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Dr. Andrew A. Michta: Geostrategy

The Eastern Flank Comes First: Inside NATO’s Post-Ankara Turn Toward Forward Defense and Industrial Muscle

For all the talk of spending targets, the Ankara NATO summit's real work happened elsewhere. Europe is being handed responsibility for NATO's conventional defense...

7 minutes ago
F-35 Elephant Walk

Aerospace & Defense

Canada Wants to Fly Both the Lockheed F-35 and Saab JAS 39 Gripen. The Math Says That Buys Less, Not More

A Canadian fighter fleet built around both the F-35 and the Gripen isn't foolish. It's demanding, and nothing in Ottawa's recent behavior suggests it's...

1 hour ago
Russia President Putin. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

The Embassy

The War in Ukraine Is Already Over — and Putin Lost

National security expert James Jay Carafano argues that although the fighting grinds on, the war in Ukraine is strategically over — and Putin has...

20 hours ago
Donald Trump

The Embassy

Trump Just Threatened to Pull U.S. Forces Out of Europe at the NATO Summit — Unless Denmark Bends on Greenland

President Trump arrived at the NATO summit in Ankara and threatened to withdraw substantial U.S. forces from Europe unless Denmark softens its grip on...

22 hours ago

Dr. Andrew A. Michta: Geostrategy
MLRS like those used in Ukraine. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

Dr. Andrew A. Michta: Geostrategy

The Decisive Theater: North Korea and the Problem of Simultaneous War

Western analysts fixate on North Korea's missiles. The real danger is speed — a mass artillery-and-missile salvo in the war's first hours, backed by...

3 days ago
A B-1B Lancer assigned to the 9th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron takes off at RAF Fairford, United Kingdom, to participate in a Bomber Task Force Europe mission, Oct. 27, 2021. “Bombers enhance our ability to address dynamic threats and counter adversary actions in the region as an effective joint force,” said Gen. Jeff Harrigian, U.S. Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa commander. Operations and engagements with NATO allies and global partners demonstrate the shared commitment to global security and stability. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Colin Hollowell) A B-1B Lancer assigned to the 9th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron takes off at RAF Fairford, United Kingdom, to participate in a Bomber Task Force Europe mission, Oct. 27, 2021. “Bombers enhance our ability to address dynamic threats and counter adversary actions in the region as an effective joint force,” said Gen. Jeff Harrigian, U.S. Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa commander. Operations and engagements with NATO allies and global partners demonstrate the shared commitment to global security and stability. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Colin Hollowell)

Dr. Andrew A. Michta: Geostrategy

The Case for NATO: Leaving Europe Would Be a Serious Strategic Mistake for America

The second Trump administration is reviewing America's military footprint in Europe, and the worst-case outcome is a full withdrawal. Andrew Michta argues that would...

June 22, 2026
A U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor assigned to the 154th Wing, Hawaii Air National Guard, takes part in a multi-ship formation off the coast of Hawaii, Jan. 5, 2026. The aircraft participated in a comprehensive training sortie designed to integrate the 154th Operations Group’s distinct mission sets, including air superiority and aerial refueling, to ensure peak mission readiness in the Indo-Pacific theater. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Senior Master Sgt. Mysti Bicoy) A U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor assigned to the 154th Wing, Hawaii Air National Guard, takes part in a multi-ship formation off the coast of Hawaii, Jan. 5, 2026. The aircraft participated in a comprehensive training sortie designed to integrate the 154th Operations Group’s distinct mission sets, including air superiority and aerial refueling, to ensure peak mission readiness in the Indo-Pacific theater. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Senior Master Sgt. Mysti Bicoy)

Dr. Andrew A. Michta: Geostrategy

The Iran Deal Doesn’t Stop at Iran: Russia, China, and North Korea are Watching

The US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding is being judged on whether it cools tensions in the Persian Gulf. Strategic-studies scholar Andrew Michta argues that's the...

