Ideas
The Soleimani Assassination Is America’s Most Consequential Strike This Century
The U.S. attack against the top Iranian general will have far greater repercussions than the killings of al-Qaeda and ISIS leaders.
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.
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
A Bigger Foreign-Policy Mess Than Anyone Predicted
In the 2010s, global affairs turned out far worse than the most pessimistic scenario foretold by U.S. intelligence experts.
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.
Policy
Why Trump and Biden Can’t Cut Troops in Afghanistan Much More
Even ‘bare minimum’ counterterrorism forces require critical intelligence only U.S. personnel can provide, officials warn.
Ideas
Inside the Collapse of Trump’s Korea Policy
When it comes to America’s last-ditch effort to prevent North Korea from becoming a nuclear power, timing has been everything. Now time’s running out.
Ideas
Put US Post-INF Missiles into Production
The U.S. has waited too long to mimic Chinese intermediate-range weapons.
Policy
Democratic Candidates Sound Off on China
Three of the seven 2020 candidates at the debate argued the U.S. needs an international coalition to deal with Beijing.
Ideas
Russia Is Waging Asymmetric Warfare Against the US — And We’re Letting Them Win
We must do more to harden against these attacks on our economy, institutions, and the public.
Ideas
The Trump Administration’s ‘Denuclearization’ Is A Road to Nowhere
U.S. policy will remain stuck as long as the administration continues to convince itself that the North’s nuclear dismantlement can be achieved on Washington’s timeline.
Ideas
Under Trump, the US Has Become a Leading Source of Global Instability
The country is now a known unknown, increasing the risk of crises from the Middle East to East Asia to Central America, a new survey suggests.
Ideas
The FBI Needs to Be Reformed
The inspector general’s report identified real weaknesses, particularly with the policies and procedures that govern investigations of political campaigns.
Ideas
The Foreign-Policy Parallels Between Trump and the Ayatollahs Are Uncanny
Neither the U.S. president nor Iran's leaders are as willing to go toe-to-toe as they might seem.
Ideas