"From the Castros to COVID: An ASCE Virtual Conference" Interview Series: Dr. Prof. Michael Strauss Speaks to the Guantanamo Naval Base

For July and early August 2020, and in the run up to the Association for the Study of the Cuban Economy (ASCE) conference From the Castros to COVID: An ASCE Virtual Conference (13-15 August 2020; Concept Note HERE), ASCE will be organizing a series of interviews of individuals who will be participating in the upcoming conference.



The interviews explore in more detail some of the issues that will be presented at the Conference and also will introduce some of ASCE's key actors. The object is to get to know us better as well as to begin to engage in some of the more important issues facing Cuba, Cuba-US relations, and the regional situation in the Caribbean.  Larry Catá Backer hosts the interviews. All interviews may be accessed free of charge.  They are posted to the ASCE YouTube Channel, and may be accessed as well on the Coalition for Peace and Ethics YouTube Channel. They may also be accessed by scanning the QR Code on your mobile phone or other device.

Our next interview is with Dr. Prof. Michael Strauss, professor of international law and international relations at the Centre d’Etudes Diplomatiques et Stratégiques (CEDS) in Paris, and an invited professor at the Belarusian State University in Minsk We spoke about the the long and quite interesting history of the Guantanamo Naval Base from its creation in 1903 through current times.  What appears at first glance to be a straightforward issue--the lease of another sovereign's territory, turns out to have produced complex issues of international law, international relations, and internal operations for the US military services.  The politics of the closing of the Naval Base during the very brief movement to normalization that ended in 2017 is also discussed. We discussed as well legal issues around the use of Guantanamo as a detention center for prisoners from the Iraq and Afghan campaigns. Professor Strauss' book, The Leasing of Guantanamo Bay (Praeger Security International, 2009)provided the foundation for our discussions.

Please enjoy the interview with Larry Catá Backer. Professor Strauss' short bio follows.

A short video sneak peek of the interview may be accessed HERE.

The entire interview (English only) is available HERE.  

Michael J. Strauss

                                                                                                                                                                    Photo: London Metropolitan University

Michael J. Strauss is a professor of international law and international relations at the Centre d’Etudes Diplomatiques et Stratégiques (CEDS) in Paris, and an invited professor at the Belarusian State University in Minsk. He also taught international law as an adjunct professor at Université de Paris 5 (Paris Descartes). His research encompasses the relationship between states and territorial control, with a focus on leased territories and the lease of Guantanamo Bay in particular. Strauss has written three books and numerous articles pertaining to leased territories, and a fourth book on privatizations and territorial control that steered him toward his current research on post-government companies and territorial control as a motive in capitalism. Strauss holds a Ph.D. in international relations and diplomacy from CEDS and also has degrees from the University of Minnesota (B.A.) and Columbia University (M.S.). Prior to entering academia, he was an award-winning international journalist, mainly focusing on the economy and finance for Dow Jones and Knight-Ridder. He has been a member of  ASCE since 2009.