Commentary

Sometimes, even mannequins fight battles. In the early weeks of the war in Ukraine, a captivating video surfaced on social media, offering a glimpse into tactics defining the conflict. The footage shows a Ukrainian trench line south of…

Today, Armenia is no longer considered a “backyard of Russia,” as it has been for the last three decades. As a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War in 2020, Armenia’s defense and security policies are…

The China Coast Guard cutters Meishan and Xiushan slipped into port on Oct. 17, ending a dramatic 35-day deployment that brought them from the East China Sea to the Sea of Japan, the North Pacific, the Bering Sea, and, ultimately, the…

The longstanding shadow conflict between Iran and Israel has entered a new, more dangerous phase of open confrontation. For decades, both nations engaged in covert operations and proxy warfare in what was known as the “campaign between…

Europe’s only nuclear powers have a lot in common. France and the United Kingdom have both been contributors to NATO’s nuclear deterrence posture since the Ottawa Communique of 1974. Despite France not having joined the alliance’s Nuclear…

What does conventional arms control mean for how wars end? Even the longest wars terminate, and many conflicts end with some kind of agreement, even if it is unconditional surrender. Yet the term unconditional surrender is, itself,…

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had reasons to be pleased after his recent Balkan tour. Visiting Albania on Oct. 10, 2024, Erdoğan promised to donate an unspecified number of kamikaze drones to Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, and…

In an elaborate ceremony in August this year, North Korea celebrated the delivery of 250 nuclear-capable missile launchers to frontline military units. To a crowd of spectators, leader Kim Jong Un declared that North Korea needs to bolster…

Africa presents a uniquely complex challenge for China. Political instability — wars, coups, civil unrest — poses challenges that may undermine China’s peaceful rise and compel it to deploy military and security forces to protect its…

The Kremlin’s preoccupation with prevailing in Ukraine is pushing it to contemplate geostrategic risks and adopt a more proactive approach in regions like the Red Sea. In the past, the Yemeni quagmire had limited appeal even to Russia, a…