"Grave Threats": American Security and the Next U.S. President
From Syria, to climate change, North Korea, and the largest global refugee flows in history, the next President will face a uniquely challenging set of […] More
Russia
A Cipher Exclusive Q&A With Matt Olsen on Russian Hacking
The White House is looking to take a “proportional” response to Russia’s alleged hacking of U.S. political party organizations and effort to interfere in the […] More
Cyber Task Force Briefing Notes: When State and Non-State Actors Converge
October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month and The Cipher Brief is pulling together a Cyber Advisory Task Force made up of public and private […] More
Putin Could Hit the Trifecta If Trump Wins the White House
The relationship between Russia and the United States has always been and will always be complicated. In the U.S. and the West in general, hope […] More
No Simple Choices When it Comes to Syria
President Obama, and therefore the United States, has not faced simple choices when it comes to Syria and certainly none that would satisfy Americans’ traditional […] More
A New Low in U.S.-Russian Relations
As U.S.-Russia tensions escalate, the sharply deteriorating bilateral relationship between the former Cold War foes may be at an inflection point. Experts say that in […] More
Failure of Syrian Ceasefire Could Lead to Rebels Getting Advanced Arms
Heightened concern that some Gulf States and Turkey want to give Syrian rebels in Aleppo more advanced weaponry has Washington warning about the potential for […] More
The Rise of Hypersonic Weapons
A hypersonic missile launched from mainland China could strike a U.S. carrier group located anywhere in the South China Sea in under 20 minutes. That’s […] More
Unsettling the Existing Balances
In recent years, defense analysts have increasingly turned their attention to the development of hypersonic weapons, a class of systems intended to strike fast, at […] More
Exponential Growth
Whether it’s your phone, your computer, TV, or even a refrigerator, all those connected devices that we depend on in our daily lives have become […] More
You Can’t Put Syria's Pieces Back Together Again
Fighting in Aleppo has intensified with a Russian-backed government offensive to capture the rebel-held sector of Syria’s largest city. The United States and its allies […] More
Dollars and Sense: Military Spending During an Economic Downturn
The relationship between military spending and GDP growth in peacetime seems an easy equation. When a country’s economy is healthy and growing, it can splurge […] More
Russia's Determination to Revise the Post-Cold War Order
The Russian economy has been in recession for nearly two years now, with GDP growth shrinking by 3.7 percent in 2015. However, as the recession […] More
Defense Officials Discuss Countering Russian Aggression
A group of high-level defense officials from Central and Eastern Europe and the United States on Wednesday warned of the threat of Russian aggression, discussing […] More
Great Power Rivalry Is Here to Stay, Say National Security Leaders
With a decline in U.S. global influence since the 2008 financial crisis, China’s emergence as an economic and increasingly political world power, and Russia striving […] More
How the Kremlin Views a Trump Presidency
A potential Trump Presidency provides both opportunities and challenges for Russia and President Vladimir Putin. Putin’s strategic goals are to weaken the U.S., diminish U.S. […] More
Uzbekistan After Karimov: Examining External Influences
The funeral for Islam Karimov, Uzbekistan’s president since the country’s independence in 1991, took place over the weekend. With no apparent successor, The Cipher Brief’s […] More
Iran Deploys Long Delayed Russian-Made Defense System Around Nuclear Site
Iran has deployed a Russian-made air defense system around its underground Fordow nuclear facility, state media reported this week. Given the timing of the announcement, […] More