Covert Military Ops: Strategy vs. Legality International Relations & National Security

The drone strike that shook the world. The assassination of Qasem Soleimani, Iranian Major General of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, threated to tip U.S.-Iran hostilities into war. President Trump justified the attack; the U.S. accuses Soleimani for acts of terrorism and for being the arcquitect of operations that killed hundreds of soldiers during the Iraq war. In Iran, a major contrast: many lauded the powerful commander as a hero.

The attack prompted significant questions. How legal is for the U.S. President to carry these covert operations? Was this attack strategically wise as for making Americans safer or just a reckless escalation?

Professor Laurie Blank from Emory Law School in conversation with Professor Carrie Lee from the Air War College will shed light on this issue as they discuss the role of the U.S. military around the world and the premises to understand what’s legal and strategic when it comes to such high-level military operations.

This online program is a membership benefit.