Donald Trump

Revenge Is a Central Pillar of Iranian Foreign Policy

A diplomatic agreement can’t bring real peace with a regime that has a long history of terrorism.

Defense Department’s Public Election Security Directive Sends Important, but Belated, Signal to U.S. Adversaries

With the U.S. midterm elections fast approaching, the Department of Defense (DOD) has released an apparently unprecedented directive on election security. The directive, signed by the secretary of defense...

Russian Cyberespionage Campaign Signals U.S. Should Fast-Track Lessons Learned From Ukraine

Russia is testing its cyber weapons in Ukraine before turning them against the United States and its allies. Microsoft has disclosed that the Russian intelligence-linked hacking group Star Blizzard...

Washington Decides Complete Ban on Iran-Iraq Flights Is Not Worth the Political Cost

Iraq has received another carve out in Iran-related sanctions. After U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that “all the Iranian airlines will be shut down around the world,” all flights between...

Trump Administration Foreign Policy Tracker: October

Trend Overview – ...

Hezbollah’s Shadow Economy in Post-Assad Syria

UN Human Rights Council, European Governments Launch Economic Warfare Against Israel

International opprobrium towards the presence of Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria, commonly known as the West Bank, is discernibly shifting from rhetorical condemnation to economic and legal warfare. Three...

Medvedev’s message

The former Russian president explains why Putin fights

Trump’s US, Greenland deal changes less than it seems

Trump's new deal reaffirms broad basing access already in place. To get it, he damaged trust among America's European allies and created strains in NATO. The damage couldn't have come at a worse time.

US got pandas from China. Trump needs a lot more than that

Presidents Trump and Xi Jinping traded goodwill and extended a trade truce, but the rivalry hasn't softened. Soybeans, rare earths and Taiwan will show whether Beijing is playing ball.

Weak Sanctions Enforcement Is Fueling China’s ‘Polar Silk Road’

To be effective, American sanctions must be enforced wherever they apply — including in the High North. Early in September, two U.S.-sanctioned vessels left China carrying the last two power...

Blockade bites hard at Iran’s borders — Trump can’t cave now

To understand the economic devastation Iran is now experiencing, look no further than the trucks choking its borders. Thousands of them have lined up at land crossings into neighboring Turkey and Afghanistan,...

Is Turkey Turning on Tehran or Just Dodging the Treasury Department?

Turkey’s top banking regulator withdrew the operating license of the Istanbul branch of Iran’s Bank Mellat, a major Iranian commercial bank with state ties that has long been subject to U.S. sanctions. While...

Zelenskyy Proposes an ‘Energy Ceasefire,’ Hoping To Secure Patriot Interceptors

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy proposed a reciprocal “energy ceasefire” with Russia during his meeting with President Donald Trump at the UN General Assembly. The move suggested a calculated...

Strait Lines

Iraq Delays Militia Disarmament, But Doesn’t Give Up — For Now

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has reiterated his commitment to disarm Iranian-backed militias in his country, but says he needs nine more months to accomplish what may be an impossible task. In...

How Trump Redefined U.S.-Iran Policy At The UN

Trump makes his case and raises the stakes for the Islamic Republic in New York.

Strait Lines

Houthis fight for key Yemeni highlands, continue striking Saudi Arabia

The Houthis and the Yemeni Armed Forces, along with allied militias, have continued fighting on multiple fronts across the country, with the Houthis particularly focused on taking higher ground beyond...

America Must Be Able to Restore Its Space Power at War Speed

For decades, the U.S. military treated space largely as an enabler of power on Earth. Satellites helped troops communicate, guided precision weapons, and provided intelligence. Today, those systems are...