Uncertainty Ahead: Defense Technology and Acquisition Trends in 2017

by Cynthia Cook

The crystal ball may be unusually cloudy when it comes to predicting defense technology and acquisition trends for 2017, but the causes of this cloudiness are clear. The change in administration,...

Counter Messaging, Not Divisive Rhetoric: Effective Counterterrorism in 2017

by Matthew Olsen

The Cipher Brief sat down with Matthew Olsen, former Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, to discuss the terrorist threat in the coming year. According to Olsen, the most pressing...

Putin Meets His Match?

by Jill Dougherty

Russian President Vladimir Putin, a leader known for his unpredictability, may have met his match: the new President of the United States, Donald Trump. Until now, Mr. Putin knew who he was dealing...

A Happy Ending for Europe in 2017?

by Mathew Burrows

A comparison with the 1848 domino-like revolutions that spread across Europe is a bit of a stretch, but far-right populism is definitely on a roll, throwing the whole European project in doubt. Will...

Back to Basics: Staying Ahead of China

by Ambassador Richard Boucher

Compared to China, ISIS amounts to a nasty swarm of gnats.  Compared to China, Russia comes across as a cranky old man (with a shotgun). However, neither ISIS, nor Putin’s Russia, nor any other...

Hacktivism and Cyberspies – The New Reality of 2017

by Jeannie Warner

Hacktivism has been a fact of life even before the rise of Anonymous. In 2016, we saw a tidal wave of global hacktivism and cyber spying, and this trend will continue in 2017. The social unrest...

Turkey's Diplomatic Collision Course

by Aykan Erdemir

Twelve people have been detained in connection with the New Year’s night club gun attack in Istanbul that left 39 people dead. Islamic State has claimed responsibility, although it offered no...

Obama’s Legacy in the Middle East: One Size Doesn’t Fit All

by Ambassador Dennis Ross

As the United States prepares for a new administration, The Cipher Brief‘s Leone Lakhani sits down with Ambassador Dennis Ross, Counselor at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and a...

An Open Letter to the CIA Director Nominee

by Douglas H. Wise

One of President-elect Donald Trump’s first choices for his national security team was Representative Mike Pompeo for Director of the CIA.  A graduate of West Point and a Harvard educated lawyer,...

Confronting North Korea: A War of the Will

by Soo Kim

As the incoming administration continues to define its contours, and as President-elect Donald Trump begins to outline a foreign policy strategy for the next four years, it’s worth reassessing the...