Uncertainties of Vietnam Return in War on Terror

By Deborah Lee James

Former Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James has over 30 years of senior level homeland and national security experience in the federal government and private sector. She is also the author of Aim High: Chart Your Course and Find SuccessDuring her time as Secretary, her responsibilities included organizing, training, equipping and providing for the welfare of The Department of the Air Force and its nearly 660,000 active-duty, Guard, Reserve, and civilian Airmen and their families. Secretary James also oversaw the Air Force’s annual budget of more than $139 billion. Today, James serves on boards of directors and advisory boards of companies and not-for-profits focused on security, including Textron, Unisys, and Noblis.

The U.S.-led coalition has achieved significant success this year in the battle against ISIS, first in Mosul and now in Raqqa where nearly 80 percent of the city has cleared of ISIS fighters. However, there has also been a worrying spike in civilian casualties under the Trump Administration. U.S. Central Command has acknowledged roughly 600 unintentional civilian deaths over the three-year long war against ISIS, but the independent UK-based monitor group Airwars claims that this number may be over 5,000, and they claim that nearly 60 percent of these deaths have taken place under the Trump Administration alone. The Cipher Brief’s Fritz Lodge spoke with former Secretary of the Air Force Deborah Lee James about what changes she has seen in the way that the Trump Administration plans and authorizes military strikes, what might explain the rise in civilian casualties, and how this could affect the war against ISIS.

The Cipher Brief: In April, President Donald Trump said that he has given the military “total authorization” to pursue combat operations abroad. In your mind, how has this approach differed from the Obama Administration’s strike authorization process, particularly in the coalition fight against ISIS in Iraq and Syria?

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