Strategy

The counterterrorism czar without a counterterrorism plan

Iranian threats against U.S. targets have brought renewed attention to the absence of Sebastian Gorka's long-promised doctrine.

  • Hannah Allam, ProPublica

Once again, Trump declines to describe desired end-state to his Iran war

In a primetime address, the president doesn’t list military objectives or what the U.S. wants from Tehran.

  • Meghann Myers

The National Security Council is missing in action

The Trump administration's lack of a consistent rationale for the war on Iran underscores the importance of a functioning NSC.

  • Gregory F. Treverton, The Conversation

The D Brief: 6 die in tanker crash; Russia’s US-war windfall; Iran’s industry ‘functionally defeated’; Escorts for Hormuz vessels?; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson, Bradley Peniston, Meghann Myers and Lauren C. Williams

The D Brief: War aims keep shifting; First week’s cost; ‘Ruthless’ JAG review; Ukraine’s China-free drones; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston

The D Brief: More mixed messaging on war; Airstrike pricetag; DOD civs pressed to seek border duty; Anthropic sues Hegseth; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston

Take the win. Stop the war.

Killing leaders is the easy part. The post-9/11 wars show that it’s what follows that turns into a disaster.

  • Will Walldorf

The D Brief: US toll rises to 8; Iran’s new leader; Building military-specific AI; Counting the rationales for war; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston

The D Brief: War on Iran; Retaliation throughout the Gulf; Friendly fire downs F-15s; Anthropic ejected from federal service; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston

The D Brief: Reports: Caine has concerns; USAF mobility chief; Senators seek boat-strike info; Arrest in China-training case; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Thomas Novelly

The D Brief: Competing views on Iran; $151B spending plan; 44th boat strike; B-21 production deal; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston

Defense One Radio, Ep. 203: Fictional intelligence

The authors of a new series discuss how they're exploring the future of conflict through short stories.

  • Ben Watson and Patrick Tucker
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The D Brief: Firefights across Mexico; Iran situation, still unclear; Tariff decision shakes foreign policy; What to expect at AFA symposium; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson, Bradley Peniston and Thomas Novelly

The D Brief: Iran buildup’s unclear aims; Army’s drone contest; Board of Peace, convened; More UFO info?; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson

Men lie, strategies lie—numbers don’t

The word counts of the new National Defense Strategy.

  • Peter W. Singer

The D Brief: Pentagon’s industry performance reviews; CNO’s fighting instructions; Marine Corps’ clean audit; DOD’s new AI tool; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston

The D Brief: Shutdown watch; Lingering defense-strategy qs; JAGs’ unusual new jobs; Secret drone’s recent mission; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson

The D Brief: CBP report belies ‘terrorist’ charges; Rubio threatens Venezuelan leaders; ‘Unsustainable’ national-security strategy?; EU, India near trade deal; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston
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Trump’s national defense strategy is unlike anything that’s come before it

It touts an end to interventionism and regime change, despite adventurism in Venezuela and Greenland.

  • Meghann Myers

The D Brief: Feds kill again in Minnesota; National Defense Strategy drops; New USAF deployment concept; Space Force wants more troops; And a bit more.

  • Ben Watson and Bradley Peniston

Defense One Radio, Ep. 202: The known perils of regime change

A scholar of civil wars warns against repeating the past mistakes from U.S. military interventions abroad.

  • Ben Watson and Monica Duffy Toft