Ideas
Trump Risks Trading Away the US-South Korean Alliance
Kim Jong Un is offering a deal at a price that could be way too high—and that the president could easily accept.
Ideas
What's There to Talk About With North Korea?
Kim Jong Un wants to talk to Trump and pause nuclear and missile tests—but the line between diplomacy and brinkmanship isn't that simple.
Ideas
Let the Korean Breakthrough Run Its Course
The new round of talks can only succeed if the Trump administration resists its own worst impulses.
Ideas
African Union Bugged by China: Cyber Espionage as Evidence of Strategic Shifts
A number of African leaders have turned to Chinese investment as a viable alternative to Western development aid. The recent allegations of Chinese cyberespionage of the African Union's headquarters might prompt them to reconsider.
Ideas
Stand Up for the Constitution: Stop Unauthorized Involvement in Yemen's Civil War
The War Powers Act requires a Senate vote. Lawmakers should not duck their responsibility.
Ideas
Why ‘Different Spanks for Different Ranks’ Are Often Justified
It can be frustrating when generals and admirals appear to skate on misconduct charges, but lawmakers should be wary of trying to “fix it.”
Ideas
Don’t Let Trump Turn Iran into North Korea
Unless Congress, Europe, and other parties step up to protect the West’s nuclear deal with Iran, it will collapse, unshackling Tehran’s nuclear efforts.
Ideas
Expect North Korea to Add Nuclear Coercion to Its Provocation Playbook
Kim's nuclear arsenal is built to "deter and coerce." We're probably going to find out soon what forms the latter will take.
Ideas
Talk About Extremists, But Don't Politicize the Debate
Singer's call to focus on right-wing extremists is dangerous to a profession that needs to remain above partisan politics.
Ideas
Whatever Happened to Trump's Counterterrorism Strategy?
His approach borrows from his predecessors’, while exacerbating their worst, most counterproductive tendencies.
Ideas
In the Competition over Syria's Reconstruction, China Is the Likely Winner
Beijing sees a double opportunity in rebuilding the wartorn country: to extend its new Silk Road and expand its economic and political influence westward.
Ideas
Putin Just Gave Trump the Arms Race He Sought
'Let it be an arms race,' Trump said, two years ago. Now we have one. It doesn't have to be this way.
Threats
National Security Pros, It’s Time to Talk About Right-Wing Extremism
We have been too quiet about a threat that is regularly killing our fellow citizens.
Ideas
The Pentagon Just Revealed How Much It Spends Helping Foreign Militaries
DoD’s first-ever summary of 27 security-cooperation programs deserves praise. Now tell us more.
Ideas
The US Will Spend $500M on Syrian Kurds This Year. For What?
The Trump administration is embarking on a state-building project with no clear strategy, benchmarks, or goals.
Ideas
It’s Time for a National Security Cooperation Strategy
The current way the U.S. government approves what weapons get exported and where is fragmented and slow. That undermines American leadership and interests.
Ideas
America and Russia Aren't Morally Equivalent
There is no comparison between Russian efforts to undermine elections and American efforts to strengthen them, a former Obama official writes.
Ideas
Russia Is a Great Power Once Again
Putin’s Syria intervention saved Assad. But is he ready for what comes next?
Ideas
Russia Is Abetting Mass Murder in Syria
By standing by and watching a slow-motion Rwanda unfold, the U.S. risks becoming an accessory to evil.
Ideas