I just returned home from an interesting week in North Carolina at US Army Special Operations Command and Marine Special Operations Command, where I sat down with 17 SOF policymakers as background for my new book. Our chats focused on three important issues: (1) nature of contemporary warfare, (2) SOF participation in security cooperation efforts, and (3) rules on the use of force.
One interesting thing that emerged was that 80% of countries in the world today are not in the midst of an armed conflict but rather criminal or organized crime activity – often as intense and as violent as warfare. In these conditions, the law of armed conflict (LOAC) does not apply, as there is no armed conflict per the legal definition of the term. This grey area poses a problem for USOF operating overseas. My book will dive deep into detail on these issues from the perspective of 4 Latin American countries: Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, and Chile.
Stay tuned!