Ideas

Redraw the Limits on Lethal Force Against Terror Groups

As the Biden administration reviews policies for use of lethal force outside war zones, it must be certain it’s not perpetuating a cycle of “forever wars.”

Ideas

Narcissism and National Security

A century ago, the doings of ordinary citizens barely mattered to national security. Today, they matter a great deal more.

Ideas

The US Needs to Impose Costs on China for Its Economic Warfare

The linchpin of a more effective deterrence is developing a more effective way to hurt the Chinese Communist Party if it will not stop hurting the United States.

Ideas

America Needs Competitive Intelligence

Agencies ought to be thinking about how to bring U.S. capabilities to bear on adversaries’ vulnerabilities, in competition as well as in conflict.

Ideas

Why We Need the Advanced Battle Management System

The character of war is changing; ABMS provides the tools for effective command and control into the future.

Ideas

America Can Beat China in Space with Safe Nuclear Propulsion

A reactor that heats up and expels non-radioactive gas promises unprecedented mobility in orbit.

Ideas

We Don’t Have Enough Information to Evaluate Arguments for a New ICBM

The Biden administration should follow precedent and commission an independent look at the case for the Ground Based Strategic Defense program.

Ideas

Ten Years After Bin Laden, We Still Need Better Intelligence Sharing

Leaders should still apply the lessons we learned, when contending with China and Russia.

Ideas

Teamwork Led Us to Bin Laden and Can Keep America Safe

As we look back on the Osama bin Laden raid of a decade ago, three lessons stand out.

Ideas

Illegal Fishing Is a National Security Problem

The stability of countries and regions are threatened by the declining health of fish stocks, and by the groups and governments that run lawless fishing fleets.

Ideas

Defense One Radio, Ep. 81: The future of Afghanistan

Ben Watson talks with Greg, a Green Beret medic who served in Afghanistan, and with Long War Journal's Bill Roggio.

Ideas

No ICBMs? Big Problems

We must dispel the unfounded fears of false alarms, place the cost in context, and seriously consider the unpleasant consequences of eliminating ICBMs from the U.S. nuclear force.

Ideas

How to Think About Counterinsurgency After Afghanistan

Realistic policy depends on a closer look at costs, benefits, and the objectives of would-be counterinsurgency partners.

Ideas

China to US: Back Off and Calm Down

Foreign Minister Wang Yi just delivered a raw, propaganda-tainted rebuke of Washington’s leaders for stoking “fears” of China’s rise.

Ideas

The Bloated Pentagon Budget Isn’t Just Wasteful. It’s Racist

In this era of racial reckoning, national security policy and defense budgets cannot be exempt from the scrutiny of their effects on communities of color.

Ideas

Why the US Military Is Leading the Charge on 5G

It’s not unlike the way that the armed forces invested in radar technology during World War II.

Ideas

The Original Sin of the War in Afghanistan

How Biden viewed the start of America’s post-9/11 wars may inform his future decisions on the use of force.

Ideas

How Cyber Ops Increase the Risk of Accidental Nuclear War

Five factors exacerbate a U.S.-Chinese security dilemma.