A New Call to Arms for Drone Technology
OPINION — The Senate Armed Services Committee has recognized the vulnerabilities of today’s unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and called on the Defense Department “to develop […] More
DoD
What Could Arming the First Island Chain Look Like?
OPINION — The Senate Armed Services Committee last week voted to provide the Pentagon with $6 billion over the next two years to create a […] More
A General’s View of Future Information Wars
OPINION — U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) is expanding its Military Information Support Operations (MISO) because in the current environment, “great power competition is about […] More
NATO Imagines Future Warfare
Innovation is a key component of readiness when it comes to future threats. NATO’s Innovation Hub recently commissioned a short story from author August Cole, […] More
Managing National Security Talent
The Cipher Brief is honored to share the latest report from our friends at Business Executives for National Security (BENS) on Talent Management: A Strategy […] More
The OSINT Global Trendline Report
The Cipher Brief’s Open Source Trend Line Report utilizes open source data to track trends around the world that impact national and global security. We break the world […] More
The Uneasy Balance between Care and Provocation
OPINION — This past March and April, US Naval Forces attached to Central Command carried out live fire exercises in the North Persian Gulf’s international […] More
DoD’s Blueprint for Coronavirus Testing
OPINION — Defense Department senior officials last week described plans to increase testing for Covid-19 over the next few months, prioritizing higher risk forces but […] More
OSINT Global Trendline Report: COVID and the Americas
The Cipher Brief’s Open Source Trend Line Report utilizes open source data on a quarterly basis to track trends around the world that impact national and global […] More
DoD’s War Against Covid-19
OPINION — The Defense Department has gone to war against the coronavirus, employing some 50,000 troops on both offense and defense. Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen, […] More
Is COVID-19 America’s ‘East of Suez’ Moment?
Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt, US Army (Ret) was the Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs from 2008-2009. Prior to that, he was the Deputy […] More
How to Build Field Hospitals Quickly and Efficiently
OPINION — If fighting the Covid-19 virus is a war, the Army Corps of Engineers is being led into battle by an exemplary field commander, […] More
Coronavirus and the Military
During this time of social distancing, The Cipher Brief is bringing our experts to your laptop in a new series of web-based briefings on critical […] More
Offensive Operations and US Defense
OPINION — “Offensive operations, often times, is (sic) the surest, if not the only (in some cases) means of defence,” a retired George Washington, living […] More
The Latest US Nuclear War Game Gets Real
OPINION — On February 20, during his visit to Strategic Command (STRATCOM) headquarters near Omaha, Nebraska, Defense Secretary Mark Esper took part in a mini-war-game […] More
The US Deal with the Taliban
The United States signed a peace agreement with Taliban leaders on Saturday that is intended to end the US’ 18-year involvement in Afghanistan. The deal […] More
Better Buying is Key to Russia-China Strategy
Cipher Brief Expert Robert Eatinger is former Deputy General Counsel and Acting General Counsel of the Central Intelligence Agency and retired Captain from the Navy’s […] More
Why a Closer Look at SOCOM Should be on the Radar
OPINION — It’s time for the House or Senate Armed Services Committees to take a close look at U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF) and hold […] More