International

The State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service, which grew out of the Inman Report recommendations, was never meant to be a war zone security force.  But […] More

After three decades of unprecedented economic growth, China must manage a volatile stock market, a slowing economy, and increasing criticism both at home and abroad […] More

Until recently, the widely accepted international narrative about China was that it was a country on a roll  – characterized by years of remarkable economic […] More

Going into the third year at the helm of the world’s second biggest economy, Chinese leader Xi Jinping faces perhaps the most daunting task of […] More

Today in Europe there are more people made homeless by wars and conflict than ever before in recent history. The Secretary General of the United […] More

Other than its open-air outlet mall, busy with shoppers from neighboring Slovakia and Hungary, there’s little memorable about the Austrian village of Parndorf. On Friday, […] More

The Cipher Brief sat down with Robert Richer, former CIA Associate Deputy Director for Operations, to talk about the Middle East refugee crisis that threatens […] More

Last week the image of a tiny toddler’s body washed up on a Turkish beach became symbolic of a growing crisis in the Mediterranean. Tens […] More

Having begun transforming its energy sector, the Mexican government is learning the ups and downs of opening its oil resources to foreign companies.  In July, […] More

Few things are more hotly debated in Washington and other capitals than the question of how to defeat the Islamic State. Ideas are all over […] More

Over fifteen years ago, I spoke with someone in Gaza about a Hamas bomb maker who had been killed in an Israeli anti-terrorism operation. I […] More

A great deal of attention in the U.S. has understandably been paid to how ISIS promotes its ideology, with a focus on ISIS’ social media […] More

Last October, in an interview with “60 Minutes,” FBI director James Comey revealed that there were “a dozen or so” Americans fighting in Syria on […] More

Being abducted by gunmen, held for weeks or months in horrific conditions and then forced to pay colossal sums to be freed has been the […] More

Being abducted by gunmen, held for weeks or months in horrific conditions and then forced to pay colossal sums to be freed has been the […] More

The Cipher Brief spoke with Francisco Quiñones, the founder of Arcis International, a security, risk management, and crisis response consultancy based in Washington, DC.  Quinones, […] More

The Cipher Brief spoke with retired DEA agent Michael Vigil to discuss the security situation in Mexico. Vigil, who served as DEA’s Chief of International […] More

Four years after the Arab Spring, the security environment across North Africa remains dire.    “The Cipher Brief has become the most popular outlet for […] More