Other Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration Commons^™

Achieving Pssm Through Civil Society And Military Cooperation, Lee Moroney

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The core focus of physical security and stockpile management (PSSM) is twofold: mitigate the risk of unplanned explosions at munitions sites (UEMS) that could have drastic humanitarian consequences, and secure stockpiles from illicit diversion and munition theft that could fuel growing insurgencies, terrorist events, and civil conflict by state and nonstate actors worldwide. These areas of concern increase the risks associated with national and regional stability. Increasing PSSM helps professionalize a state’s military and security forces, which builds confidence and strengthens security measures between security forces, the civilian population, and its regional neighbors.

Strengthening Security In Mali With Weapons And Ammunition Management, Marlène Dupouy

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

When insurgent groups in Mali initiated a rebellion for independence in late 2011, the National Guard and the Malian Defense and Security Forces (MDSF) in Gao were at the forefront of hostilities, which included the pillaging of weapons from government stores. Concurrently, the demise of the Gaddafi regime in Libya triggered an influx of small arms and light weapons (SA/LW) across the Sahel region and the return of fighters from Libya, making northern Mali their base. That challenge was quickly seized upon by jihadists and opportunists aiming to further destabilize Mali and enlarge their bases and activities throughout the Sahel …

Clearing Landmines And Building Peace In Colombia, Vanessa Finson, Giovanni Diffidenti

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In 2015, the government of Colombia and las Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarais de Colombia - Ejército del Pueblo (FARC-EP) invited Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA), to develop a joint pilot project to survey and clear anti- personnel mines and explosive remnants of war (ERW). The project was a first of its kind in terms of the composition of the teams: two warring parties working side-by-side, and a means to help build trust and de-escalate the conflict during the Colombian peace process. In 2016, NPA commissioned photojournalist Giovanni Diffidenti to visit Santa Helena and El Orejón to capture the historic demining project in …

Humanitarian Mine Action And Ieds, Craig Mcinally, Hans Risser

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) has been operational in improvised explosive device (IED) clearance in Hamdaniya, Iraq, since January 2017. Additionally, MAG (Mines Advisory Group) has operated in the same area clearing IEDs since September 2015 and has had operations in many parts of both Iraq and Syria. Other nongovernmental organizations (NGO) clearing IEDs include Handicap International and the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD). Without question, IED clearance is now an established part of humanitarian mine action (HMA). Yet this does not mean HMA should adopt the full spectrum of IED disposal (IEDD) operations. Rather, NGOs can provide invaluable capacity …

Recovering The Past: A Photographic Documentary Exploring Post-Conflict Reconciliation, Ian Alderman

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

I am a London-based photographer whose great grandfather was shot at the Battle of the Somme in 1916. With this family history and the then fast-approaching centenary commemorations of the First World War in mind, in 2011 I embarked on developing a complex but unique photographic project to be entitled Recovering The Past. Since its completion, Recovering The Past has been exhibited both at the United Nations in Geneva and currently as a component of the centenary commemorations to the Battle of Passchendaele at the In Flanders Fields Museum, in Ypres, Belgium, as part of the Total War display.

The …

The Collaborative Ordnance Data Repository (Cord): 2018 Upgrades, Roly Evans

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The Collaborative ORDnance Data Repository (CORD) has been in existence since 2015. It is a database of over 5,000 entries detailing a wide range of explosive ordnance. The database is used extensively as a means of identifying munitions by those working in the field of humanitarian mine action, but also by others. Users range from mine clearance operators in Sri Lanka, police bomb disposal teams in Florida or Abu Dhabi, human rights advocates in Washington, D.C., to journalists in London. CORD is not intended as a detailed database. It is intended as a simple online ordnance identification guide with limited …

Promoting Secure Stockpiles And Countering Diversion, Eric Berman, Benjamin King

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Poor management of government stockpiles of small arms and ammunition poses significant safety and security concerns—both for the country in question and often for its neighbors. Challenges to safety are readily apparent by the frequent occurrence and consequences of unplanned explosions at munitions sites (UEMS). Security shortcomings include oversight limitations that facilitate corrupt practices and seizures of state materiel by armed groups that undercut a state’s legitimate use of force, and undermine good governance and the rule of law.

