Why Hamas’s Attack Will Change Israel As We Know It
OPINION — Many analysts of global affairs play fast and loose with the term “game changer.” My somewhat curmudgeonly analysis of events like UAE-Israel normalization […] More
Middle East
Hamas and Israel: Another Colossal Intelligence Failure
OPINION — Hamas’s surprise attack on Israel this morning Saturday October 7, 50 years plus one day since the October 1973 war, has every national […] More
Why Did Israeli Intelligence Fail? History Suggests Many Causes.
OPINION / EXPERT PERSPECTIVE — Right from the moment Hamas launched its massive attack on Israel on October 7, everyone has been puzzling about how […] More
What are the Implications of the Growing Alliance Between Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea?
SUBSCRIBER+REPORTING — North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made a rare trip out of the hermit country last month, to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin and pledge […] More
The Pakistan Army’s New Mission
For all its many faults the Pakistan army is becoming ever more important as the one institution which can resist the centrifugal forces endangering Pakistan’s […] More
Hezbollah is Operating in Latin America. What does that mean for the U.S.?
SUBSCRIBER+REPORTING — The United States this month, announced a fresh slate of sanctions on a family nexus of seven Hezbollah operatives and bankrollers spanning Lebanon to Latin […] More
Terrorist Groups are Again Thriving in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan
OPINION — Last month, the U.S. Central Command said it conducted 20 joint operations in Iraq and 11 in Syria, killing five Islamic State operatives and capturing […] More
The British Betrayal of an Afghan Special Police Commando Force
OPINION/EXPERT PERSPECTIVE — Two years ago, on August 28, 2021, the final British evacuation flight took off from Kabul airport. So ended 20 years of […] More
Exclusive Interview: Iran and the Ransom Conundrum
SUBSCRIBER+EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW – Hostage negotiations are one of the most difficult political issues for a U.S. administration to deal with, particularly in light of a […] More
What’s at Stake in Biden’s Push toward Saudi-Israeli Normalization?
SUBSCRIBER+EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW — The Biden administration is reportedly taking serious steps to push forward with efforts to negotiate a deal that would see official diplomatic […] More
What Iran is Really After: A Subscriber+Exclusive Interview
EXCLUSIVE SUBSCRIBER+INTERVIEW — Iranian forces recently attempted to seize two oil tankers in separate incidents within a few hours of each other in the Gulf […] More
U.S.-Iran Stand-Off Hints of Old “Tanker War”
CIPHER BRIEF REPORTING – Less than a month ago, with global attention fixed on the Ukrainian offensive, U.S. Admiral James Stavridis (ret.) sought to open […] More
Can Riyadh Leverage Failed Negotiations?
OPINION — Two months ago, the Saudis took unprecedented public steps to show the Houthis (and the world) they were serious about ending their involvement in the […] More
A Life of Secrets: A Candid Conversation with Michael Vickers
Subscriber+Exclusive Interview — In his new book, By All Means Available: Memoirs of a Life in Intelligence, Special Operations, and Strategy, former Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence […] More
The Middle East is Rebalancing: Where Do America and China Fit In?
BOTTOM LINE UP FRONT: Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s visit to Syria this week marks the first visit by Iranian leader since the beginning of Syria’s war […] More
Saudi Arabia’s Disengagement from Yemen Will Be Messy
OPINION — The logic behind Saudi Arabia’s latest diplomatic maneuver was clear. Riyadh faced a major threat from the Iran-led axis, and when the U.S. […] More
As China Looks to Allies, Taiwan Does the Same
ANALYSIS/INTERVIEW — Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen is U.S.-bound this week, with scheduled stopovers in New York and Los Angeles. The visit is an unofficial one, […] More
Measuring the Strength of the U.S. – Israel Relationship in Dollars
OPINION — “We believe that U.S. security aid must be used only to address to Israel’s genuine defense needs, and not to help implement or […] More