June 19, 2026
240105-N-LK647-1019 STRAIT OF GIBRALTAR (Jan. 5, 2024) A view from the Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser USS Normandy (CG 60) of the first-in-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), as the Ford Carrier Strike Group passes through the Strait of Gibraltar, Jan. 5, 2024. Normandy is part of the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group and is currently operating in the Mediterranean Sea, at the direction of the Secretary of Defense. The U.S. maintains forward-deployed, ready, and postured forces to deter aggression and support security and stability around the world. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Malachi Lakey) 240105-N-LK647-1019 STRAIT OF GIBRALTAR (Jan. 5, 2024) A view from the Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser USS Normandy (CG 60) of the first-in-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), as the Ford Carrier Strike Group passes through the Strait of Gibraltar, Jan. 5, 2024. Normandy is part of the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group and is currently operating in the Mediterranean Sea, at the direction of the Secretary of Defense. The U.S. maintains forward-deployed, ready, and postured forces to deter aggression and support security and stability around the world. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Malachi Lakey)

Dr. Andrew A. Michta: Geostrategy

The Iran War Is Giving China Time, Russia Money, and North Korea an Opening

Iran: A War at the Wrong Time and Place: As the war in Iran continues and analysts debate how long it will last and...

April 14, 2026

Aerospace & Defense
NASA Apollo 11 Exhibit at the Kennedy Space Center Saturn V Hanger. Image Credit 19FortyFive Harry J. Kazianis.

Aerospace & Defense

Nearly 18,000 People Applied to Be NASA Astronauts. About 12 Made It.

NASA receives 12,000 to 18,000 applications in a typical astronaut cycle and selects about ten to twelve people, an acceptance rate well below one...

41 minutes ago
Iowa-class Battleship Broadside Iowa-class Battleship Broadside

Aerospace & Defense

The Iowa-Class Were the Most Powerful Battleships America Ever Built. They Never Fought the War They Were Designed For.

The Iowa-class battleships were the most powerful America ever built, designed to win a decisive gun duel with an enemy fleet. By the time...

13 hours ago
F-111 Aardvark. Image: Creative Commons. F-111 Aardvark. Image: Creative Commons.

Aerospace & Defense

The U.S. Navy Never Wanted the F-111B. Its Failure Gave Them the F-14 Tomcat

The F-111B was supposed to be the Navy's long-range fleet defender. Shifting Cold War priorities and unhappy aviators killed it in 1968, and everything...

13 hours ago
The B-21 Raider was unveiled to the public at a ceremony December 2, 2022 in The B-21 Raider was unveiled to the public at a ceremony December 2, 2022 in

Aerospace & Defense

The Math Doesn’t Lie: 100 B-21 Raider Bombers Isn’t Enough for the U.S. Air Force

The B-21 Raider may be the most advanced bomber ever built — but at $700 million apiece, this piece argues the Air Force's planned...

17 hours ago

Trillions
Putin. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

Trillions - 19FortyFive

Russia’s Biggest Oil Refinery Just Went Dark After a Ukrainian Drone Struck It Deep in Siberia — and Kilometer-Long Gas Lines Followed

A single Ukrainian drone forced Russia's largest refinery, in Omsk, to halt operations, knocking out units that make roughly 75 percent of its output...

2 days ago
(April 8, 2017) - Pre-Commissioning Unit Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) departs Huntington Ingalls Industries Newport News Shipbuilding for builder’s sea trials off the coast. The first- of-class ship—the first new U.S. aircraft carrier design in 40 years—will spend several days conducting builder’s sea trials, a comprehensive test of many of the ship’s key systems and technologies. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Ryan Litzenberger) (April 8, 2017) - Pre-Commissioning Unit Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) departs Huntington Ingalls Industries Newport News Shipbuilding for builder’s sea trials off the coast. The first- of-class ship—the first new U.S. aircraft carrier design in 40 years—will spend several days conducting builder’s sea trials, a comprehensive test of many of the ship’s key systems and technologies. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Ryan Litzenberger)

Trillions - 19FortyFive

Iran Wants Every Ship in the Strait of Hormuz to Pay It “Protection Money” — and Experts Say the World’s Most Important Oil Route May Never Be the Same

Iran is moving to charge ships for passing through the Strait of Hormuz — the waterway that carries a fifth of the world's oil...

July 1, 2026
J-50 Fighter J-50 Fighter

Trillions - 19FortyFive

China Shows Its Sixth-Generation Fighter Refueling for the First Time: The YY-20 Tanker Extending Its Pacific Reach

A film celebrating ten years of China's Y-20 transport slipped in something no other country has shown on official camera: a sixth-generation fighter refueling...

