Latest columns

The Rule of Law Is Under Attack

by Nate Jones

As a former Department of Justice detailee to the National Security Council, I fully appreciate the value that rule of law brings to this country.  Lately, however, I’m finding it harder and...

North Korea's Denuclearization: Is Cuba a Better Model than Libya?

by Ambassador Gary Grappo

A revised and improved “Cuba model” for denuclearizing North Korea might have gotten a more receptive ear from Pyongyang than US National Security Adviser John Bolton’s dead-on-arrival “Libya...

Memo to POTUS: Responding to Cyber Attacks and PPD-20

by Jason Healey

Mr. President, as you know the United States has faced cyber attacks of increasing frequency and viciousness from our adversaries. Your NSC is about to bring you both a new cyber strategy and a...

The Tasks & Opportunities Facing Gina Haspel

by Gen. (ret.) David H. Petraeus

Gina Haspel assumes the position of D/CIA admirably prepared in all possible respects — in general, of course, given 33 years with the agency, and specifically, having served as DD/CIA and...

Racing to Secure Our Future

by Robert Cardillo

The Great Powers are in an Artificial Intelligence (AI) arms race. China publicly set a goal of becoming “the world’s primary AI innovation center” by 2030. Vladimir Putin said of AI that...

Sadr Prepares for Role as Kingmaker

by John Nixon

Cipher Brief Note:  Shiite Cleric Muqtada al-Sadr assured Iraqis this past weekend that the next Iraqi government will be ‘inclusive’.  Al-Sadr, who once fought U.S. troops after the invation...

Best Of: Gina Haspel, Unfiltered

by Suzanne Kelly

On Thursday, May 17, the Senate voted 54-45 to confirm Gina Haspel as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, despite concerns over her role in CIA enhanced interrogation programs and the...

RIP Cyber Coordinator: An Obituary

by Jason Healey

Rest in peace, Cyber Coordinator. The White House’s Special Assistant to the President and Cyber Coordinator has now been eliminated, apparently ending (or more likely pausing) a two-decade...

Terrorism and the Future Lone Wolf Threat in America

by Carol Rollie Flynn

There is one truth in terrorism that intelligence officials and national security experts have seen proven over the past few years: terrorist tactics are continuously evolving.  The Washington Post...

In Putin’s Fourth Term, What—If Anything—Threatens His Control?

by Steven L. Hall

On May 7, Vladimir Putin was inaugurated for his fourth six-year term as President of Russia. He gained more than 76 percent of the vote and—despite concerns over the legitimacy of the vote—does...