Ideas

The US Army’s in Good Shape, But Tough Choices Loom

Some 500 programs are being scrutinized for cuts to support top acquisition priorities.

Ideas

Does Japan Need an Aircraft Carrier?

A floating air base would help defend far-flung islands under Chinese pressure, but at a cost.

Ideas

‘Light Footprint’ Operations Keep US Troops in the Dark

With fewer troops to gather intelligence, American forces are vulnerable to locals’ manipulation.

Ideas

Trump's 'Maximum-Pressure' Strategy for North Korea and Iran Will Fail

The combined might of punishing sanctions, diplomatic isolation, or even the threat of war won’t compel surrender from North Korea and Iran.

Ideas

A Missile-Defense Layer in Space Is Affordable and Makes Sense

Critics warn about sky-high price tags while blocking efforts to divine the actual cost.

Ideas

How Contractor Fraud Is Reported Shouldn’t Affect How It Gets Investigated

There are two main ways that a whistleblower can sound the alarm. Their outcomes can be very different.

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Is Nothing Better than Something? Trashing These Treaties Makes No Sense

The Open Skies, Intermediate Nuclear Forces, and New START agreements are important strands of the nuclear safety net.

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What Taylor Swift Teaches Us About Online War

What is “real” has become what is real online.

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Want Better Peacekeeping Ops? Add Women

Women are routinely underrepresented in peacekeeping operations, even though their participation has been shown to improve mission effectiveness and advance stability.

Ideas

The US Is Prolonging an Unwinnable War in Yemen

The Trump administration is allowing its policy to be dictated by Saudi Arabia’s rivalry with Iran.

Ideas

The US Military Must Lighten Warfighters’ Loads

Five suggestions to reduce injury and increase combat efficiency.

Ideas

China Has a ‘Space Force.’ What Are Its Lessons for the Pentagon?

The U.S. military must find new ways to leverage commercial innovation in order to contend with China in space.

Ideas

In Cyberspace, Governments Don’t Know How to Count

NATO’s governments can’t agree on what constitutes a cyber attack, and that’s a big problem.

Ideas

What Trump's UN Speech Says About What Comes Next

His General Assembly speech laid out his worldview—and offered some clues about what could lie ahead.

Ideas

Moon’s Praise-and-Pressure Plan to Get Trump to Help End Korean War

“You are, indeed, the only person who can solve this problem,” Moon said of Trump—just before he amped up the pressure.

Ideas

Two Reasons Not to Build Fort Trump in Today’s Poland

Even as it exacerbated Russian fears, a permanent U.S. force would burnish Warsaw’s dangerous turn.

Ideas

The UAE Will Shape the Future of Yemen

As the United Arab Emirates’ bloody war against the Houthis drags on, it’s also playing a key role in the fight against al-Qaeda.

Ideas

America Needs a Non-Unipolar Foreign Policy

Trump’s election should remind Congress and policymakers that the U.S. cannot do it all.

Ideas

Fort Trump: A Silly Name Masks a Good Idea

A permanent U.S. presence in Poland makes sense for several reasons.

Ideas

Build Small Nuclear Reactors for Battlefield Power

Los Alamos engineers are working on a tiny, steel-encased core regulated by physics, not pumps.