Ideas

Why Terrorists Want To See the End of Tunisia

Tunisia’s struggles to counter terrorism and nurture democracy are intertwined and, at times, mutually destructive.

Ideas

The US Military Should 'Go Small' to Defeat ISIS

Static, fortified bases cede the initiative to the enemy. Unconventional and light is the better approach—even if it carries a higher degree of tactical risk.

Ideas

Keep Calm and Spy On: Why the OPM Hack Won't Bring Down US Intelligence

For starters, there are very few known cases in which blackmail was involved in getting government employees to give up classified information.

Ideas

Special Report: Beyond Guantanamo

President Obama has begun his final push to close Guantanamo. But America’s bigger challenge is deciding what to do with tomorrow's prisoners in a war without end.

Ideas

Michael Oren Is Wrong — There Has Always Been Daylight Between the US and Israel

Some Israelis think the relationship will snap back in January 2017, but it'll be more likely to continue as it always has.

Ideas

TPP’s Failure Wouldn’t Doom Washington’s Asia Strategy

A ‘no’ vote in Congress would be a setback, but there are other ways to counter China.

Ideas

A Jordanian Man's Journey From the Arab Spring to al-Qaeda Foot Soldier

After pro-democracy protests failed in Jordan, one teenager's determination to make a difference led him into the arms of al-Qaeda in Syria.

Ideas

What a Yemeni Missile Teaches Us About the Iran Deal

The U.S. and its regional partners are going to have to work a lot harder because missiles are missing from the P5+1 nuclear negotiations.

Ideas

After Ukraine, NATO's Chance for a New Normal

Can Defense Secretary Ash Carter and European leaders turn NATO's historic Ukraine response into a new future for the alliance?

Ideas

Why the US Hasn't Pinned the OPM Hack on China

Getting China to stop this activity is at the top of Washington's diplomatic agenda. Stopping foreign intelligence services from spying, however, is not.

Ideas

Iran’s Nuclear Past Should Not Scuttle A Deal for Its Future

It’s more important to know Tehran will have no nuclear weapons for the next 20 years than to obsess over what it did 20 years ago.

Ideas

A New Look at the CIA’s Pre-9/11 Mindset Reveals Uncomfortable Truths About Intel

An inspector general report shows what’s gotten better in the past decade — and what’s still a problem.

Ideas

The Pentagon's War Budget Won't Be Easy To Roll Back

Congress has too many reasons to keep overseas contingency operations funding as it is.

Ideas

Stop the Army’s Dangerous Game

The service’s visions of light troops mounted on wheeled vehicles are setting up the Army — and the nation it serves — for humiliation and defeat.

Ideas

How We're Planning the Biggest Personnel Overhaul in 45 Years

DoD’s acting personnel chief lays out the Pentagon’s plans to manage for talent, not just time served.

Ideas

Two Years After Snowden, Are We Better Off?

The NSA's mass surveillance authority has been scaled back, but answers to other digital issues are still being contentiously debated.

Ideas

Attach Human-Rights Conditions to Aid for Egypt

The connection between curbing Cairo’s abuses and U.S. interests in the region is not so much hidden as ignored.

Ideas

Forget Ivory, Africa's al-Shabaab Terrorists Are Getting Rich on Coal in Somalia

False portrayals of the terrorist group's role in the ivory trade could leave us with both more terrorists and fewer elephants in Africa.

Ideas

The Iraqi Army No Longer Exists

ISIS’s victory in Ramadi reveals that containment is the best the U.S. can do for now.

Ideas

Military Force Alone Can’t Deter China’s Expansionism

The U.S. must use its economic levers, especially trade, to parry Beijing’s territory-building.