National Security

U.S. grand strategy stands at a crossroads. Since World War II, America has pursued an ambitious and deeply engaged grand strategy meant to shape the global order—a grand strategy that, in many ways, has been profoundly productive for both...

Retrenchment is all the rage in the academic strategic studies community. In recent years, a growing number of scholars—including prominent international-relations “realists” like Stephen Walt, John Mearsheimer, and Christopher Layne—have argued that Washington should retreat from the ambitious strategy...

What key lessons should U.S. policymakers and defense planners take away from the last 14 years of conflict? How relevant is the recent past? What does our strategic and operational performance suggest we need to retain as core competencies?...

The official silence on radiological warfare probably is expressive of classification rather than disinterest. Louis Ridenour (1949) Ironically, in the post-cold war world, one of the safest places for plutonium may well be on top of a missile. Paul...

When Sherlock Holmes first met Dr. Watson, the fictional detective famously declared: “You have been in Afghanistan, I perceive.” Holmes deduced from Watson’s wounds and post-traumatic stress that the doctor must have served during the Second Anglo-Afghan War of 1878-1880....

At 9:44 p.m. on July 27, 1953, Private First Class Harold B. Smith had just sixteen more minutes of the Korean War to survive before the cease-fire came into effect at 10:00 p.m. You can imagine this twenty-one-year old...

Crowded celebrations throughout the United States this July 4th are a tempting target for ISIS and other radical groups. From fireworks to festivals, children and parents, security and police will be stretched thin — and terrorists see an opportunity...

A glance at any major newspaper gives the reader an impression of global chaos, with raging conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Nigeria and Yemen. The crisis in Ukraine suggests that the potential for a serious conflagration over borders in...

Attempts to bridge the gap between academia and the real world, especially in the area of international relations, have accelerated over the last few years. There are several initiatives ongoing, including the Bridging the Gap project, the Tobin Project, the Institute for...

President Obama, possibly unaware of the implications, has made a mistake by nominating Adm. John Richardson as the new chief of naval operations. Adm. Richardson likely would do a fine job in that important role, but by trying to move him from his...