Ideas

Trump’s North Korea Gamble Is a Real-Time Experiment

Here’s how the president’s bets look when viewed through the lens of behavioral economics.

Ideas

What Would Denuclearization Look Like in North Korea?

Success will start by closing the gap between what the U.S. and North Korea mean by the term.

Ideas

North Korea Wants to End up Like Pakistan, Not Libya

A poor country made enormous sacrifices to get nuclear weapons—and has them still.

Ideas

What Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un Don't Know About Their Own Standoff

If the Cuban Missile Crisis is any indication, today’s leaders may be dangerously misinformed about the nuclear crisis.

Ideas

How to Bring the US-NK Rollercoaster Back to Earth

It starts with a sober assessment of what’s possible. Not on that list: Pyongyang somehow forgetting how to make nukes.

Ideas

WTF: A Few Morning Thoughts on US-North Korea Relations

Kim Jong Un doesn’t need to dance with Trump. He’s got his own nuclear weapons.

Threats

The Word That Derailed the Trump-Kim Summit

The Americans and the North Koreans were all set for a historic meeting. Then they started talking about Libya.

Ideas

Former South Korean National-Security Adviser: The US May Have to Withdraw Some Troops

Breaking with his fellow conservatives, Chun Yung Woo says "there will be no solution" to the North Korean nuclear crisis without willingness to compromise on the U.S. alliance.

Ideas

What the North Koreans Told Me About Their Plans

I was one of a handful of former officials to meet with them when they were just developing their current strategy. Those talks offer the best information we have about how to achieve denuclearization.

Ideas

Ep. 4: Trump vs. Kim; Military algorithms; ISIS’ new war narratives; USAF’s next plane and more.

Welcome to the fourth episode of our podcast about the news, strategy, tech, and business trends defining the future of national security.

Threats

The Campaign to Denuclearize North Korea Crashes Back to Earth

Kim Jong Un "has been playing a high-risk, high-return game. And he has never lost a bet thus far.”

Ideas

Ep. 3: Bye-bye, Iran deal; Hello, North Korea; Future of special ops in Niger and more.

Welcome to episode three of our weekly podcast about the news, strategy, tech, and business trends defining the future of national security.

Ideas

Making the Most of North Korea’s Mixed Motives

To work toward peace, the White House will need to lead a tightly coordinated balancing act to deter Kim Jong-un’s worst intentions while leveraging his desire for economic development.

Ideas

Ep. 2: Korean summit; Space Force?; Conversations with Eric Fanning, Paul Scharre and more.

Welcome to episode two of our weekly podcast about the news, strategy, tech, and business trends defining the future of national security.

Threats

The Deceptively Simple Promise of Korean Peace

It might have to start with something like the Conventional Armed Forces in Europe treaty concluded at the end of the Cold War.

Ideas

How North Korea Learned to Live With 'Fire and Fury'

Kim Jong Un’s concessions on his weapons program suggest that he has adapted to President Trump’s threats.

Ideas

North Korea Is Not De-Nuclearizing

The Trump administration shouldn’t get too excited about Kim Jong Un’s pledge to limit his weapons program.

Ideas

Pompeo’s Secret Korea Trip May Not Save His Nomination, But It Could Save Trump’s Summit

The president needs a "win" somewhere so badly that at the summit he may accept a nuclear freeze and a determined process as a major victory. That is a good thing.

Threats

What Does 'Denuclearization' Mean to Kim Jong Un?

A close reading of what the Korean leader reportedly told Xi Jinping in Beijing.

Ideas

A Deal with North Korea Won't Happen Without China

How Kim Jong-Un's surprise visit to Beijing underscores China’s influence.