Leadership, Outline Strategy for Superpower Ascent

o China’s “Server Sinification” Campaign for Import Substitution: Strategy and Snowden (Part 1)

o Building Think Tanks with Chinese Characteristics: Current Debates and Changing Trends

· Terrorism Monitor, December 19, 2014, v. 12, no. 24

o The Islamic State: What Victory Means

o Swimming in a Turbulent Sea? Non-State Threats to the Islamic State

o The Political Economy of the Islamic State

o Islamic State’s Threat to the Kurds in Syria and Northern Iraq

o The Need for an Effective and Comprehensive Counter-Terrorism Strategy in Combatting Regional Jihadism: The View from Cairo

o Libya’s Descent into Chaos: Warring Clans and Its Impact on Regional Stability

o Boko Haram, Islamic State and the Archipelago Strategy

Long War Journal

· Charting the Data for US Airstrikes in Pakistan, 2004 - 2014 [updated December 20, 2014]

National Institute of Justice

· Mending Justice: Sentinel Event Reviews

Nordic Africa Institute

· China and India – What are Their Ties to Africa?

Norwegian Peacebuilding Resource Centre

· China’s Thinking on Peace and Security

· Demands and Incentives for Political Dialogue and Security Cooperation in UNASUR

· The “Jewish State”: What’s in the Name?

Peterson Institute for International Economics

· Rebuilding Europe's Common Future: Combining Growth and Reform in the Euro Area

Pew Research Center for the People & the Press

· About Half See CIA Interrogation Methods as Justified

· As U.S. Energy Production Grows, Public Policy Views Show Little Change

Pew Research Global Attitudes Project

· Many in Emerging and Developing Nations Disconnected from Politics

Pew Research Internet Project

· The Future of Privacy

Pew Research Religion & Public Life Project

· Most Say Religious Holiday Displays on Public Property Are OK

Political Economy Research Institute (PERI)

· Have Large Scale Asset Purchases Increased Bank Profits?

Project 2049 Institute

· Standing Watch: Taiwan and Maritime Domain Awareness in the Western Pacific

Quilliam Foundation

· Detailed Analysis of Islamic State Propaganda Video: Although the Disbelievers Dislike It

Rand

· Air Force Major Defense Acquisition Program Cost Growth Is Driven by Three Space Programs and the F-35A: Fiscal Year 2013President's Budget Selected Acquisition Reports

· A Database of U.S. Security Treaties and Agreements

· Human Resource Practices for Labor Inspectorates in Developing Countries

· Pre-Deployment Stress, Mental Health, and Help-Seeking Behaviors Among Marines

· U.S. Security-Related Agreements in Force Since 1955: Introducing a New Database

Refugees International

· Philippines: Displaced and Forgotten in Zamboanga

Strategic Studies Institute (SSI)

· Operationalizing Counter Threat Finance Strategies

· Regionalizing East Mediterranean Gas: Energy Security, Stability, and the U.S. Role

Trust for America's Health

· Outbreaks: Protecting Americans from Infectious Diseases

United Kingdom

· Report of the Al-Sweady Public Inquiry (official inquiry into allegations that British soldiers murdered insurgents in Iraq and mutilated their bodies)

o Executive Summary

o Chairman's Statement

o Volume 1, Part 1

o Volume 1, Part 2

o Volume 2, Part 1

o Volume 2, Part 2

White House

· FACT SHEET: Charting a New Course on Cuba

· FACT SHEET: The President’s Immigration Accountability Executive Actions & Their Impact on Asian American Immigrant Communities

· FACT SHEET: Task Force on 21st Century Policing

· Remarks by the President to Military and Civilian Personnel at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst

· Statement by the President on Cuba Policy Changes