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Professor Michael Clarke

Position: Director General

Michael Clarke is currently the Director of the Royal United Services Institute. Until July 2007 he was the Deputy Vice-Principal and Director of Research Development at King's College London, where he remains a Visiting Professor of Defence Studies. He was the founding Director of the International Policy Institute at King's College London from 2001-2005 and Head of the School of Social Science and Public Policy at KCL in 2004-05. He was, from 1990 to 2001, the founding Director of the Centre for Defence Studies at King's. He was appointed as Professor of Defence Studies in 1995.

He has been a Guest Fellow at The Brookings Institution, Washington, DC, and a Fellow in Foreign Policy Studies at the Royal Institute of International Affairs in London. He has been senior Specialist Adviser to the House of Commons Defence Committee since 1997, having served previously with the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee 1995-7. In 2004 he was appointed the UK member of the United Nations Secretary General's Advisory Board on Disarmament Matters. In 2007 he was appointed as one of the Security Commissioners at the Institute for Public Policy Research.  In 2009 he was appointed to the Prime Minister's National Security Forum in pursuit of the new National Security Strategy launched in 2008.

RUSI articles and analysis by this author

VIDEO: Perspectives for 2012 16 Dec 2011
RUSI Director General Professor Michael Clarke offers his defence and international security perspectives for the year ahead.

The Afghan Papers: Committing Britain to War in Helmand, 2005-06 8 Dec 2011
Ten years after British troops entered Afghanistan, a new book dissects the strategic decisions that took the UK to war in Helmand

Accidental Heroes: Britain, France and the Libya Operation - RUSI Interim Libya Campaign Report 23 Sep 2011
A new RUSI report looks at the diplomatic, strategic and military aspects of the recent Libya campaign.

The 9/11 Decade and the Challenges Ahead 6 Sep 2011
Professor Michael Clarke, Director-General, RUSI, outlines the milestones of the last decade since the attacks of 11 September 2001.

Curious victory for NATO in Libya 23 Aug 2011
Few dispute the assertion that NATO jets enabled Libyan rebels to come knocking on Qadhafi's door in Tripoli. But as he falls, it will be difficult to avoid the conclusion that NATO emerges from this successful operation weaker than it went into it.

The 9/11 Reading List: British Security 3 Aug 2011
Michael Clarke reviews 'Securing the State' by David Omand

Charging up the Valley: British Decisions in Afghanistan 1 Aug 2011
The UK deployment to Helmand in 2006 has proven highly controversial. But was the decision taken properly?

The Top Brass and the Politicians: Strained Relations 4 Jul 2011
Recent tensions between British politicians and the military top brass are a symptom of the uncertainty over whose long term vision for British defence policy is the more realistic. Such tensions are not new, demonstrating the inability of policymakers to get to grips with strategy.

Un-strategic Victory in Libya 31 May 2011
Operational success in Libya appears to be close for anti-Qadhafi rebels and their international military backers. But victory will bring the NATO powers little direct strategic benefit. Grateful for success, we should nevertheless be careful how we interpret it and understand the limitations of success for the West and the wider policy implications for the Middle East.

The Death of Bin Laden: Analysing the Implications 6 May 2011
RUSI's experts examine the implications of the death of Osama Bin Laden and the operation that led to his killing

Libya: A first step towards full military involvement? 20 Apr 2011
As the UK sends military officers to advise Libyan rebels, RUSI analysts assesses the merits of the latest phase in the international intervention in Libya.

The Dangers of Leaving Libya to Languish 31 Mar 2011
The back-and-forth nature of the Libyan conflict thus far underlines the need for external actors to facilitate a decisive change of fortune

Raising the Stakes 19 Mar 2011
The UN's approval of a no-fly zone over Libya has raised the diplomatic and strategic stakes for all parties - but will it be enough?

Has the Defence Review secured Britain's place in the world? 20 Oct 2010
For all the arguing and the leaks that have surrounded this Defence Review, there is some clear grand strategy behind it. The Government has decided that Britain will still strive to remain a global player.

The National Security Strategy and the Strategic Defence and Security Review 18 Oct 2010
Are the strategic threats and opportunities adequately recognised in the Strategic Defence and Security Review?

The Strategic Moment: Britain faces impossible choices in an unstable and uncertain world 13 Sep 2010
The Strategic Defence and Security Review is being conducted against a backdrop of bitter arguments between the Services and the threats of cuts of up to 20 per cent, yet it is meant to define Britain's place in the world and our foreign policy and defence priorities for decades to come.

Terrorism: The New Wave 26 Aug 2010
A new wave of terrorists, highly motivated but lightly trained, are emerging, creating a new risk that has yet to be fully understood

Kuwaiti Security Dialogue 10 Aug 2010
RUSI to broker a series of high-level meetings between UK and Kuwaiti policymakers

The leaking of the Afghan War documents 26 Jul 2010
How significant is the release of the Afghan war documents on WikiLeaks? RUSI Director Michael Clarke gives his assessment

A Bad Week for Afghan Strategists 24 Jun 2010
While the sombre landmark of the three hundredth British death was passed this week, and the Commander has been summarily replaced, politicians and military leaders reveal divisions at the top that make everyone wonder whether the campaign is winnable.

Leaders' Debate: Not Much to Choose in Principle, Just a Matter of Emphasis 23 Apr 2010
Seeing the effects of personal style on the outcome of last week’s debate, all three leaders tried to put their personality into the defence and security tussle; not an easy thing to do when trying to be a world figure.

