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International

TURKEY-NATO-SUMMIT-DIPLOMACY

What's at Stake as NATO Meets in Ankara

As NATO leaders gather in Ankara this week, the alliance faces a myriad of security challenges unlike anything it has confronted in decades.With [...] More

International NATO

The Latest

NATO’s Fractures Are Not Its End

Joey Gagnard

NATO’s Fractures Are Not Its End

For much of its history, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has been portrayed as a unified military bloc bound by common values and [...] More

Joey Gagnard International Expert View

The Future of War Is Now: What Washington Needs to Hear from the Battlefield

Bryan Pickens

The Future of War Is Now: What Washington Needs to Hear from the Battlefield

OPINION — The February snow was over a week old but still piled heavy on the roads and sidewalks of Independence Avenue, the kind of stubborn [...] More

International

Building the Talent Pipeline for America’s Security Future

Dr. Jerry Laurienti

Building the Talent Pipeline for America’s Security Future

Public service, at its core, is bigger than government service alone. Serving one’s country takes many forms, and in a time when the federal [...] More

Dr. Jerry Laurienti International

A Path to Understanding Autonomy in Defense Technology

Joey Gagnard

A Path to Understanding Autonomy in Defense Technology

Welcome to The Iron Triangle, the Cipher Brief column serving procurement officers tasked with buying the future, Investors funding the next [...] More

Joey Gagnard International

Human Agency in a Technology-Mediated World

Jennifer Ewbank

Human Agency in a Technology-Mediated World

Occasionally, a speech does more than mark a leadership transition or outline institutional priorities. It captures, with unusual clarity, the nature [...] More

International Tech/Cyber National Security
A ship crosses the Baltic Sea at sunrise

The War You Can’t See: Gray Zone Operations Are Reshaping Global Security

In the middle of the night, with no witnesses, a single ship flagged out of Hong Kong drags its anchor across the Baltic Sea. In silence, it severs a [...] More

Dave Pitts International NATO Espionage National Security

Eighty Years On, Can the UN Meet Its Mission?

Ambassador Joseph DeTrani

Eighty Years On, Can the UN Meet Its Mission?

The 80th ordinary session of the United Nations ended on September 8, 2026. During this year, the UN will have an opportunity to help resolve a few [...] More

Ambassador Joseph DeTrani International
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian (R) speaks during a press conference after arriving at Mehrabad Airport in Tehran, Iran on September 27, 2025

Defiance Meets Desperation as Iran Faces Fresh UN Sanctions

EXPERT INTERVIEW – The United Nations has reimposed sweeping economic and military sanctions on Iran, ten years after lifting them under the 2015 [...] More

Middle East Iran International
Decoding Global Reactions to Trump’s Victory
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deep dive

Decoding Global Reactions to Trump’s Victory

DEEP DIVE — It was, as Axios reporter Zachary Basu put it, “the most astonishing, gravity-defying comeback in the history of American politics.” But [...] More

Asia Americas International North America Middle East National Security Europe Reporting
DEEP DIVE: How Trump and Vance Would Deal With Global Hot Zones

DEEP DIVE: How Trump and Vance Would Deal With Global Hot Zones

SUBSCRIBER+ EXCLUSIVE REPORTING – Whoever wins the November 5 U.S. presidential election will face an almost unprecedented set of global security [...] More

International Americas National Security Reporting North America

America, Ukraine and the Illusion of an Isolationist Choice

Gregory Sims

America, Ukraine and the Illusion of an Isolationist Choice

In 2022 Russia launched its full-scale military invasion of Ukraine, a big and bloody war between the two largest countries in Europe with no end in [...] More

International Alternative Perspectives National Security

Taiwan's Election Offers Strong Lessons on Disinformation

Walter Pincus

Taiwan's Election Offers Strong Lessons on Disinformation

OPINION — Taiwan’s Presidential election last Saturday took place amid widespread concerns that China would use Artificial Intelligence (AI) driven [...] More

Asia China Cyber Fine Print International Walter Pincus Tech/Cyber National Security