Ideas
‘Military Options’ Against North Korea Isn’t the Problem—Loose Talk Is
There are a lot of ways for things to go wrong.
Ideas
Raqqa After ISIS Still Needs US Help
The group’s ultimate defeat is far from assured, and the United States can play a critical role in precluding the emergence of Islamic State 2.0.
Ideas
Trump Isn't the Only Problem with Trump's Foreign Policy
America’s approach to the world is a complicated mess, for reasons that predate the current president.
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US Space Policy Should Aim to Preserve Advantage on the New Frontier
As in the 19th-century American West, the government must recognize its limited yet crucial role in fostering the nation’s interests in space.
Ideas
Japan Needs Long-Range Strike Capabilities
Ballistic-missile defense systems alone can’t ward off regional threats. Tokyo needs firepower to deter its enemies.
Ideas
What McCain Knows That Kelly Forgot
One veteran offered a dark picture of a nation estranged from its military—the other, a more hopeful vision of a future brighter than the past.
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A Tale of Two Speeches
Sen. McCain and former President Bush called for Americans to rise to global leadership, and underscored the concrete benefits that have accrued from it. In normal times, this would be unexceptional.
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The Bloody End of the Islamic State's Utopian Dream
The fall of Raqqa this week completed the slow-motion demolition of the world’s only utopian movement worthy of the name.
Ideas
Trump’s Iran Strategy Is No Strategy At All
It's a laundry list of grievances, some get-tough rhetoric, and a quixotic retreat from diplomacy that ties one hand behind the president's back.
Ideas
China Is Quietly Reshaping the World
The staggering scope of the country’s infrastructure initiative—and what it means for the international order.
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America Has Become Dispensable in Iraq
The conflict in Kirkuk offers further evidence of Iran’s steady rise.
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Let's Walk This Through: If North Korea Launches An ICBM, Then...
It takes a lot of rosy assumptions to get to President Trump’s 97% chance of success.
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Can the United States Broker Peace Between Iraq and the Kurds?
Washington should respond to sectarian conflict near Kirkuk by seeking to preserve a united Iraq while supporting Kurdish autonomy.
Ideas
The War on ISIS Held the Middle East Together
With the fall of Raqqa, the sad story will pick up exactly where it left off in 2014.
Ideas
How the US Air Force Made Its ISR Network Cheaper to Run and Easier to Upgrade
Real-world lessons from a leader of the three-year effort to convert DCGS to open architecture.
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Donald Trump, Dealbreaker
The president's America First policy is causing the U.S. to withdraw from the world.
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The Real Lessons of Vietnam — and Afghanistan
As the Trump administration reshapes American strategy, they should look to history for guidance, yet understand that it offers no blueprint.
Ideas
Ending America's Paralyzed Iran Policy
Decertifying the nuclear deal without walking away gives the Trump administration an opening to confront the Islamic Republic’s foreign meddling.
Ideas
The 2% Benchmark Is Blinding Us to NATO Members’ Actual Contributions
It is far more revealing to look at the forces and capabilities each country sends abroad on alliance missions.
Ideas