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

The Kremlin Files: Russia’s Way to the Gray Zone

Non-Contact War Development and Doctrine

Two men in a serious conversation, one in a suit, the other in a military uniform.

THE KREMLIN FILES / COLUMN — (Note: This is the first in a two-part series on Russian gray zone, or hybrid warfare. In a future article, the author [...] More

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The Open Source Report

<span>Global Intelligence Report for Wednesday, January 21, 2026</span>

Global Intelligence Report for Wednesday, January 21, 2026

Pentagon hasn’t yet been asked to plan Greenland invasion amid Trump threats

European Union inching closer to using its trade ‘bazooka’ against the U.S.

Trump seeking ‘decisive’ options for Iran as assets move into Middle East

U.S. seizes seventh sanctioned tanker tied to Venezuela in expanding oil control campaign


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Expert Insights

Cipher Brief Experts bring context to today’s global events

The Long Arc Of American Power

Walter Pincus

OPINION — “We [the U.S.] began as a sliver of a country and next thing you know we're a continental power, and we did not do that primarily through our great diplomacy and our good looks and our charm. We did that [...] More

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What U.S. – China Cooperation Means for the World

Ambassador Joseph DeTrani

OPINION -- China was very critical of the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro last week. The spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the U.S. action was “blatant interference” in Venezuela and a [...] More

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News & Analysis

New Reports Reveal Years of Unaddressed Osprey Safety Risks

New Reports Reveal Years of Unaddressed Osprey Safety Risks

DEEP DIVE — It is one of the most lauded defense developments in recent decades, providing preeminent capability to U.S. military personnel [...] More

Americas

Opinion

The Coast Guard's Mission in the Gray Zone

Harrison Kass

The Coast Guard's Mission in the Gray Zone

OPINION — U.S. defense planning rests on the assumption that wars are fought abroad, by expeditionary forces, against defined adversaries. For [...] More

Alternative Perspectives

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

When Journalism Met Totalitarianism: Lessons From Prewar Paris
When Journalism Met Totalitarianism: Lessons From Prewar Paris

The Burden of the Bomb
The Burden of the Bomb

The Mossad’s Most Transformational Leader
The Mossad’s Most Transformational Leader

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The Best National Security Gossip

ESPIONAGE GIG ECONOMY – Britain has a spy problem, and many of the spies don't even know they're spies. Commander Dominic Murphy, head of London’s Metropolitan Police Department’s counter-terrorism squad, told The Times that officials are currently running over 160 investigations into state-sponsored threats, with roughly 100 of those focused on Britons who are suspected of working for Russia, Iran, and China. It seems that foreign intelligence services are recruiting; private detectives, asylum seekers, criminals, and teenagers through Telegram, offering to pay them for "due diligence" or "debt recovery" work that's [...] 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.