General Election 2010: Defence issues and the party positions 24 Mar 2010
RUSI Director Professor Michael Clarke, and RUSI's Director of Military Sciences, Michael Codner, offer their assessment on the defence and security issues that may be raised either prior to or immediately after the UK General Election.

What Will Success Look Like in Operation Moshtarak? 16 Feb 2010
Operation Moshtarak is the most important campaign in Afghanistan since the invasion in 2001. Its success, however, will not be measured in military terms but in terms of public opinion, both in Helmand and the rest of Afghanistan and in the Coalition's domestic electorate.

Blair was 'optimistic not criminal' 29 Jan 2010
Tony Blair's evidence to the Iraq inquiry may focus on the legality of the war. But he is guilty of confused optimism rather than an urge to behave illegally.

Our most devastating weapon is agility 25 Jan 2010
Our services must get smarter to cope with today’s threats. Their ability to adapt and maintain their high professionalism and dedication in a range of roles and with a variety of technologies is key to playing to British strengths.

Afghans optimistic for the future 11 Jan 2010
The results of an annual poll of Afghan opinion show a surprising degree of optimism for their country's future direction. But we should not rest on our laurels. A great deal could go wrong before the favourable perceptions can be seen to have turned a genuine corner in Afghanistan.

Defence Cuts: Something is going to give 16 Dec 2009
Bob Ainsworth, the Defence Secretary, has announced deep cuts in military personnel and equipment to fund a £900 million boost for the Afghanistan campaign. However the figures may not stack up. Something is going to give and in a big way. Defence is living through a slow motion road accident while it waits for the political wheel to turn and give it some strategic direction.

Will Afghan security forces be ready for a handover by 2011? 3 Dec 2009
President Obama made clear his intention to hand over full security responsibility in some areas to Afghan National Security Forces. All easier said than done, the essence of the problem lies in daunting numbers and even more daunting issues of quality and loyalty.

Assessing troop numbers in Afghanistan 30 Nov 2009
What General McChrystal asked for was five more brigades - five more brigades that he can use in Kandahar, in Helmand, a couple in the north east and a training brigade. So if he gets those five brigades then he's got backing for his plan whatever the final number turns out to be

Avoiding the same mistakes: the international strategy for Afghanistan 29 Nov 2009
As President Obama announces his plans for Afghanistan, there is palpable consensus within the international community that the whole enterprise is now staring strategic defeat in the face. The next eighteen months represents the last good opportunity to put right the neglect and the mistakes of the last eight years and avert a worse crisis for us all.

Up to the task? India's response to shifting security patterns 28 Oct 2009
India faces important economic and strategic choices over the next decade, especially in terms of its diplomatic relations and defence industry. While there are limited signs that India has made positive steps to improve regional relations, urgent reform is needed at the national level to ensure its security.

Better equipment can help, but we need more troops in Afghanistan 13 Jul 2009
While greater numbers of helicopters and armoured vehicles are needed in Afghanistan, what British soldiers at the front want most are reinforcements to make operational success more certain and the political benefits more long-lasting.

The Defence Review: Formally Announced but Already Begun 10 Jul 2009
The announcement of the next Future Defence Review to be carried out by a new Parliament marks the official beginning of a long process of discussions about the state of the Armed Forces, but the review of strategy has been going on for a long time before.

A draw in Iraq, no victory near in Helmand 3 May 2009
Troops need to believe that they risk their lives for things that are genuinely important.

NATO at Sixty: Unhappy Returns 27 Mar 2009
This is a lousy time to be hitting sixty; and the candles on the birthday cake are as likely to be lit in response to a power cut as a celebration. Getting older is no more fun for an alliance than for its individual leaders. NATO saw in its fortieth birthday on the verge of triumphant success in the Cold War; its fiftieth as itwent into its first shooting war with a minor European country; and its sixtieth at the centre of a second shootingwar in a minor Asian country that may turn out to be its last. In the midst of global chaos caused by the collapse of traditional international structures and the major power shifts that the economic crisis is already causing, can NATO honestly look forward to a seventieth birthday in anything other than failing health?

RUSI Director joins UK's National Security Forum 9 Mar 2009
RUSI Director Professor Michael Clarke is announced as a member of the National Security Forum offering independent expert security advice to the Government.

More Effort Needed to Win Hearts and Minds - Afghanistan Opinion Poll 2009 9 Feb 2009
Working with the BBC, RUSI analyses the latest opinion poll charting Afghan attitudes. The results reveal a number of positive trends but also growing scepticism about the foreign intervention.

‘A Hard Pounding, Gentlemen’: The Coming Year in Afghanistan 11 Jan 2009
The UK needs more troops on the ground to relieve pressure in Helmand, but unless an increase is accompanied by significant victories elsewhere, the Coalition’s long-term prospects are not good. A new approach to strategic thinking in Afghanistan and the means to give some effect to it are sorely needed in the new year.

A Sigh of Relief from the Allies: But Questions for the Future Will Be a Lot Harder As a Result 5 Nov 2008
As leaders celebrate an Obama victory across European capitals, they should also be prepared to deal with a hard-faced man under pressure who will feel he has the right to expect much more from European partners.

Strategy and Fortune: British Security Policy in Transition 17 Oct 2007
This is an extended version of Professor Michael Clarke's inagural lecture to the Institute delivered on 25 September 2007.

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