Ideas
By halting Ukraine aid, Trump courts personal defeat
There’s still time to avoid emboldening America’s enemies—and a humiliation that dwarfs his predecessor’s Afghanistan withdrawal.
Ideas
Trump’s plan to slash the federal workforce isn’t the first, it’s just the worst
The triple-meat-cleaver approach to workforce “reform.”
Ideas
To China, DeepSeek is more than an app—it's a strategic turning point
Beijing views the AI tool as a breakthrough that reinforces its strategic autonomy and reshapes the U.S.-China balance of power.
Ideas
How Trump could productively reshape the transatlantic defense relationship
If rearming Europe and ending the war in Ukraine deters China, all the better.
Ideas
The future of military logistics is predictive
A recent commander of Army Materiel Command says the war in Ukraine illuminates the path to data-driven sustainment.
Ideas
Teach how to think, not what to think
Professional military schools should not go overboard in interpreting the SecDef’s anti-DEI memo.
Ideas
Trump must keep arming Ukraine if he wants a good peace deal
Europe must do its fair share, but it cannot carry the burden alone.
Ideas
Trump’s tariffs fit a growing global trend of hardball migration diplomacy
Such diplomacy works both ways, but richer countries by and large have the upper hand.
Ideas
The future of China's new information support force
In a bid to dominate the information environment, the PLA created a force to build a resilient network system and drive innovation of cutting-edge tech.
Ideas
Let's talk about the next US-Israel military-assistance agreement
I helped negotiate the current one. It's high time to get started on its successor.
Ideas
It's time for a new Key West agreement
Airpower, air defense, Marines’ role—all need revisiting, three-quarters of a century after the seminal roles-and-missions pact.
Ideas
Trump wants a faster security clearance process, too
But can he avoid politicizing it? On Day One, he stripped clearances from people he doesn't like and created a temporary end-run for people he does.
Ideas
As the US and China race to the Moon, loopholes in space law could allow conflict
The prospect of “space water wars” is nearer, timewise, than the prospect of providing clean drinking water to everyone in the developing world.
Ideas
Lone-wolf attacks have become a hallmark of post-caliphate ISIS
The group's propaganda inspired the New Orleans attack, which proceeded without direct operational support.
Ideas
2024 in review: Commentary
Defense One contributors gathered lessons from around the globe and looked ahead to the new administration.
Ideas
In defense of the military’s unfunded priority lists
The service branches’ “wish lists” are a key part of Congress’ oversight process.
Ideas
Assad’s fall lays the ground for wider peace—if the US can seize the moment
A key will be reshaping the role of the Kurdish militants in Syria.
Ideas
The Army is too top-heavy
Surplus generals, swollen staffs, and excess headquarters drain headcount and resources from warfighting units.
Ideas
Will Assad’s defeat be Putin’s Waterloo?
The narrative of Russia's ascendancy in 2024 is beginning to look like more fiction than fact.
Ideas