Analysis

Analysis offers a new angle on a contemporary or historical issue. These articles are policy-oriented and cover current developments around the globe that impinge upon American foreign policy and national security priorities.

Four Years of War in Ukraine and Baltic Solidarity

Each month, Dr. Indra Ekmanis writes a monthly roundup highlighting major political, cultural, and economic events in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Her commentary on the Baltic response to Russia’s war in Ukraine is featured below, originally featured in the...

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A Conundrum: Strategic Minerals and a Peripheral Africa

The Trump administration’s National Security Strategy (NSS), publicly issued in early December 2025, focused primarily on the survival of the United States as a “sovereign republic, rejecting international obligations and alliances, other than restoration of American hegemony in the...

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The US Is Not Built For War Or Peace: America’s Industrial Resilience Gap

This piece is part of Behind the Front, an FPRI project on the future of US and allied national defense. The views expressed in this article are the authors’ own.  A minor power outage in San Francisco offered a...

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The Origin of the US-UK Intelligence “Special Relationship”

Introduction From the beginning of World War II in Europe in 1939, a formal, albeit limited, liaison relationship existed between the intelligence and security services of the United Kingdom and their American counterparts—the Army and Navy intelligence staffs and...

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Leveraging the Kurdish National Council and Roj Peshmerga to Break the Deadlock in Syria

State of Play Northeast Syria, for long the most stable corner of the country, has been plunged into turmoil following a military campaign by the government of President Ahmed al-Sharaa. Following days of fighting, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)...

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The US AI Acceleration Plan vs China’s Diffusion Model

The latest US Artificial Intelligence Strategy is a meaningful policy shift and should not be treated as just another vision document. It is an attempt to rewire how the Department of War builds, plans, tests, accredits, and scales capability...

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Trump and the Special Operations Panacea

The recent raid to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro appears to have been a nearly flawlessly executed special operation. Conducted by the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) with interagency support, the raid demonstrated the professionalism and expertise of America’s...

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The Trump-Class Battleship: Spectacle Wins Out Over Combat Power

After finishing my last article on the inability of the US Navy to build frigates, I was hopeful that I could have a bit of a break before the next crisis in American naval shipbuilding. If there were ever...

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The Africa Blind Spot: The US National Security Strategy and the Risks of Retreat

On November 5, the Trump administration unveiled the new National Security Strategy (NSS) for the United States. Since the passage of the Goldwater-Nichols Act in 1986, presidents have been required by Congress to provide an NSS. Waiting for this...

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The Present and Future of the KMT in Taiwan

Taiwan’s politics is at an inflection point. The ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which has held the presidency since 2016, has been on the defensive since the attempt to recall more than thirty legislators from the main opposition Kuomintang...

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