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  1. RAND
  2. >The RAND Blog
/content/rand/blog/jcr:content/par/bloglist .topic.libya
The RAND Blog

Libya

  • A Pantsir-S surface-to-air missile system fires a missile during the International Army Games 2017 outside Astrakhan, Russia, August 5, 2017, photo by Maxim Shemetov/Reuters
    Air Defense

    commentary

    Drone-Era Warfare Shows the Operational Limits of Air Defense Systems

    John V. Parachini, Peter A. Wilson

    Jul 2, 2020

    RealClearDefense

    External powers have intervened in the civil wars in Libya and Syria, supplying advanced conventional weapons that have intensified the conflicts. But not all of the weapons have performed as claimed.

    Read More »
  • Russian military jets at Khmeimim Air Base in Syria, June 18, 2016, photo by Vadim Savitsky/Russian Defense Ministry via Reuters
    Russia

    commentary

    Russia Is Eyeing the Mediterranean. The U.S. and NATO Must Be Prepared

    Colin P. Clarke, William Courtney @courtneywmh, Bradley Martin, Bruce McClintock @BHMcClintock

    Jun 30, 2020

    Newsweek

    Russia is seeking more access and freedom of movement in the Mediterranean region, and is bolstering its military footprint to achieve this objective. The United States and NATO could respond by developing a more robust southern strategy, with a reinforced air and naval presence, respectively.

    Read More »
  • Smoke rises during a fight between members of the Libyan internationally recognized government forces and Eastern forces, in southern Tripoli, Libya June 22, 2019, photo by Yosri Aljamal/Reuters
    Libya

    commentary

    Is the Conflict in Libya a Preview of the Future of Warfare?

    Nathan Vest, Colin P. Clarke

    Jun 2, 2020

    Defense One

    The Libyan conflict, now entering its ninth year, could well be a testing ground for how wars will be fought in the future. External nation-states have long interfered in other countries' civil wars, so what is new, exactly, about what is happening in Libya?

    Read More »
  • A fighter loyal to Libya's U.N.-backed government looks at a room burned during clashes with troops loyal to Khalifa Haftar in Tripoli, Libya, May 28, 2019, photo by Goran Tomasevic/Reuters
    Libya

    commentary

    Can Anything Stop the Flow of Advanced Weapons into Libya?

    Nathan Vest

    Dec 13, 2019

    Defense One

    Weapons proliferation has been a security concern for Libya and its neighbors since the revolution of 2011. If foreign arms transfers into Libya aren't reduced, the country's security situation will continue to deteriorate, giving militant groups a chance to increase their lethality and further destabilize the region.

    Read More »
  • Khalifa Haftar salutes as he participates in the General Security conference, in Benghazi, Libya, October 14, 2017, photo by Esam Al-Fetori/Reuters
    Libya

    commentary

    Is an Escalation Imminent in Western Libya?

    Nathan Vest

    Mar 27, 2019

    RealClearWorld

    The Libyan Civil War has largely been contained to pockets of violence. Prolonged battles decimated cities such as Benghazi, Derna, and Sirte, but the majority of the country has been spared large-scale destruction. However, that could change soon.

    Read More »
  • North Korean leader Kim Jong-un (right) and North Korean official Kim Yong Chol (left) meet with South Korean President Moon Jae-in at the truce village of Panmunjom, North Korea, May 26, 2018
    International Diplomacy

    commentary

    North Korea Is Not Like Libya

    Karl P. Mueller

    Jun 1, 2018

    Reuters

    The prospect of a U.S.-North Korea summit has led to analogies between the present case and that of Libya, which abandoned its longstanding quest to develop nuclear weapons in 2003. But a better precedent would be the 2015 deal that froze Iran's nuclear weapons program.

    Read More »
  • Residents who returned from evacuation centers walk past a bullet-ridden house believed to have been rented by pro-Islamic State militant group leaders before their attack on the region, in Basak Malutlut district in Marawi City, Philippines, October 29, 2017
    Security Cooperation

    commentary

    Where Will ISIS Seek to Establish Its Next Safe Haven?

    Colin P. Clarke

    Feb 19, 2018

    The Jerusalem Post

    Many of ISIS's surviving fighters will seek out new battlefields to continue waging jihad. By coordinating with its allies around the globe, the U.S. could work to help alleviate the conditions that lead states to fail, making them less appealing as sanctuaries where terrorists can rest, rearm, and recuperate.

    Read More »
  • Migrants at the Anti-Illegal Immigration Authority in Tripoli, Libya, September 10, 2017
    Migrants

    commentary

    Addressing Europe's Migrant Crisis Takes More Than Stopping the Boats from Libya

    Amanda Kadlec, Shelly Culbertson @SC_Culbertson

    Sep 25, 2017

    Foreign Policy Concepts

    Treating migration from Libya as a border security issue has reduced migration across the Mediterranean. But efforts to keep migrants in Libya are fraught with risks, exacerbate a massive human rights problem, and do not address Libya's long-term economic and political stabilization.

