Political Violence in Latin America

Why is Costa Rica politically stable with little domestic violence while Colombia has struggled with eighty years of civil conflict? Why are drug cartels a problem in Mexico but not in Argentina? This course is an introduction to the dynamics and intricacies of political violence in Latin America. Understanding why political violence occurs, how it is used, what its effects are, and how it can be countered, is crucial to a clear understanding of the problems facing states and non-state actors, as well as the dynamics of a conflict-ridden global environment. Latin America has been particularly challenged by a high level of domestic violence, perpetrated by criminal, non-state, and state actors, but has attracted less public and policymaker attention than other regions. We will cover numerous subjects, including: why non-state actors and states use violent means to pursue political ends, as well as state repression and terrorism, riots, coups, revolutions, civil wars, communal conflict, and violence by insurgents, criminals, and terrorists.

This course provides a comprehensive introduction to the issues surrounding the proliferation of nuclear, biological, chemical, and radiological (NBCR) weapons and their means of delivery, the consequences of proliferation, and means to stem it or ameliorate its dangers, including:

• Nuclear, biological, chemical, and radiological weapons technologies

• Means of delivery, including ballistic and cruise missile technology

• Alternative perspectives on the dangers of proliferation and the utility of the term “weapons of mass destruction” (WMD)

• Factors affecting why states do or don’t pursue and obtain nuclear, biological, chemical, and radiological weapons and their means of delivery

• Potential and actual non-state actor pursuit, acquisition, and use of NBCR weapons

• Profiles of key countries and their NBCR programs and policies

• Deterrence vis-à-vis states and non-state actors

• Counterproliferation, including the possible use of force

• The nuclear nonproliferation regime, including the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards system

• The Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BWC)

• The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC)

• Missile control regimes and other export control arrangements

• Cooperative threat reduction and various post-9/11 initiatives

• Alternative futures, including new nuclear abolition debates

This workshop is designed to provide the student with a basic knowledge of the issues relating to... read more drone and satellite usage in a variety of situations. The workshop will focus more on the issues relating to drones and surveillance, but other issues such as satellite use will also be addressed.

Consideration will be given to the use of drones and satellites to perform both commercial and military/intelligence tasks and the policy issues raised by use of drones in domestic (US) and international airspace. Issues of privacy, the 4th Amendment right to be free from intrusive searches and seizures, and the legal regimes that affect the use of drones and satellites will be discussed. The impact of changing technical capabilities and potential collisions with civil liberties in these and other areas will be addressed.

This workshop will deal with the technical, policy, and legal issues involved in these subjects. It will provide the student with a working understanding of the issues involved in the current use of drones and overhead surveillance and will provide a look at the future uses and limitations, examining how civil liberties are and can be balanced against security interests.

This course begins with an introduction to financial crime, beginning with traditional money laundering schemes, and then delves more deeply into financial crimes related to trade and investment, such as false trade invoicing, the black market “peso” exchange, the use of high value metals, and sanctions circumvention. Prevailing* laws, regulations and best practices will be reviewed. Students will look at a few case studies and learn how to spot “red flag” indicators, and conduct a simulation in class. This will require critical thinking. Students will also complete a take-home exercise involving visual presentation skills requiring the ability to convey a complex crime schematically.

This course is designed for students who hope to become financial crime specialists, or merely gain fundamental knowledge of financial crime risks and regulations. This expertise is useful for careers in public or private sector compliance, investigative analysis, trade finance, and security/intelligence.

This course begins with an introduction to financial crime, beginning with traditional money laundering schemes, and then delves more deeply into financial crimes related to trade and investment, such as false trade invoicing, the black market “peso” exchange, the use of high value metals, and sanctions circumvention. Prevailing* laws, regulations and best practices will be reviewed. Students will look at a few case studies and learn how to spot “red flag” indicators, and conduct a simulation in class. This will require critical thinking. Students will also complete a take-home exercise involving visual presentation skills requiring the ability to convey a complex crime schematically.

This course is designed for students who hope to become financial crime specialists, or merely gain fundamental knowledge of financial crime risks and regulations. This expertise is useful for careers in public or private sector compliance, investigative analysis, trade finance, and security/intelligence.

Financial Crime Investigations & Compliance Management

This course is a follow-on to NPTG 8621: Introduction to Money Laundering and Trade-Based Financial Crime. It is designed for students who wish to pursue a career related to financial crime detection and prevention, whether in the government sector, private sector or multilateral agency.

The first part of the course covers all the elements of shaping an institution's financial crime compliance program, including AML, FCPA, OFAC and FATCA compliance. Students will develop their own risk scoring methodology for geographic risk and customer risk. We will also look at AML regulations and enforcement in other countries around the world.

Students will examine at what a number of multilateral organizations are doing like the Basel Committee Guidance, Wolfsberg Group recommendations, FATF blacklists and FATF mutual evaluations.

Many case studies will also be examined – both cases of banks behaving badly, as well as international criminal investigations – shedding light on how financial crimes are brought to light and how law enforcement can best investigate and prosecute.

Finally, any well-structured compliance program also has a system for escalating alerts for further investigation and reporting. In this class, students will review how to find and assess sources of evidence, spot red flags, and identify beneficial owners. Financial crime investigators, whether they be in the private sector or public sector, must master not only research skills, but also analytical and writing skills. For the final assignment, students will learn how to write up a suspicious transaction report with actionable intelligence.

Financial Crime Investigations & Compliance Management

This course is a follow-on to NPTG 8621: Introduction to Money Laundering and Trade-Based Financial Crime. It is designed for students who wish to pursue a career related to financial crime detection and prevention, whether in the government sector, private sector or multilateral agency.

The first part of the course covers all the elements of shaping an institution's financial crime compliance program, including AML, FCPA, OFAC and FATCA compliance. Students will develop their own risk scoring methodology for geographic risk and customer risk. We will also look at AML regulations and enforcement in other countries around the world.

Students will examine at what a number of multilateral organizations are doing like the Basel Committee Guidance, Wolfsberg Group recommendations, FATF blacklists and FATF mutual evaluations.

Many case studies will also be examined – both cases of banks behaving badly, as well as international criminal investigations – shedding light on how financial crimes are brought to light and how law enforcement can best investigate and prosecute.

Finally, any well-structured compliance program also has a system for escalating alerts for further investigation and reporting. In this class, students will review how to find and assess sources of evidence, spot red flags, and identify beneficial owners. Financial crime investigators, whether they be in the private sector or public sector, must master not only research skills, but also analytical and writing skills. For the final assignment, students will learn how to write up a suspicious transaction report with actionable intelligence.

This seminar aims to examine moral dilemmas that have confronted us throughout the nuclear age as well as in the current war with terrorism. The seminar will start by exploring the basic concepts of moral thinking and the principles of the “just war tradition.” Then we explore how and to what extent the tools and concepts of “just war tradition” apply to the fundamentals of contemporary world—the nuclear age on the one hand, and the war on terrorism on the other. As such, we will examine historical cases and practices involving both nuclear weapons and terrorism: from the “decision” to drop the first atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the practice of nuclear deterrence, through the morality of interrogation methods, intelligence gathering, and targeted assassination as tools against terrorism.