The Russian Federation has recently implemented a foreign policy strategy aimed at subverting the West’s ability to deter Russia from destabilizing its neighbors. This strategy combines elements of conventional military strategy with “weaponized information” in order to achieve success in the political and military arenas of conflict. “Weaponized Information” goes beyond the “network-centric” warfare envisioned by cyber security experts, focused instead upon the development of “fake news,” disinformation, and encouraging conflicting media narratives. This thesis explores this strategy through Thomas Schelling’s framework of deterrence elucidated in Arms and Influence and uses recent events in Ukraine, Syria, the United States, and Europe to describe the development and implementation of “weaponized information” in 21st Century international conflicts. / Master of Arts / Beginning with the recent Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2014, this thesis will examine the development of Russia’s strategy of “weaponized information.” “Weaponized information” includes: “fake news,” election tampering, disinformation, and hacking. Weaponized information compliments conventional military operations in order to keep Russia’s adversaries from realizing they are under attack and keeps Russia’s adversaries from intervening against Russia. This thesis examines the historical reasons Russia has developed this strategy, how it intersects with theory on how to stop adversaries from intervening against a country’s actions, and provides real-world examples of how and where weaponized information is used. Understanding these events will better prepare the United States and the West to defend themselves against aggressive states that seek to harm them. This thesis also attempts to provide to combine understanding of this military strategy with academic work on how to analyze it to better prepare future scholars who research in this field.

The introduction of security in airspace management presented an interesting problem as the United States inserted itself as the new arbiter of international aviation security. By its very nature, aviation security requires strict policing standards on both ends of travel, at both the departure and arrival airports. This requires unique territorial cooperation between states. But in a world of uneven power, one powerful state with network centrality has the capacity to impose its security demands on the system. How this is created, which I term conceptually as an "extraterritorial aviation regime," is what this dissertation seeks to explain. Hijackings and bombings of airplanes in the 1970s and 1980s culminated in a significant bombing in 1988: the destruction of Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. This event became a critical juncture in the management of airspace. The U.S. state used its desire to impose certain security standards to create a new extraterritorial aviation regime, directly placing U.S. security personnel in the airports of other states, and regulating international air carriers, which were controlled and often owned by other states. My research argues that the U.S. used its centrality in the aviation network to institute a new regime for the security management of international airspace. But while security was a public motivation for this new regime, aviation deregulation and economics were also drivers behind the U.S. policy change. Understanding why the new regime was formed in Pan Am's wake helps to understand why the U.S. state became the security standard-maker in international aviation and what led the U.S. to assume control of other states' airports and airplanes under the rubric of U.S. law. / Doctor of Philosophy / The introduction of security in airspace management presented an interesting problem as the United States inserted itself as the new arbiter of international aviation security. Hijackings and bombings of airplanes in the 1970s and 1980s culminated in a significant bombing in 1988: the destruction of Pan Am flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. This new need for security in aviation created a critical juncture that led to a new extraterritorial aviation regime, with the United States at the core of regulating international airports and international carriers. My research question argues that the U.S. used its position in the international aviation network to institute a new regime, led by the United States. My research also uncovered the element of aviation deregulation and economics as a driver behind the U.S. policy changes in this space. Understanding why the new regime was formed in Pan Am's wake helps to understand why the U.S. state became the security standard-maker in international aviation and what led the U.S. to assume control of other states' airports and airplanes under the rubric of U.S. law.

Bacillus anthracis is a soil dwelling microbe with pronounced pathogenic potential. Historically, anthrax has infected livestock and man. In the modern-age, anthrax is a bioterrorism concern with major incidents every decade. While the threat of large scale attacks is currently viewed as unlikely, the threat is consistent and constant. Current methods to defend against such an attack focus on antibiotics and containment of public panic. Antibiotic resistance, while not currently an issue for anthrax, could easily become so with genetically engineered weaponized strains created by rogue states or independent actors. This project evolved from collaborations between the Grose lab and the Robison lab, both housed in the Microbiology and Molecular Biology Department at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. Two undergraduates in the Grose lab isolated 23 genetically distinct phage that infect the non-pathogenic Bacillus anthracis Sterne strain. Results from spot testing on a diverse library of 11 fully virulent strains that represent the extant genetic diversity of pathogenic B. anthracis in BYU’s BSL-3 facility give credence to the idea that phage could be useful in containing this pathogen. Phage were isolated from environmental samples using enrichment culture, high titer lysates of isolated phage were created, and differential assays were performed. Experiments to show phage differences included electron microscopy, restriction digests, and spot testing using different isolates of B. anthracis. These data identified several novel phage that could infect a wide variety of virulent B. anthracis isolates. Preliminary results also showed most of these phage to be different both morphologically and genetically.We propose that phage therapy deserves further research, public awareness, and increased understanding for governmental regulatory awareness.

In a world witnessing unprecedented levels of forced displacement, the weaponization of migration has emerged as a potent and unexplored tool in the foreign policy arsenals of states and non-state actors. Challenging traditional state-centric perspectives in international relations, this thesis delves into the realm of Coercive Engineered Migration (CEM) employed by armed non-state actors. With a focus on Libya, a key player in the weaponization of migration against the European Union (EU), this study investigates the strategic orchestration of migration flows, coercive mechanisms, and the diplomatic preconditions underpinning these actions. The findings reveal evidence of multiple attempts of CEM against the EU by armed non-state actors in Libya during two distinct periods: 2014-2017 and 2020-2023. Employing coercion by punishment strategies and denial mechanisms, these actors mainly sought legitimacy and resources from the EU. Armed non-state actors gained more leverage compared to state actors due to their non-diplomatic status. This thesis contributes to the existing literature by challenging realist assumptions, diversifying the understanding of non-violent foreign policy strategies employed by armed non-state actors, and highlighting the often-overlooked significance of these actors in the realm of weaponized migration.