Faced with an improving Russian threat, the United States should deploy a serious space sensor layer to provide persistent birth-to-death tracking of missiles, including against the kind that rip through the air at low altitudes 20 times the speed of sound (hypersonics).

Rep. Mike Rogers chairs the House Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee, which has been remarkably vigorous in its oversight the last two years. (Just ask Air Force Chief of Staff David Goldfein or Secretary Heather Wilson.) His subcommittee keeps a close eye on America’s nuclear weapon delivery systems, as well as its warheads (which are… Keep reading →

  For years, the Pentagon has dreamed and worked to build what it has called Prompt Global Strike, The idea is simple: to build a hypersonic weapon that can destroy targets anywhere on earth within an hour of getting targeting data and permission to launch. The technology and the physics are not simple; nor are they cheap.… Keep reading →

Illegal fishing. Yes, Fishing. This growing international problem is a key factor in geopolitical tensions in the South China Sea, piracy off the Horn of Africa, and the deadly narco-trade across Latin America. Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, an illicit business which generates annual profits of $15.5 billion to $36.4 billion, poses a significant… Keep reading →

The Trump Administration’s review of nuclear policy and weapons was leaked half a month before its official rollout, giving advocacy groups, allies and everyone else who cares about nuclear warfare much time to craft their reactions. (Everyone should care about the issues, no matter how scary this topic is). Rebecca Hersman, deputy assistant Defense secretary for… Keep reading →

China, China. China. It’s pretty much all you hear when you talk to sailors and Marines these days. When you’re talking to the Army or Air Force, then it’s Russia, Russia, Russia. Though, to be fair, the Air Force is pretty fixated on both. The new National Defense Strategy — which we got first, as… Keep reading →

Our partnership with the Center for Strategic and International Studies resumes with this piece by Seth Jones, part of a CSIS series on the National Defense Strategy, Nuclear Posture Review and the Missile Defense Review. As our intrepid readers would know, Deputy Defense Secretary Pat Shanahan, Deputy Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette and Undersecretary of State… Keep reading →

The debate over the operational relevance of the controversial Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) continues. The Navy has again spoken up for the much-maligned platform, suggesting to Breaking Defense that the LCS could operate in the Pacific like the PT boats of World War II or cavalry units in a Napoleonic army. Rear Adm. Donald Gabrielson said… Keep reading →

“Insane.” “Deeply dangerous.” Raises the risk of “nuclear exchange” and a “new arms race.” These are some of the serious accusations leveled against the recently leaked Nuclear Posture Review. Each presidential administration since Clinton has written an NPR, primarily to guide U.S. nuclear policy and priorities, but the 2018 NPR is shaping up to be… Keep reading →

The National Defense Strategy, released this morning, may be the single most important document penned by Defense Secretary Jim Mattis. It encapsulates the Trump Administration’s defense policies in one place for the first time and provides guidance for the 2019 defense budget, to be released in a few weeks. That budget will mark the administration’s… Keep reading →