Ideas

The US Recently Made a Smart Move Toward Iran. Killing Soleimani Wasn’t It

The decision to focus on Tehran’s proxies in the wake of the embassy attack was the right course.

Ideas

Iran Loses Its Indispensable Man

The killing of Qassem Soleimani robs the regime of the central figure for its ambitions in the Middle East.

Threats

Iran’s Soleimani Killed in Trump-Ordered Airstrike

The stunning killing of the Quds Force leader follows Iranian-backed militia attacks on U.S. embassy in Iraq, and months of Tehran testing Washington’s stomach for violence.

Ideas

In Iraq, the US Gets Hit Where It Hurts

The storming of the U.S. embassy in Baghdad demonstrated that America doesn’t have a monopoly on pressure.

Ideas

Most-Read of 2020 (So Far)

We're three months into the next year already, if you go by the fiscal calendar. Here's the most-clicked posts on our site since Oct. 1.

Ideas

Progress, Peril, Hope: The Nuclear Decade in Review

U.S. policies that restrained and shrank atomic arsenals have been abandoned. Yet there are hopeful trends as well.

Ideas

Best of 2019: Ideas

Revisit some of the best op-eds and commentary we had the privilege of publishing over the past year.

Business

Best of 2019: The Business of Defense

Science & Tech

Pentagon Remains Bullish on 3D Printing, Despite Regulatory ‘Slog’

Military officials want to put additive manufacturing to broader use, but barriers remain.

Policy

Top US General Defends Afghanistan War

CJCS Mark Milley denied that officials “lied” to the American public about the 18-year conflict.

Ideas

The Lessons of the Afghanistan Papers

Americans need leaders who can tell them how and when they will decide to pull the plug.

Ideas

Can Military Leaders Handle the Truth About Afghanistan?

Our recent poll suggests that public confidence in the military is high, but that it may be on shaky ground.

Threats

US Military Should Deepen Its Use of Deception, Pacific Air Forces General Says

“Gadget" culture won’t beat China, says Gen. Charles Q. Brown.

Science & Tech

Pentagon Wants to Spark an American Small-Drone Industry

Acquisition chief Ellen Lord wants domestic options for small UAVs— and for defensive systems that can bring them down.

Ideas

Add Economic Policy to Deterrence Planning

As crisis brews overseas, U.S. leaders often turn first to sanctions and the like. But the Pentagon acts as if economic coercion doesn’t matter.

Ideas

Can Anything Stop the Flow of Advanced Weapons into Libya?

If the country becomes a nexus for expertise and arms, increasingly deadly regional armed groups could destabilize the region.

Threats

Esper 'Concerned' About Russian Influence in Egypt, Saudi Arabia

The defense secretary says Moscow's other Mideast efforts worry him more than its growing presence in Syria.

Policy

Defense Bill Would Create 'ROTC for Pentagon's Civilian Employees'

The college-based Defense Civilian Training Corps would aim to fill “critical skills gaps” in the department’s workforce.

Ideas

We Really Need to Fix the Federal Budget Process

With the 2020 defense policy bill close to done, here are some ideas for next year.