Micah Zenko
Douglas Dillon Fellow
Expertise
Conflict prevention; U.S. national security policy; military planning and operations; nuclear weapons policy
Programs
Center for Preventive Action
Featured Publications
Douglas Dillon Fellow Micah Zenko analyzes the potentially serious consequences, both at home and abroad, of a lightly overseen drone program and makes recommendations for improving its governance.
See more in United States, Wars and Warfare
In this globalized world, countries will need to cooperate on policies that extend across borders to address issues that affect them all, including conflict prevention and peacemaking. The authors of this report assess the strengths and weaknesses of international institutions and provide a set of practical recommendations for how the United States can strengthen the global architecture for preventive action by partnering with those organizations.
See more in United States, International Organizations, Conflict Prevention
Last August, the Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney performed what has become a quadrennial rite of passage in American presidential politics: he delivered a speech to the annual convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
See more in National Security and Defense, Wars and Warfare
All Publications
Micah Zenko examines the public comments of John Brennan, Obama's closest adviser for intelligence and counterterrorism issues, and finds that there are seven half-truths and direct contradictions between stated U.S. policies and actual practices.
See more in United States, Defense/Homeland Security, Counterterrorism
Micah Zenko says John Brennan, chief adviser to President Obama on counterterrorism issues, has a unique and unprecedented role in shaping and implementing the president's vision for protecting the United States, its allies, and its interests from politically motivated violence.
See more in United States, Counterterrorism, Presidency
Ahead of the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Discovery Channel's "Shark Week," Micah Zenko counts down ten things that kill more people than sharks.
See more in United States, Public Health Threats, Health
Micah Zenko argues that U.S. targeted killings campaign is a short-term tactic, not a long-term solution to enduring political or security challenge.
See more in United States, Defense Technology
Micah Zenko says that the debate over domestic surveillance is heating up, but it's not time to panic.
See more in United States, Defense Technology
Michael Cohen and Micah Zenko argue that Mitt Romney's foreign policy speeches both wrongly inflate the threats that America faces and project weakness by having no confidence in America's ability to meet any such challenges.
See more in United States, Foreign Policy History, U.S. Election 2012
Micah Zenko and Emma Welch map out the launch pads for Obama's secret wars.
See more in Africa, United States, Afghanistan, Yemen, Defense Technology, Wars and Warfare
The Seoul summit advances global efforts on securing nuclear materials in dozens of countries, but the challenge will be to sustain the focus on the universal elimination of weapons-usable material, writes CFR's Micah Zenko.
See more in North Korea, South Korea, Proliferation
Micah Zenko says it's time for the United States to think of new ways to combat terrorism in Southwest Asia.
See more in Afghanistan, Wars and Warfare
Micah Zenko discusses whether Israel should accept a nuclear ban.
See more in Israel, Arms Control and Disarmament, Weapons of Mass Destruction
Micah Zenko explains the creation, use, and future of drones.
See more in United States, Defense Technology
Last August, the Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney performed what has become a quadrennial rite of passage in American presidential politics: he delivered a speech to the annual convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
See more in National Security and Defense, Wars and Warfare
As the debate over intervention or arming the opposition grows amid continuing violence in Syria, four CFR experts offer their recommendations on how Washington should respond to the crisis.
See more in Syria, U.S. Strategy and Politics
Micah Zenko and Emma Welch argue that while the Republican presidential candidates overwhelmingly describe the prospect of an Iranian nuclear weapons capability as "unacceptable" and endorse the use of military force if that were necessary to prevent an Iranian bomb, there is a complete absence of any details on how the use of force could accomplish this ambitious objective.
See more in Iran, Weapons of Mass Destruction, U.S. Election 2012
Micah Zenko says requests for humanitarian intervention by foreign governments and peoples happen all the time, and he examines why some requests are granted while others are ignored.
See more in Libya, Syria, UN, Humanitarian Intervention
Micah Zenko argues that Iran's recent downing of a Sentinel drone is neither surprising nor particularly revealing.
See more in United States, Iran, Intelligence
The eurozone and Saudi Arabia are elevated threats in 2012 under CFR's new Preventive Priorities Survey, while Afghanistan and Sudan are reduced. CFR's Micah Zenko discusses.
See more in United States, Defense Strategy, Conflict Prevention
Micah Zenko discusses preventive priorities the United States will face in 2012.
See more in United States, Conflict Assessment, Conflict Prevention
As countries around the world increasingly rely on space, orbital space debris poses a rapidly growing threat to civil, military, and commercial satellites. Micah Zenko argues for an international code to define interstate behavior and promote sustainable conduct in outer space.
See more in Space
Micah Zenko analyzes the unexpected invasion by Kenyan forces into Somalia to defeat the militant group, al-Shabaab.
See more in Kenya, Somalia, Terrorist Organizations
Contact/Media Information
Location
58 East 68th Street
New York, New York 10065
Media Bio
CFR Douglas Dillon Fellow in the Center for Preventive Action.
Email
mzenko@cfr.org
Downloads
Research Associate
Featured Press
Zenko: ‘Unbelievable’ that U.S. killed only one civilian in drone strikes
On NBC Nightly News, Micah Zenko says that more civilians and non-combatants have likely been killed by U.S. drone strikes than the Obama administration has claimed.
Discussion about President Obama's speech
On the Charlie Rose show, a panel of experts discussed President Obama's May 23, 2013 speech on drone strike and counterterrorism policies, including Micah Zenko of the Council on Foreign Relations; David Kilcullen, former advisor to Gen. Petraeus; David Ignatius of the Washington Post; Karen Greenberg of Fordham Law School;and Philip Mudd, former Deputy Director of the CIA and the FBI.
Drone Strikes and Diplomacy, from Yemen to Pakistan
On The Takeaway with John Hockenberry, Micah Zenko, Douglas Dillon Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and author of a recent comprehensive report on drone strike policies, describes the diplomatic problems that arise from targeted killing.