Expert Q&A: The U.S. Takes On the Mexican Cartels
EXPERT INTERVIEW — The Trump administration is prioritizing going after Mexican drug cartels as a key national security objective. It has designated the cartels as foreign […] More
North America
The National Security Rationale for U.S.-Funded Academic Research
OPINION — Since World War II, the federal government and American universities have developed a deep, symbiotic relationship. That relationship is now threatened. In an effort […] More
Can the CIA and U.S. military stop the Mexican cartels?
CIPHER BRIEF REPORTING — On January 20, the first day of his second term, President Donald Trump formally labeled Mexico’s crime cartels as international terrorists. Last […] More
20 Years Later, Assessing the Value of the ODNI
EXPERT INTERVIEWS — The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) marks an anniversary today — 20 years since its creation as the top oversight […] More
The Latest
Expert Q&A: Winning the Recruiting and Retention Battle in the U.S. Military
EXPERT Q&A — Discussions about the future of war and whether the U.S. is ready for the next conflict often center on the adoption of advanced […] More
Conservatives of America: Putin Is Not Your Ally
OPINION — American conservatives be advised: Vladimir Putin does not share your values and is not your friend. You may be tempted to regard the […] More
Trump Administration Says Narco-Trafficking is #1 Threat – and Tries All-Hands Approach to Stop It
DEEP DIVE — When the U.S. intelligence community (IC) declared last week that the greatest danger to American national security is old-fashioned organized crime – mainly […] More
If It’s Trump v. Greenland’s Leaders, I’m Betting on Greenland
OPINION — “We respect that the United States needs a greater military presence in Greenland, as Vice President Vance mentioned this evening [last Friday]. We – […] More
Expert Q&A: Trump is Hurting Canada – and Hurting the U.S. in the Process
EXPERT INTERVIEW — Canada is a longtime U.S. ally, its U.S.’s second-largest trading partner and a fellow NATO member, but relations between the two countries have […] More
For Trump Administration, Policy Often Involves a Hunt for Minerals
DEEP DIVE — Over the past week, the Trump administration took two steps involving the pursuit of critical and rare earth minerals: it issued an executive […] More
How Trump’s Foreign Aid Freeze Could Set Back U.S. Cybersecurity
DEEP DIVE — President Donald Trump’s foreign aid freeze will kneecap U.S. efforts to build alliances around cybersecurity issues and help Russia and China seize the […] More
Reimagining the Way the U.S. Prepares for Future Wars
EXPERT INTERVIEWS – In an age of rapidly changing technology and profound implications for the wars of the future, is the United States adapting effectively, […] More
Expert Q&A: Could Trump’s ‘Iron Dome for America’ Fill U.S. Missile Defense Gaps?
EXPERT Q&A — President Donald Trump has called for the establishment of a new missile defense shield for the U.S., which he has dubbed an “Iron […] More
Expert Q&A: Trump’s Greenland Moves may be ‘Kicking an Open Door’ for the U.S.
EXPERT Q&A — As The Cipher Brief reported last month, Greenland has found itself at the center of the global national security conversation, following President Donald […] More
Trump is Right to Prioritize Homeland Missile Defense
OPINION — President Trump issued an executive order, “The Iron Dome for America,” on January 27, jumpstarting a major effort to deploy and maintain a “next […] More
NATO and Ukraine in the Trump 2.0 Era
EXPERT INTERVIEWS — While the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has long counted the United States among its most generous and loyal members, many NATO nations […] More
Pete Hegseth’s Answers to Questions That Weren’t Raised in Public
OPINION — “My priority will be to deliver on the President’s [Candidate Trump’s] promise to the American people to protect the homeland with an Iron Dome […] More
Expert Q&A: A Look at Biden’s Last-Minute Cuba Deal
EXPERT INTERVIEW — In one of several eleventh-hour moves, President Joe Biden on Tuesday notified Congress of his intent to remove Cuba from a list of […] More
What will follow the year of ISIS’ Resurrection?
BOTTOM LINE UP FRONT — Two utterly different events, in two very different parts of the world, have raised fresh concerns about a return to […] More