Reviewing America’s Nuclear Capabilities & Posture
Walter Pincus is a contributing senior national security columnist for The Cipher Brief. He spent forty years at The Washington Post, writing on topics from nuclear […] More
Nuclear
On Nuclear: Iran and North Korea are a Package Deal
Cipher Brief Expert John E. McLaughlin served as Acting Director of Central Intelligence from July to September 2004 and as Deputy Director of Central Intelligence […] More
A Glimpse of the U.S.’ New Nuclear Posture
Walter Pincus is a contributing senior national security columnist for The Cipher Brief. He spent forty years at The Washington Post, writing on topics from […] More
Is it Time for a New Policy Toward North Korea – A Cipher Brief Debate
North Korea’s party Congress, held earlier this month, offered some insight into what Leader Kim Jong Un is thinking when it comes to the country’s […] More
Biden’s Big Iran Challenge
Cipher Brief Expert John E. McLaughlin is the Distinguished Practitioner in Residence at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). He served as […] More
Biden’s National Security Test
Cipher Brief Expert John McLaughlin is former Acting Director of the CIA, former Deputy CIA Director and is the Distinguished Practitioner in Residence at the […] More
Biden’s Nuclear Challenges
OPINION — President-elect Joe Biden’s campaign slogan, “Diplomacy is back,” will get an instant test after January 20, when his incoming team has just 16 […] More
A Dangerous Dance with a Nuclear North Korea
Cipher Brief Expert Ambassador Joseph DeTrani is former Special envoy for Six Party Talks with North Korea as well as former CIA director of East […] More
Biden Holds the Cards on Iran, But Will He Play Them?
Gary Grappo is a former U.S. ambassador who held senior positions including Minister Counselor for Political Affairs at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad; U.S. Ambassador […] More
Biden’s Best JCPOA Bid
OPINION — Was the November 27, assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh – Iran’s top nuclear scientist – the beginning or the end of attempts to sabotage […] More
Iran: Assassination and Retaliation
Just over a week ago, Iran’s top nuclear scientist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was killed by what Iranian authorities describe as a remote-controlled weapon as his car […] More
The Case for a new START and Nuclear Posture Review
OPINION – President-elect Joe Biden’s national security transition team should be developing plans for extending the New START strategic nuclear arms treaty with Russia, but […] More
The New Battleground for the Arms Race
OPINION — Last Wednesday, speaking at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), STRATCOM Commander Admiral Charles A. Richard began with what he described as “a really […] More
Trump’s Pre-Election Search for a National Security Win
OPINION — President Trump and his team are trying to come up with at least one last minute foreign policy success before Election Day, just […] More
How to Build a Next Generation US Nuclear Submarine
OPINION — The Navy is scheduled to begin construction next month on SSBN-826, to be named the USS Columbia, the first of 12 planned new, […] More
The Spin on Chinese Nuclear Weapons
OPINION — The Trump administration is using the Pentagon’s 2020 Annual Report to Congress on China’s military and security developments to spin its current campaign […] More
How to Deal with a Nuclear North Korea
Cipher Brief Expert Ambassador Joseph DeTrani is former Special envoy for Six Party Talks with North Korea and the U.S. Representative to the Korea Energy […] More
North Korea Provides Valuable Opportunity for US-China Relations
Ambassador Joseph DeTrani is former Special envoy for Six Party Talks with North Korea as well as former CIA director of East Asia Operations. He […] More