The Small Arms Survey (hereafter referred to as the Survey) actively contributes to efforts to promote physical security and stockpile management …

Black Adder Disruptors, Andy Smith, William Bagley

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

This article reports on an empirical research and development project conducted in collaboration by researchers at University of Genoa, Italy, and Johns Hopkins University, United States. It is a progress report summarizing one element of a broader effort that is intended to provide explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) operators with reliable, open-source information to assist in the development of low-order munitions disruptors. Providing operators the information necessary to make energetic tools not only reduces cost but can also circumvent the restrictions and delays that often complicate the import of disruptor components.

Using Small Unmanned Aircraft (Sua) In Hma, Andy Smith

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

With the growing use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) within humanitarian mine action (HMA), the need for standardized training is becoming increasingly important to mitigate factors that may otherwise inhibit their wider use. The first formal training course for people in HMA to qualify as small unmanned aircraft (SUA) pilots served as an opportunity to pursue this goal and was held at the MAT Kosovo training centre in September 2017. The instructors were from a U.K. company training to U.K. Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) standards for commercial SUA pilots. Although drone and UAV are popular terms to describe all umanned …

Refining Explosive Safety Outreach, Geoff Carton, Laura Grindstaff

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Explosives safety awareness programs must identify the target audience and communicate easily understood concepts. To be effective, an audience must apply the concepts presented; however, this is not enough. The program and its message must also be adaptable to a variety of audiences based on how they assimilate information. The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) has at least 100 years of safety education experience. Over this time, explosives safety messages underwent several evolutions.

Preparing For The Future: How The Sdgs Impact Mine Action, Ursign Hofmann, Olaf Juergensen

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Adopted by all U.N. Member States in September 2015, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development (2030 Agenda) and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) entered into effect on 1 January 2016 to guide development efforts. The SDGs are in the early stages of implementation and are still being mainstreamed into mine action. This article draws on a timely study from the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) that aims to stimulate collective thinking in the sector, provides policy recommendations, and offers implementation tools.

Making Ordnance Identification Available To Everyone, Howard Rudat

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The continued focus on the use of mobile technology in support of humanitarian demining operations has not only highlighted how these technologies can be adapted and used but has also resulted in tangible tools that can be put to use now. Despite these advances, the cost and availability of these capabilities remains a challenge when resources are limited. Together, the U.S. Army’s Unexploded Ordnance Center of Excellence (UXOCOE), the Center for International Stabilization and Recovery (CISR) at James Madison University, and the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD) have solved a key part of that problem by providing resources …

Endnotes Issue 21.3, Cisr Jmu

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Endnotes Issue 21.3

Making Peace: Next Steps In Colombia, Seth Cantey, Ricardo Correa

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

After a brief history of the longest-running insurgency in the Western Hemisphere, this article contextualizes recent developments in the transition of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) to legal politics in Colombia. The authors also provide policy recommendations for the US Department of Defense.

Deterrence & Security Assistance: The South China Sea, Tommy Ross

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article identifies how the United States can apply security assistance to support regional security in the South China Sea in order to counter China’s assertive expansion strategy.

The Belarus Factor In European Security, Alexander Lanoszka

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article challenges strategists to reconsider longheld assumptions associated with the alliance between Belarus and Russia when planning military support for the Baltic states.

Navigating The Third Offset Strategy, Damon V. Coletta

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article suggests adding a “craftsman” at lower ranks to steer private-sector projects through the Third Offset Strategy. This strategy was established by experienced leadership at the Pentagon to increase military acquisitions of automation and artificial intelligence technology.

Will War's Nature Change In The Seventh Military Revolution?, F. G. Hoffman

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article examines the potential implications of the combinations of robotics, artificial intelligence, and deep learning systems on the character and nature of war. The author employs Carl von Clausewitz’s trinity concept to discuss how autonomous weapons will impact the essential elements of war. The essay argues war’s essence, as politically directed violence fraught with friction, will remain its most enduring aspect, even if more intelligent machines are involved at every level.

Expansibility And Army Intelligence, Rose P. Keravuori

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article provides insights valuable to transitioning America’s military intelligence resources from counterinsurgency operations to the force necessary for responding to a near-peer competitor in a major war.

Expansibility And Army Special Operations Forces, Eric P. Shwedo

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article examines how Army Special Operations might prepare to expand in the event of a major war by resolving impediments to growth, improving recall procedures, and developing plans to expand training capacities.