Ideas

Syria Is Now In Charge of the UN's Disarmament Efforts. Really.

The U.S. says the Assad regime’s repeated use of chemical weapons on civilians should disqualify it from the post.

Business

Pentagon Is Speeding Up Arms Exports to Saudi Arabia, Other Allies

A recent law allows one-size-fits-most-allies contracts, the U.S. military’s head weapons buyer explains.

Ideas

Save the Tomahawk

The U.S. Navy wants to stop production of America’s most useful long-range missile, betting that a replacement will arrive without delay.

Ideas

Trump’s New Arms-Sales Policy Is Good but Sounds Awful

We must reintegrate arms exports into the U.S. foreign-policy process — and do a far better job of explaining why than the Trump administration has managed so far.

Policy

A Law Meant to Punish America’s Foes Is Hurting Its Partners: Mattis

The secretary asked senators to punch a hole in the sanctions law they passed last year.

Policy

F-35 Sale to Taiwan Not Worth the ‘Risk,’ Experts Warn

As the Trump administration takes an aggressive stance on China, senators push an F-35 Joint Strike Fighter deal with Taiwan.

Ideas

Arms Sales Decisions Shouldn’t Be About Jobs

Basic foreign policy principles should drive potential weapons exports, not pork-barrel politics.

Policy

Trump Backs Off Budget Veto in Odd White House Event Laden with Misstatements

The mischaracterization of the 2018 defense budget as the biggest ever was just the start.

Business

How to Grow the Military Without Buying More Ships, Planes, Tanks

Pentagon leaders want to shorten the time spent on overhauls, keeping the weapons more available to fight.

Business

What ‘Buy America’ Looks Like at an Overseas Air Show

State Department officials say they’re upping their presence at the Singapore Airshow this week as part of the administration’s push to sell more arms abroad.

Science & Tech

How Fake Data Can Help the Pentagon Track Rogue Weapons

The Air Force Research Laboratory bought software that trains machine-learning tools to spot groups amassing biological, nuclear and chemical weapons.

Ideas

If We're Going to Export More US Arms, Let's Do It Smarter

Here are some ways to help ensure that rising sales don't undermine American security.

Business

Boeing May Lose Canada’s Super Hornet Order, Yet Jet’s Outlook is Bright

The past year has brought a trade dispute with Ottawa, a big deal with the U.S. Navy, and improved prospects elsewhere.

Ideas

North Korea’s New Missile Is a Game-Changer

Photos show a nose cone big enough to carry multiple warheads, plus countermeasures that U.S. missile defenses have never been tested against.

Threats

North Korea’s Military Capabilities, In Review

North Korea has embarked on an accelerated buildup of weapons of mass destruction and modernization of its already large conventional force.

Business

US Air Force Wants to Get New Nuclear Weapons Faster

Just months into the first development contracts, the service’s top general is looking for ways to speed things up.

Science & Tech

Three-Star General Wants AI in Every New Weapon System

The department's Project Maven uses machine learning to go through drone video feeds but that's just the beginning, Air Force Lt. Gen. Jack Shanahan said.

Ideas

Building an H-Bomb in Plain Sight

Usually countries build nuclear weapons in secret—but not North Korea.

Threats

Here’s What the US Could Sell South Korea and Japan to Counter North Korea

Trump doubles the allowable size of Seoul’s warheads and promises to transfer more sophisticated weapons to Asian allies.

Ideas

Lower-Yield Weapons Will Raise, Not Lower, the Threshold for Nuclear Use

Giving the U.S. president more flexible options will improve deterrence.