The Henry Jackson Society

The Henry Jackson Society was founded in Cambridge in 2005. We are a think tank and policy-shaping force that fights for the principles and alliances which keep societies free. We work across borders and party lines to combat extremism, advance democracy and real human rights. We are dedicated to researching and debating these issues around these guiding principles.

Our research centres cover Asia, Russia and Eurasia, as well as research on radicalisation and terrorism, social and political risk, global Britain, and student rights.

The Henry Jackson Society:

  • Believes that modern liberal democracies set an example for the rest of the world.
  • Supports a ‘forward strategy’ – involving diplomatic, economic, cultural, and/or political means — to assist those countries to become liberal and democratic.
  • Supports the maintenance of a strong military by the United Kingdom, the United States, the countries of the European Union and other democratic powers, armed with expeditionary capabilities with a global reach that can protect our homelands from strategic threats, forestall terrorist attacks and prevent genocide or massive ethnic cleansing.
  • Supports the necessary furtherance of European military modernisation and integration under British leadership, preferably within NATO.
  • Stresses the importance of unity between the world’s great democracies, represented by institutions such as NATO, the European Union and the OECD.
  • Believes that only modern liberal democratic states are truly legitimate; and that the political or human rights pronouncements of any international or regional organisations which admits undemocratic states lack legitimacy.
  • Promotes capitalism- there are limits to the market, which needs to serve the Democratic Community and these should be reconciled to the environment.
  • Accepts that we must set priorities and that sometimes we have to compromise, but insists that we should never lose sight of our fundamental values. This means that alliances with repressive regimes can only be temporary. It also means a strong commitment to individual and civil liberties in democratic states, even and especially when we are under attack.

Latest reports

A culture of impunity

This report from UK think tank The Henry Jackson Society explores conflict-related sexual violence in contemporary proxy warfare. Around the world, civilians caught in the midst of armed conflict are increasingly suffering from conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV). This disturbing upward trend was confirmed during the 9378th meeting of the United Nations Security Council in 2022,...

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The prospective immigration policy of Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour party

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society looks at the prospective immigration policy of Sir Keir Starmer's Labour party. The Labour Party, headed by Sir Keir Starmer, finds itself in a favourable position for the upcoming elections. Yet its position on one of the most important topics for the electorate today remains...

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Unfreezing the Abraham Accords

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society looks at a new transatlantic strategy for greater peace, stability and integration in the Middle East. Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine triggered the largest war in Europe since World War II. The invasion also marked the first all-out cyber war between two nation-states, as Russia...

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Lessons from the first cyberwar

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society looks at how supporting Ukraine on the digital battlefield can help improve the UK’s online resilience. Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine triggered the largest war in Europe since World War II. The invasion also marked the first all-out cyber war between two nation-states, as Russia...

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A vital partnership

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society will look at how strengthened UK-Taiwan ties can help maintain stable cross-strait relations. The success of the United Kingdom’s post-Brexit Indo-Pacific tilt and its security and economic interests throughout the entirety of the region are increasingly dependent on maintaining stable cross-Strait relations between Taiwan and...

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Ukraine’s nuclear shadow

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society This research paper addresses the national security implications of the potential and actual nuclear and radiological events in Ukraine for the UK and the European members of NATO. The armed conflict, over the past 20 months, has had significant humanitarian, economic, and environmental impacts in...

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Studying abroad to serve China

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society suggests that it is critical for universities and students’ unions to recognise that CSSAs are not independent – they are part of a system. Universities and students’ unions are operating under the fiction that CSSAs, the Chinese Students and Scholars Associations [中国学生学者联谊会] in the UK,...

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Getting a foot in the door

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society suggests how preparations for a democratic future-Russia might begin. Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine is now in its second year with no end in sight. Western military strategists and policymakers are now planning for increased weapons supplies and training for Ukrainian troops to prepare for...

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Russia and the anti-western axis must be militarily defeated

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society explores shifting the Western consensus toward ending Russia’s military threat to Ukraine and the West. The new Cold War pits a Russia-China-Iran-North Korea axis against the West. The goal of this anti-Western axis is the defeat of the US-led unipolar world that has been in...

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Natural gas and the Energy Trilemma

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society examines the role of natural gas in the energy trilemma. In this report we examine the role of natural gas in the Energy Trilemma, focusing specifically on the situation in the United Kingdom. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, many countries found themselves in an energy...

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Securing religious freedom

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society looks at why British leadership on FoRB should be written into law. In the last five years, the promotion of international religious freedom has become a new priority, and a notable success story, for British diplomacy. But this vitally important policy now faces both political...

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Why is the UK still party to the Iran Nuclear Deal?

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society looks at practical applications for the future of the JCPOA. At the time of publication of this report, the 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 78) is being held at the United Nations headquarters in New York, with the high-level General Debate...

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Britain’s new blasphemy police?

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society looks at understanding Islamist anti-blasphemy action in the UK. Blasphemy is the act of saying or doing something that disrespects God or religion. The common law offences of blasphemy and blasphemous libel were abolished in England and Wales by the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act...

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A duty to protect

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society looks at the failure of UK sanctions against Iran and the necessity of proscribing the IRGC. As global terrorism surges with every passing year, calls for the United Kingdom (UK) to proscribe Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organisation have become more...

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Stronger together: How US–UK collaboration can address China’s growing geopolitical ambition

This report from UK think tank the Henry Jackson Society looks at Washington and London's approach towards China and it's changes.  Washington’s and London’s “business as usual” approach toward the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has fundamentally changed, as most transatlantic policymakers have finally realised the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has its own economic, security...

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