Trump and Russia: Political Firestorm or National Security Concern?
As new questions arise about the Trump Administration’s contacts with Russian officials, one man has been caught in the political maelstrom: Russian Ambassador to the […] More
News & Analysis
The U.S.-Japan Alliance: Reform and Uncertainty
Japan is a nation in flux. Economically, the government is struggling to stoke growth with expansionary monetary policy and reform; demographically, it is challenged by […] More
U.S.-Japan Defense Relations Under Trump
During the 2016 U.S. presidential contest, Donald Trump was highly critical of the structure and costs of the U.S.-Japan mutual defense relationship and openly raised the possibility […] More
Trump and East Asia: Moving from Campaign Mode to Governing
After a presidential campaign peppered with accusations of inadequate burden-sharing by Japan in its security relationship with the United States, President Donald Trump has attempted […] More
Defining Objectives for the U.S.-Iran Relationship
U.S. President Donald Trump and his Administration have been quick to use forceful rhetoric when discussing U.S. policy towards Iran during their first five weeks […] More
Sticking with the Complicated U.S.-Iran Relationship
U.S.-Iran tensions are likely to rise in the coming months. The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear agreement between Iran and the P5+1 (United […] More
Dealing with a Difficult Iran: Get Smart
Like it or not, the Trump Administration will have to pay attention to Iran. The President’s predecessors, beginning in 1979, have taken multiple paths, usually […] More
Georgetown Salon Series: A Tale of Two Seas
The South China and East China Seas present flashpoints for maritime conflict, though the assembled experts at The Cipher Brief’s Georgetown Salon Series could not […] More
Change of Tone for Trump? Views from The Cipher Brief Network
The bombastic, bleak tone from his Inaugural Address was gone. In his address to Congress Tuesday night, President Donald Trump was more optimistic, talking about […] More
Tallinn Manual 2.0: Stepping Out of the Fog in Cyberspace
Cyberspace is often portrayed as a new domain of international relations – a Wild West where there are no rules or guiding principles to govern […] More
A Reference for Cyber Operations
NATO’s Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence last month published the Tallinn Manual 2.0 on the International Law Applicable to Cyber Operations, a follow-on project […] More
Existing International Law Applies Online and Offline
A group of international law experts met in Tallinn, Estonia, after the 2007 onslaught of cyber attacks against sites in the country, to create the […] More
Bureaucracy and Jihadism
A number of trends now seem to be accepted truths after nearly 16 years of fighting against jihadi terrorism. We have achieved concrete victories in […] More
What in the World is Happening in Pakistan?
The last couple of weeks have seen almost daily terrorist attacks across Pakistan from a variety of bad actors: February 13: A suicide bombing during […] More
DNI Nominee Vows to Work with Lawmakers on Russian Probe
President Donald Trump’s pick for Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats said on Tuesday that the U.S. needs to look at Russian actions “with eyes […] More
Adm. Stavridis: U.S. Needs Hard & Soft Power for Security
The Trump Administration’s proposal to hike military expenditures at the expense of foreign assistance is being challenged by a group of former military leaders. “We […] More
Cyber Under the Next NSC
Rumors about a planned Trump Administration cybersecurity executive order offer signs of hope that many of the cyber policy lessons learned, often the hard way, […] More
Homeland Season 6: "The Return"
The central plot of this season’s Homeland has now been revealed to be a full-blown right wing conspiracy against an incoming President considered soft on […] More