National Security Law Commons^™

The Danger In Designations: U.S. Terrorism Designation Lists In Gaza And Beyond, Elizabeth Beavers

American University National Security Law Brief

What is “terrorism”? The term has surged in U.S. political discourse following Hamas’s attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, Israel’s subsequent onslaught of Gaza, and escalating violence in the region involving Iran and similarly aligned groups like Hezbollah and the Houthis. U.S. politicians and thought leaders have characterized U.S. support for Israel’s bombardment as a fight against “terror,” described the violence conducted by Palestinians and their backers as “terrorism,” and accused pro-Palestinian U.S. protestors of “supporting terrorism.”

More than mere political rhetoric, “terrorism” is a term that carries big legal consequences. This is in large part because the U.S. …

National Security Issues Arising In Anticorruption Enforcement, Anthony J. Lewis, Aisling O'Shea

American University National Security Law Brief

The overlap between national security and corruption has long been recognized; however, the government’s views on the nature of the overlap have shifted over time. For instance, in June 2021, the Biden administration announced an initiative to combat corruption as a core national security interest. The administration ordered a review by fifteen government agencies and offices, including the Central Intelligence Agency and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Then, in February 2025, the Trump administration declared that “overexpansive and unpredictable” enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (“FCPA”) “actively harms American competitiveness and, therefore, national security.” …

The Best Disinfectant: The Value Of Transparency In Information Operations, Major Ian W. Stamme

American University National Security Law Brief

America is in a state of persistent competition with nation-state adversaries, including Russia and China, which seek to subvert the post-WWII rules-based international order and undermine American legitimacy abroad. Some of this competition takes place through traditional statecraft and across each of the instruments of national power: diplomatic, informational, military, and economic. However, much of this competition also takes place in the gray zone, defined as a spectrum between the higher threshold of armed conflict and the lower threshold of ordinary statecraft. In other words, while all relations between nations involve degrees of leverage and relative advantage, gray zone conflict …

Public International Air Lawfare: China’S Use And Abuse Of The Skies., Major Emily K. Johnson

American University National Security Law Brief

Following World War II, China entered a years-long period of civil war between the Kuomintang government, which was then in power as the government of the Republic of China, and the Chinese Communist Party. After years of conflict, the Kuomintang was forced to retreat to the island of Taiwan in 1949, effectively and reluctantly ceding the Chinese mainland to the Chinese Communist Party. Despite its best efforts, the Kuomintang never regained control of mainland China in the ensuing years; however, it never dissolved and instead remained in place on Taiwan.

As a result, Taiwan, which lies a mere 80-100 miles …

U.S. Strikes Against The Houthis: A "Splendid Little War" Of Self-Defense, Benjamin W. Haight

American University National Security Law Brief

No abstract provided.

Sticker Shock: The Icj, Russia, And A $300 Billion Price Tag For War, Caitlyn Quinn

American University National Security Law Brief

Ukraine has experienced unprecedented devastation since Russia launched a full scale invasion into its Eastern territory in February 2022. Thousands have been killed, and billions of dollars of infrastructure has been damaged. As a result, over the past three years, the international community has been evaluating ways to hold Russia accountable and to help rebuild Ukraine upon the cessation of the war. Billions of dollars in Russian Central Bank assets have been frozen, and multiple states have proposed seizing Russia’s frozen assets to meet these objectives. However, outright asset seizure presents genuine legal concerns about foreign sovereign immunity and may …

Letter Form The Editor, Wayne Rash, Iii

American University National Security Law Brief

In our last issue of The National Security Law Brief, Vol. 13, No. 1, we highlighted the dynamism that makes National Security Law such an exciting field. In this issue, No. 2, we continue with the dynamism theme. National security law is a field in constant change that often leaves us questioning how these changes will shape the law.