June 30, 2026
H-20 Bomber from YouTube Screenshot H-20 Bomber from YouTube Screenshot

Trillions - 19FortyFive

Why China’s H-20 Stealth Bomber Still Has No Production Line: The Engine, Materials, and Tooling Problems Xi’an Hasn’t Solved

A decade after it surfaced, China's H-20 has no flying prototype and no production line. The reasons are industrial, not financial: an intercontinental flying...

June 30, 2026

The Embassy
RED SEA (Nov. 2, 2015) The amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3), transits the Red Sea, Nov. 2, 2015. Kearsarge is the flagship for the Kearsarge Amphibious Group and, with the embarked 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, is deployed in support of maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations. (U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Apprentice Ryre Arciaga/Released)

The Embassy

Taiwan Can Be Defended Against China. The Price Is the Real Problem

Cheap drones can make a Chinese assault on Taiwan bloodier and a quick victory less likely — but they don't repeal geography or remove...

2 days ago
Putin Russia Putin Russia

The Embassy

‘Russia Cannot Win’: A Definitive Verdict Just Landed on Putin’s War — His Last Real Option Is Negotiating Before the Terms Get Worse

The expectation that cutting U.S. aid would force Ukraine to fold is dead: Russia cannot win this war without a mass mobilization or nuclear...

2 days ago
Hai Kun-Class Submarine Hai Kun-Class Submarine

The Embassy

The Era of Strong U.S. Support for Taiwan Is Ending — and Not Just Because of Trump

Trump calling Taiwan a "bargaining chip" is the headline, but Denny Roy argues the deeper story is structural: a Chinese military that makes intervention...

July 2, 2026
A B-52 Stratofortress assigned to the 2nd Bomb Wing takes off for a Red Flag 21-3 training mission at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, July 21, 2021. RF-Nellis 21-3 is unlike any previous Red Flags, as the 414th Combat Training Squadron builds upon the most challenging Red Flags in recent history. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Alexandre Montes) A B-52 Stratofortress assigned to the 2nd Bomb Wing takes off for a Red Flag 21-3 training mission at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, July 21, 2021. RF-Nellis 21-3 is unlike any previous Red Flags, as the 414th Combat Training Squadron builds upon the most challenging Red Flags in recent history. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Alexandre Montes)

The Embassy

Trump Set an August 18 Deadline to Resume the War With Iran. Now the White House Is Quietly Backing Away From It

For weeks, an August 18 deadline loomed: the day a U.S.–Iran understanding expired, and, by President Trump's own warning, the day fighting over the...

July 1, 2026

Hermit Kingdom
North Korea New Destroyer KCNA Photo_State Media

Hermit Kingdom

North Korea’s New Destroyer Capsized at Its Own Launch. A Year Later It’s Heading Into Service Anyway

Last year North Korea's newest destroyer rolled over at its own launch, and the world assumed the program was finished for years. Instead Pyongyang...

22 hours ago
KN-23 North Korean Missile Being Used in Ukraine War KN-23 North Korean Missile Being Used in Ukraine War

Hermit Kingdom

KN-23: Russia Is Using North Korean Ballistic Missiles in the Ukraine War That Keep Getting Deadlier Every Passing Day

The KN-23, North Korea's version the Russian Iskander missile, showed up to fight in the Ukraine war. And it isn't the same platform as...

June 24, 2026
Choe Hyon class from North Korea Choe Hyon class from North Korea

Hermit Kingdom

North Korea Capsized Its New Destroyer on Live TV Before Kim Jong Un: Now It’s Building Warships Twice the Size

On May 21, 2025, a brand-new North Korean destroyer rolled over and partially capsized at its own launch ceremony — with Kim Jong Un...

June 19, 2026
North Korean Military. Image Credit: Creative Commons. North Korean Military. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

Hermit Kingdom

6,000 North Korean Soldiers Are Dead in Ukraine: Kim Jong Un Keeps Sending More

Fake Russian IDs, Orders Never to Be Captured, and 50% Casualties: Inside North Korea’s Secret War in Ukraine The Russian Army has sustained nearly...

March 27, 2026
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