Ideas

Time to Rethink Arms Sales to Taiwan

Once, they might have tilted the military balance. Now they just destabilize the region.

Ideas

The West Is Surprisingly Well-Equipped for Gray-Zone Deterrence

Authoritarian officials and oligarchs interact with Western nations in ways that give democratic governments leverage.

Ideas

The Coming F-35 Fiasco

Now that Qatar is asking for the jet, it’s time to consider an entirely different approach to helping Gulf nations defend themselves.

Ideas

Assessing Trump’s National Security Record

How has he done against four main threats our nation faces?

Ideas

How America's Defense Strategy Left Us Unprepared for a Pandemic

There must be room in our national-security concept to join with even our greatest adversaries to fight mutual threats.

Ideas

In a Robot War, Kill the Humans

Even if advances in robotics mean fewer humans on the battlefield, the fight will increasingly focus on those that remain.

Ideas

Look at Great Power Competition Through a Special Operations Lens

Most of this competition is far short of combat, which makes the principles and expertise of SOF keenly relevant.

Ideas

Cool It With the ‘America In Decline’ Talk

Clear-eyed assessment, not reductive defeatism, is required to develop a foreign policy that meets U.S. interests.

Ideas

National Security in the Age of Pandemics

We cannot reduce the danger and damage of the next pandemic by merely adding it to the ever-expanding laundry list of missions we expect the military to handle.

Ideas

The Damage That ‘America First’ Has Done

A self-interested strategy will not help the U.S. fight the coronavirus outbreak.

Ideas

The Foreign Policy of 2021 Democrats

Joe Biden represents the so-called establishment’s last chance to reform U.S. foreign policy so it is better aligned with how Americans see the world.

Ideas

It’s Time to Talk About Taiwan

Washington’s longstanding policy of strategic ambiguity is increasingly likely to inflame the kind of crisis it was meant to deter.

Ideas

How a Stock Bubble Could Unwind America’s National Security

Tesla’s astronomic rise portends a crash that will add heft to the forces of deglobalization.

Ideas

Overspending on the Pentagon Won’t Make Us Safer

We spend far more on the military than the countries we most fear, while shorting the things that would actually help us compete.

Ideas

Why Does the US Spend So Much on Defense?

It is well to remember that the real bill includes not just DOD spending but VA, intelligence, and more. But those who would cut spending must also propose a new strategy.

Ideas

Donald Trump Stumbles Into a Foreign-Policy Triumph

The president, however inadvertently, may be reminding the world of the reality of international relations.

Ideas

Sending Troops Back to the Middle East Won’t Stop Iran

Knee-jerk deployments only distract from the president’s bigger priorities: China and Russia.

Ideas

Esper Is Attempting the Biggest Defense Reform in a Generation

In two recent memos, the SecDef reveals his intention to change how the Pentagon uses its money, people, and time.