The Need For An Australian Regulatory Code For The Use Of Artificial Intelligence (Ai) In Military Application, Sascha-Dominik Dov Bachmann, Richard V. Grant

American University National Security Law Brief

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is enabling rapid technological innovation and is ever more pervasive, in a global technological eco-system lacking suitable governance and absence of regulation over AI-enabled technologies. Australia is committed to being a global leader in trusted secure and responsible AI and has escalated the development of its own sovereign AI capabilities. Military and Defence organisations have similarly embraced AI, harnessing advantages for applications supporting battlefield autonomy, intelligence analysis, capability planning, operations, training, and autonomous weapons systems. While no regulation exists covering AI-enabled military systems and autonomous weapons, these platforms must comply with International Humanitarian Law, the Law of …

Hanging In The Balance: An Assessment Of European Versus American Data Privacy Laws And Threats To U.S. National Security, Dara Paleski

American University National Security Law Brief

Social media has quickly become an integral part of modern-day life, keeping the world connected to friends, family and current events. Social media, and the data collected from it, also play a crucial role in intelligence gathering and the safeguarding of national security. It is estimated that about 80-95% of information that is collected for intelligence missions is found freely throughout the internet or other publicly available sources. This type of information has been dubbed SOCMINT (Social Media Intelligence) and it has become a crucial tool within the intelligence community. After the Edward Snowden leaks in 2013 revealed a global …

The Tallinn Manual 2.0 On Nation-State Cyber Operations Affecting Critical Infrastructure, Terence Check

American University National Security Law Brief

Protecting critical infrastructure from cyber threats is difficult and complex. News headlines abound with reports that show how critical infrastructure—ranging from voting machines to steel mills—have become increasingly vulnerable to cyber operations from state and sophisticated nonstate actors. As critical infrastructure becomes increasingly entangled with the Internet and as new tactics, techniques, and procedures rapidly proliferate and evolve, governments and businesses alike must contend with a mutating threat environment that may put sensitive and highly important critical infrastructure assets in serious jeopardy. The vulnerabilities of critical infrastructure, which provide vital services and functions to societies, may pose a particularly tempting …

Regulating The Use Of Military Human Enhancements That Can Cause Side Effects Under The Law Of Armed Conflict: Towards A Method-Based Approach, Yang Liu

American University National Security Law Brief

The development of human enhancement (HE) technology has rendered its military potential increasingly noticed by major military powers. It can be expected that “enhanced warfighters” or “super soldiers” will be used on the battleground in the foreseeable future, which can give rise to many legal issues.

Into The Valley Of The Shadow Of Death: War Crimes Committed In Service Of Russia's Crusade To Destroy Ukraine, Chris Galarza

American University National Security Law Brief

When Russian tanks rolled across the border into Ukraine during the early morning of February 24, 2022, most in the American defense and diplomatic establishment were shocked and sure the war would be over in a few days. Credible open-source tactical and strategic analysis predicted that Ukraine’s regular military forces would be defeated in “days or weeks” as long as Russian military forces were determined to pursue their objectives. The United States Government was so sure that Kyiv was under imminent threat of capture that they offered to evacuate President Volodymyr Zelenskyy so that he could rule from exile, rather …

Revisiting Goldwater-Nichols: Why Making The Joint Staff A General Staff Will Improve Civilian Control Of The Military And Refine The Constitutional Balance Of War Powers, Michael D. Minerva

American University National Security Law Brief

As the United States has progressively become more involved globally since World War II, the U.S. military is being stretched beyond the professional military competency straining civilian control of the military. To remedy this, it is again time to revisit our national security structure, and adopt a General Staff in place of the Joint Staff. Following World War II and the destruction of the German General Staff by the Nazi Party, the General Staff as an institution has been emotionally rejected in the United States without a careful historical and legal examination of how that institution operates under varying forms …

The New Great Wall Against China, Paul Rose

American University National Security Law Brief

This essay documents some of the recent changes in foreign investment law as a manifestation of increasing concerns with Chinese investment specifically and globalization more generally. The essay first shows how foreign investment laws in major economies have become increasingly illiberal since the Financial Crisis. Next, the essay considers the justification and impact of recent United States rules designed to reduce Chinese investment. Comparing data on merger and acquisition activity in the United States with the number of filings made to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), the essay documents that although merger and acquisition activity …

President Of The United States, Destroyer Of Worlds: Considering Congress's Authority To Enact A Nuclear No-First-Use Law, John Ramming Chappell

