National Security Law

Within National Security Law

U.S. national security and foreign policy is inextricably linked with relevant domestic and international legal frameworks. From emergency powers to war powers, harnessing emerging technologies to protecting civil liberties, military engagement abroad to deployment domestically, legal issues are central to the most critical national security and foreign policy debates of today and tomorrow.

The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) National Security Law Program makes sense of this complicated realm, providing nonpartisan, expert-level legal analysis of how constitutional, international, and statutory law, as well as other relevant legal authorities, inform policy decisions. The program’s research agenda focuses on critical areas of national security law that benefit from timely analysis, pragmatic recommendations, and policy relevance. Leveraging CNAS’s strong bipartisan convening power, the program provides a platform for expert public dialogues and private debate and discussion. Further, the program provides meaningful opportunities to develop the next generation of national security law practitioners.

Support CNAS

Recent Publications

Related Events

Related Press

In The News
National Security Law

U.S. Disputes Reports of Ships Breaching Blockade

The dotted line is “an operational tool for the Navy warships that has little to no legal import. The law of blockade speaks nothing about blockade lines, it just speaks about...

In The News
National Security Law

U.S. Military Prepares to Board Iran-Linked Ships in Coming Days, Officials Say

“It’s a maximalist approach. If you want to put the screws down on Iran, you want to use every single legal authority you have to do that,” Nevitt said....

In The News
National Security Law

What to Know About ‘Ship Spoofing’ by Iran-Linked Vessel to Breach the U.S. Blockade of the Strait of Hormuz

Boarding operations would likely rely on smaller, more maneuverable assets, including rigid-hull boats and helicopters, to rapidly intercept and inspect vessels, Mark Nevitt, ...

View All Press

Research Team