Ideas
On the Cyber Frontier, Hacking Back is Ethical — and Even Desirable
Governments could treat retaliatory cyberattacks as ‘frontier' incidents, which are not necessarily escalatory.
Ideas
Six Steps to Starting Over After a Civil War
How do you dismantle the animosities of a half-century war and create peace in a country known for its absence?
Ideas
The United Nations: What's the Point?
It's not clear the organization can effectively confront—or even survive—today's challenges.
Ideas
Al-Qaeda's War on America Just Entered Its Third Decade
Two decades ago, Osama bin Laden officially launched al-Qaeda’s struggle against the United States. Neither side has won.
Ideas
Why So Many Foreign Fighters Flock to ISIS
A look at the factors that motivate people to leave home and join faraway wars.
Ideas
‘Open Letter’ to Obama on Afghanistan Omits Key Questions
Staying the course won’t work if we don’t know where we’re going.
Ideas
Gray Zone: Why We’re Losing the New Era of National Security
If the U.S.-led status quo is not be to further eroded, the White House and Pentagon must jumpstart efforts to recognize and counter hybrid techniques.
Ideas
Afghanistan Needs a Settlement, Not Another Troop-Withdrawal Deadline
The U.S. objective in Afghanistan is not to leave; it is to end the war on terms Americans and Afghans can live with.
Science & Tech
‘Give Surprising New Capabilities to Old Platforms,’ Carter Tells Engineers
At a Navy R&D lab, the defense secretary reveals a deeply layered concept of 'innovation' — and a geek's love for tech.
Ideas
Naval Cooperation is More Crucial Than Ever. Here’s What It Costs.
To build key relationships, the US must be willing to trade readiness for presence and exquisite ships for numbers.
Ideas
CNO: US Navy Needs Foreign Help Against Russia, China, ISIS, Iran
The Chief of Naval Operations explains why he's working to expand and strengthen the fleet's network of partners.
Ideas
Beijing Is Setting the Stage for War in the South China Sea
China is setting itself up to be repeatedly provoked in the disputed waters—it might even be counting on it.
Ideas
To Beat ISIS, We Must Think Smaller
People become radicalized when they lack hope, jobs, and purpose. Local investments can break the cycle.
Ideas
What’s Wrong with Obama’s National Security Council?
An insider sorts the solid critiques from the amnesiac complaints.
Ideas
How Should the World Respond to Terrorism?
We invert the classic Q&A to explore the complexities influencing global responses to terrorism today.
Ideas
Let’s Not Give Suicide Bombers So Much Credit—Sometimes They Have No Strategy
The Brussels attackers may have been responding to territorial losses in Iraq and Syria, but that's not the only possible scenario.
Ideas
The Changing Logic Behind Suicide Bombings
What was once purely a strategic action has become a tactical move meant to help hold territory.
Ideas
When the Enemy Is Everywhere: The Rise and Fall of the 'Kill Box' in US Military Strategy
Once a hallmark of state-on-state conflict, simply finding oneself inside of an American kill box in today's counterterrorism wars is enough to be retroactively defined as guilty.
Ideas
Securing Syria Region-by-Region from the Bottom Up
We’re too focused on fighting ISIS and Assad and not enough on finding and uniting the Syrians who will govern after the war.
Threats