American University National Security Law Brief

This article argues that Congress can exercise its constitutional war powers to enact a law restricting the President from using nuclear weapons first. The article contends that using a nuclear weapon is qualitatively different from conventional warfare and that the first use of nuclear weapons marks a decision to enter into war. Therefore, nuclear first use is not a battlefield decision within the President’s commander in chief power but rather a choice to enter the United States into a new type of conflict that could pose a direct, immediate, and existential threat to the U.S. homeland. Regulating that decision falls …

The American Security Drone Act: America's Paper Tiger Vs. China's Trojan Horse, Susan E. Upward

American University National Security Law Brief

The skies above America have been increasingly inundated with small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS) operated by both government agencies and civilians alike. The majority of these drones are manufactured by Da-Jiang Innovations (DJI), a Chinese company that continues to emerge as a national security threat. The risk posed by these drones stems not only from physical access to American airspace, but also from the surreptitious transmittal of information back behind the “Great Firewall of China” via DJI mobile device applications. However, current pending legislation is inadequate to effectively counter this threat. Instead, the United States should take a more comprehensive …

Letter From The Editor, Ryan Nelson

American University National Security Law Brief

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Editor

American University National Security Law Brief

No abstract provided.

The Conservative Court And Torture Attenuation, Ari B. Rubin

American University National Security Law Brief

No abstract provided.

Rethinking Responsibility As Cooperation And Control: The Case Of Intelligence Agents, Raphael Bitton

American University National Security Law Brief

No abstract provided.

An Analysis Of Domestic And Foreign Legal Mechanisms To Counter The Rise Of White Nationalism, John C. Jankosky Ii

American University National Security Law Brief

No abstract provided.

The Right Of Return: The Isis Bride, Casey Hare-Osifchin

American University National Security Law Brief

No abstract provided.

Equal Prosecution For All: Violent Extremism At The Intersection Of Hate Crime And Terrorism, Gabrielle Leeman

American University National Security Law Brief

After a white supremacist used his vehicle as a weapon to purposefully attack anti-racism protestors in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017, federal officials called the incident domestic terrorism. The incident, in fact, met the definition of domestic terrorism. But the perpetrator was not prosecuted under any of the available terrorism statutes. The defendant was instead charged with, and later pled guilty to, committing hate crimes. It is imperative that we recognize all forms of terrorism as terrorism and use the legal system fairly to prosecute all terrorist attacks as terrorism. But the current terrorism statutory framework hinders the ability to prosecute …

The Capitol Riot, Racism And The Future Of American Democracy, Ryan T. Williams

American University National Security Law Brief

No abstract provided.

Private Military Contractors: The Armed Forces Absent From The War Powers Resolution, Mckinney Voss Wheeler

American University National Security Law Brief

Private military contractors (PMCs) are increasingly ubiquitous in international conflicts, providing security, transport services, and even fighting alongside commissioned troops in battle. Yet for the United States, the ambiguity surrounding PMCs’ role in war presents a serious threat to the constitutional balance of war powers. The Founding Fathers deliberately divided those powers between the executive and legislative branches, aware of the dangers of concentrating them too heavily; and Congress further clarified protocol with the War Powers Resolution in 1973. But the War Powers Resolution, which requires the President to notify Congress when engaging "U.S. Armed Forces" in battle, omits any …

The Artemis Accords: Employing Space Diplomacy To De-Escalate A National Security Threat And Promote Space Commercialization, Elya A. Taichman

American University National Security Law Brief

No abstract provided.

The Case For Presumptions Of Evil: How The E.O. 13873 'Trump' Card Could Secure American Networks From Third-Party Code Threats, Caroline Elyse Burks

American University National Security Law Brief

No abstract provided.

Treason In The Age Of Terrorism: Do Americans Who Join Isis 'Levy War' Against The United States?, Stephen Jackson

American University National Security Law Brief

No abstract provided.

Legalizing Intelligence Sharing: A Consensus Approach, Brian Mund

American University National Security Law Brief

No abstract provided.

Congress-In-Chief: Congressional Options To Compel Presidential War-Making, Clark H. Campbell

American University National Security Law Brief

No abstract provided.