Simons Center News

Earlier this month, U.S. Southern Command (Southcom) commander Navy Admiral Kurt W. Tidd spoke on the region’s greatest security challenge during a media roundtable at the Pentagon – illicit networks. According to Tidd, while Southcom’s area of responsibility has not seen ongoing conflict in some time, “it’s not a region that is without challenges … [and] […]

We congratulate the graduating CGSC classes – SAMS and CGSOC – and wish them well as they head out to provide leadership for our Army and the nation. In this edition of the Foundation News we continue our “CGSC 101” series that highlights the various teaching departments at the College with a feature on the […]

The State Department recently released the 2015 Country Reports on Terrorism. The reports assesses global terrorist threats, including terrorist groups such as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and the use of chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) weapons. Many of the country reports also appraise U.S. involvement and interagency cooperation, calling for better coordinated […]

In spring 2016, the Simons Center began seeking to publish more of the scholarship being produced here at the Command and General Staff College by both faculty and students. “Much very good, and thoughtful work in many subject areas is being produced and discussed here at Fort Leavenworth, the intellectual center of the U.S. Army,” […]

“The mind is the key to victory,” Lt. Gen. Gary H. Cheek told U.S. military and international officers, and civilians from U.S. federal agencies graduating from the U.S. Army School of Advanced Military Studies on May 26 at 9 a.m. in the Eisenhower Auditorium of the Lewis and Clark Center. The 135 graduates include 14 […]

In 1866, some of the first Decoration Day ceremonies were held in Columbus, Mississippi and Waterloo, New York to honor those that died during the Civil War. Later renamed Memorial Day and expanded to include those who have died in all American wars, this tradition has always included a somber remembrance of service members who […]

On May 23 and 24, 9,000 government, private sector, and civil society representatives gathered in Istanbul, Turkey, for the World Humanitarian Summit. Participants included representatives from 173 United Nations (UN) member states and 55 heads of state and government, as well as thousands from the private sector, civil society, and non-governmental organizations. With an estimated […]

Last week, the U.S. Army Peacekeeping and Stability Operations Institute (PKSOI) published Impunity: Countering Illicit Power in War and Transition. The work contains a collection of case studies and analyses on the dynamics associated with illicit power and state weaknesses relating to preventing or resolving armed conflict. Impunity addresses how to effectively respond to the illicit […]

On May 18 the White House released an Executive Order that presents a comprehensive approach to atrocity prevention and response. The Executive Order continues the interagency Atrocities Prevention Board that was established via Presidential Study Directive-10 in 2012; lays out support from executive departments, agencies, and offices; and updates and memorializes the terms on which […]

Ambassador (Ret.) Charles P. Ries visited the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth May 10-11, as part of the CGSC Foundation’s DACOR Visiting Professor of Diplomacy program. CGSC students were impressed with Ambassador Ries’ presence in their classrooms. “This was a great opportunity to pick the brain of someone ‘who’s been […]