Ideas
How Corruption Guts Militaries: The Ukraine Case Study
Ukraine’s ousted strongman, Viktor Yanukovych 'deliberately destroyed the military.' Arming the corrupt networks he left behind would make things worse. By Sarah Chayes
Ideas
How To Defeat Boko Haram
The Nigerian military must find the schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram -- but it also has to address the underlying issues that fuel the terror group. By Isobel Coleman and Sigrid von Wendel
Ideas
Dempsey Wants to ‘Rebalance the Use of Military Power'
The U.S. military needs to do less foreign fighting and more foreign training, says Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey in an exclusive interview. By James Kitfield
Ideas
How Climate Change Affects Terrorism
Climate change not only threatens the environment, it can lead to greater instability and fuel global conflict and terrorism. By Jon Gensler
Ideas
As Debate Goes On, the Military Prepares for Climate Change
While the rest of the world continues to deliberate climate change, the military is already preparing for a more unstable environment. By Patrick Tucker
Ideas
Odierno: Ukraine Shows Us ‘You Never Know What’s Around the Corner’
In an exclusive interview with Defense One, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno talks about the future of the Army and the threats posed by an unstable world. By James Kitfield
Ideas
Democracy's Future in the Middle East
Across the region, power struggles mask a more fundamental divide over the meaning of the modern nation-state. By Shadi Hamid
Science & Tech
Every Country Will Have Armed Drones Within 10 Years
The proliferation of weaponized drone technology is inevitable, and there’s nothing the U.S. can do to stop it. By Patrick Tucker
Ideas
What To Do About Syria
Several leading experts gathered at the Council on Foreign Relations to discuss what options the United States has to help end the civil war in Syria.
Science & Tech
We’re Saved! Experts Show How to Fix U.S. Cybersecurity
The four-hour experiment that showed how to fix our nation’s infrastructure from cyberattack. By Patrick Tucker
Ideas
Congress’s Chance to Fix Aircraft Carrier Drones
The Navy could have the drone the U.S. needs to protect carriers, if Congress steps up this week. By Shawn Brimley
Ideas
D.C. ‘Insiders’ Are Wrong, NATO Could Beat Russia
Don’t believe the hype. Russia’s military is a shadow of its Cold War self, but Washington pundits sound as alarmist as always. By Michael Cohen
Ideas
How the Iraq War Crippled U.S. Military Power
Iraq was ‘the wrong war, in the wrong place, at the wrong time’ and its costs are having a devastating effect on defense policy and national security decision making. By Nathan Freier
Ideas
Searching for the Obama Doctrine
In scolding his critics who want more military action, President Obama is overlooking his own supporters who want him to do more. By Gayle Tzemach Lemmon
Ideas
The Unraveling of Kerry’s Bid for Mideast Peace
Will the secretary of state's "strategic patience" with Israeli and Palestinian leaders pay off? By David Rohde
Ideas
Better Buying Power 4 Years On: Is It Making a Difference?
The plan to replace the V-XX, the president’s Marine One helicopter, is an example of the success of Better Buying Power. By Frank Kendall
Ideas
Why Nations Are Right To Ban USAID
Using the misfortune of less developed countries as a cover to advance U.S. interests compromises the credibility of all foreign aid. By Mark Varga
Ideas
What Hawks and Doves Both Miss on the Asia Pivot
Depending on one's perspective, China is either unchecked or overly provoked. But there is a bigger point still missing from most debates. by Janine Davidson
Science & Tech
The Secret Weapon in the War on Poaching...and Terrorism
Forget drones. Big data makes finding rhinos easier than finding insurgents. By Patrick Tucker
Threats