    Read More »
  • A tank belonging to special forces of the Libyan army enters the area of clashes with Islamist militants in their last stronghold in Benghazi, Libya, July 5, 2017
    Libya

    commentary

    How the Gulf Row Could Tear Libya Apart Even Further

    Amanda Kadlec

    Jul 7, 2017

    Foreign Policy Concepts

    Since Gadhafi was removed from power, Gulf nations have been vying for position in Libya through proxy forces to influence political outcomes. Libya's rival militias — armed and funded by their respective Gulf sponsors — set the framework for the civil conflict that erupted in 2014 and continues today. Current tensions between Qatar and its neighbors are adding to the instability.

    Read More »
  • U.S. Army soldiers, deployed in support of Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve, use a rooftop as an observation post in Mosul, Iraq, March 7, 2017
    Peacekeeping and Stability Operations

    commentary

    NATO's Role in Post-Caliphate Stability Operations

    Hans Binnendijk, David C. Gompert

    May 2, 2017

    The National Interest

    Steps are needed to fill the vacuum left as the caliphate collapses, lest forces on the ground turn on each other to gain control. The answer is for NATO to act under U.S. leadership. The alternative is either chaos or Iran, backed by Russia, filling the void.

    Read More »
  • Refugees, who were rescued in international waters off the Libyan coast, are transferred from one boat to another, December 2016
    Migrants

    essay

    Migrant Crisis in the Mediterranean: What You Need to Know

    May 2, 2017

    The countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea are facing unprecedented stress. A former lieutenant with the Italian Navy is now a RAND researcher, working to help others appreciate the scope of the crisis.

    Read More »
  • Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a news conference in Moscow, December 23, 2016
    Russia

    commentary

    What Americans Need to Know if Russia Intervenes in Libya's Civil War

    Christopher S. Chivvis, Amanda Kadlec

    Mar 26, 2017

    Fortune

    Indications that Russia could intervene militarily in Libya's civil war are growing. If it does, the Trump White House will face a tangle of unpleasant choices with far-reaching consequences.

    Read More »
  • Soldiers from a force aligned with Libya's new unity government walk along a road during an advance on the eastern and southern outskirts of the Islamic State stronghold of Sirte, June 9, 2016
    The Islamic State (Terrorist Organization)

    commentary

    All Eyes on Sirte: Beating the Islamic State, but Losing Libya

    Amanda Kadlec

    Jun 23, 2016

    War on the Rocks

    At a time when the U.N.-sponsored Government of National Accord could be working to unite Libya's armed groups and promote political stability, it has instead become entwined in the race for Sirte.

    Read More »
  • Iraqi security forces hold an ISIS flag that they pulled down at the University of Anbar, in Anbar province, July 26, 2015
    The Islamic State (Terrorist Organization)

    commentary

    In the Event of the Islamic State's Untimely Demise...

    Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins, Colin P. Clarke

    May 11, 2016

    Foreign Policy

    If they haven't already, the Islamic State's leaders will soon formulate a contingency strategy, a Plan B that the West will then be forced to contend with.

    Read More »
  • A Tunisian soldier holds his position during an exercise along the frontier with Libya in Sabkeht Alyun, Tunisia February 6, 2016
    Tunisia

    blog

    Tunisia's Role in Fight Against Terrorism Discussed at RAND Conference

    Mar 30, 2016

    The fight against terrorism in Tunisia is a shared priority and responsibility with the U.S. and Europe but will also depend greatly on solving the security issues in neighboring Libya, according to participants at a March 23 conference at RAND.

    Read More »
  • Tunisian soldiers participate in an exercise along the frontier with Libya in Sabkeht Alyun, Tunisia, February 6, 2016
    Security Cooperation

    commentary

    Use Force to Forge Peace in Libya

    Christopher S. Chivvis

    Feb 17, 2016

    U.S. News & World Report

    Five years after the uprising against Qaddafi and the civil war that followed, Libya is now home to the second-largest and fastest-growing Islamic State group affiliate outside Iraq and Syria. The U.S. and its allies need to step in to help restore Libyan sovereignty.

    Read More »

Quoted

  • Efforts to mend the United States' political wounds, combatting COVID-19 and the continuing deterioration of U.S.-China relations may dominate the agenda of the incoming Biden administration. But quick wins with Japan are possible and could be necessary to ensure the alliance begins on a positive footing so it can tackle more difficult challenges in the years ahead.

    Jeffrey W. Hornung

    Political Scientist

    Source: The Hill

  • Healing a deeply divided American society—made worse by a pandemic and its economic consequences—could take years, if it's possible at all.

    brian michael jenkins, brian jenkins

    Brian Michael Jenkins

    Senior Adviser to the RAND President

    Source: NBC News THINK

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