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The Cipher Brief: National Security news, analysis and expert commentary.

China’s Stunning Military Purge – and What It Means For Taiwan

Xi Jinping’s campaign against his top generals has “gutted” the PLA’s command structure

China’s Stunning Military Purge – and What It Means For Taiwan

DEEP DIVE – President Xi Jinping’s latest purge of generals has eviscerated China’s military leadership, drawn comparisons to crackdowns carried out [...] More

ChinaAsia
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The Open Source Report

<span>Global Intelligence Report for Wednesday, January 28, 2026</span>

Global Intelligence Report for Wednesday, January 28, 2026

U.S. intelligence raises doubts about Venezuelan leader's cooperation

U.S. told Ukraine it must sign peace deal with Russia to get security guarantees, source says

European states tighten the restrictions on Russian shadow fleet

Japan’s Takaichi says ties will ‘collapse’ if U.S. forces are hit in Taiwan and Tokyo does nothing


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Expert Insights

Cipher Brief Experts bring context to today’s global events

The 2026 National Defense Strategy: No Surprises but Plenty of Mandate

Renee Pruneau Novakoff

OPINION — The 2026 National Defense Strategy (NDS) follows closely the 2025 National Security Strategy, as it should. It also falls in line with the Department of Defense’s narrative and the actions they have taken [...] More

AmericasNorth AmericaRenee Pruneau NovakoffUnited States

Signs of Trouble from Venezuela's Regime Could Be Subtle at First

Ambassador Patrick Duddy

OPINION / EXPERT PERSPECTIVE — Turmoil in Minneapolis and the unprecedented friction within NATO over President Trump’s effort to secure control over Greenland have, predictably, displaced headlines about Venezuela in [...] More

AmericasLatin AmericaExpert View
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News & Analysis

Russia’s War Economy Lifeline: Inside the Sanctions Evasion Network

Russia’s War Economy Lifeline: Inside the Sanctions Evasion Network

DEEP DIVE — Nearly three years into the most comprehensive sanctions regime ever imposed on a significant economy, Russia’s defense industrial base [...] More

RussiaEurope

Opinion

The Next FATF Test: Can the West Demand Results from Pakistan?

Siddhant Kishore

The Next FATF Test: Can the West Demand Results from Pakistan?

OPINION — In the shadow of Mexico City's historic Palacio de Bellas Artes, global financial watchdogs will convene in February 2026 for the Financial [...] More

Alternative PerspectivesAsia

What’s on The Cipher Brief’s Digital Channel

Tapping a China Vibe in South Koreaplay icon

Tapping a China Vibe in South Korea

The Open Source Report

Book Reviews

A Field Guide to Surviving Trauma
A Field Guide to Surviving Trauma

Kilowatt of Wrath: Revenge and Assassinations via Secret Cooperation
Kilowatt of Wrath: Revenge and Assassinations via Secret Cooperation

From Shah to Supreme Leader: A Revolution Gone Wrong
From Shah to Supreme Leader: A Revolution Gone Wrong

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The Best National Security Gossip

THIS COULD TICK YOU OFF: We’re generally optimists around here, but according to a rather dark, recent announcement, “The Doomsday Clock” now sits at a mere 85 seconds to midnight, the closest humanity has ever been to global disaster. That’s four seconds worse than last year’s reading. The clock watchers at The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, who maintain the clock, cite a familiar cocktail of factors: nuclear arms drifting out of control, AI sprinting ahead of guardrails, climate data and bio-risks that sound like rejected sci-fi plots. The good news? Experts at the outfit, which was started by Albert Einstein and J. [...] More

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Events

Live Events

The Cipher Brief 2026 HONORS Awards

The Cipher Brief 2026 HONORS Awards

Join us for the third annual Cipher Brief Honors Dinner, the evening of March 13, 2026. This Black-Tie event is invite only, please apply here for a [...] More

Upcoming: 13 March, 2026

Podcasts

State Secrets

From cyber vulnerabilities to supply chain risk, Cipher Brief Expert and former National Intelligence Manager for Counterintelligence Sandrea Hwang tells State Secrets Podcast host Suzanne Kelly why modern national security threats are no longer distant or abstract and why protecting data, infrastructure, and innovation now requires whole-of-society cooperation.

Cover Stories: Spies, Books & Entertainment


David McCloskey, former CIA Analyst turned novelist is out with his fourth book, The Persian, about an Iranian dentist who is recruited by Mossad to take on a dangerous mission inside Iran. Cover Stories Host Suzanne Kelly digs in on how McCloskey’s real-life Intelligence background fueled his latest novel, and discovers a few of McCloskey’s own secrets along the way.