The Week That Was: All of Lawfare in One Post
Julian Ku provided us with swift commentary after the Philippines’ sweeping victory in the South China Sea arbitration on Tuesday morning. The next morning, he considered the legal justifications for the United States to conduct freedom of navigation operations without innocent passage within 12 nautical miles of China’s artificial islands.
Julian Ku provided us with swift commentary after the Philippines’ sweeping victory in the South China Sea arbitration on Tuesday morning. The next morning, he considered the legal justifications for the United States to conduct freedom of navigation operations without innocent passage within 12 nautical miles of China’s artificial islands. Robert Williams scoured through the 501-page Award and scored the bout as a decisive victory for Manila. Raul Pedrozo contextualized China’s maritime claims within a broader framework that portrays Beijing as a revisionist power.
After reading the Chilcot Inquiry, John Bellinger rebutted a post by Oona Hathaway in Just Security that suggested U.S. lawyers had adopted “manifestly implausible” legal theories in the lead-up to the Iraq War. Former White House Counsel Bob Bauer concluded that the report failed to scrutinize the proper role lawyers should play in the policymaking process.
Kenneth Anderson flagged Seizing Power: The Strategic Logic of Military Coups, a book by Naunihal Singh, as worth remembering while the coup attempt in Turkey continues to unfold. Before the coup in Ankara, Kemal Kirisci interpreted Turkey’s recent overtures to Israel and Russia as a sign that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is planning to pursue a more pragmatic foreign policy if he manages to stay in power.
This morning, David Kris analyzed the bill just sent to Congress, reflecting the administration's proposal for cross-border data transfers.
The one-year anniversary of the Iran Deal prompted a number of Brookings scholars to reflect on its consequences. Bruce Riedel observed how the Iran nuclear deal exacerbated the tensions between Tehran and Riyadh. Robert Einhorn said the JCPOA has cleared its primary hurdle so far—blocking Iran’s path to a nuclear weapon for an extended period of time. Suzanne Maloney chastised Iran’s arbitrary arrest of U.S. citizens as a counterproductive move that undermines U.S.-Iranian relations.
Benjamin Wittes filtered out all the congressional grandstanding to present only the most important parts of FBI Director James Comey’s testimony in front of the House Oversight and Governance Reform Committee in this week's Lawfare Podcast.
