Russia's Front Stalls: Communication Failures Reveal Real Losses
Loss of phone service, trouble making mobile payments; losing more infantry than being recruited,along no forward progress on the front lines. Russia is allegedly realizing they are losing despite all the propaganda they are being fed
China Studies US‑Iran War to Prep Taiwan Strategy
What lessons is China learning from the current U.S.–Iran conflict and how could those lessons shape a future Taiwan scenario? In this @CarnegieEndow video, my #CarnegieAsia teammate Lieutenant General (Ret) @LTG_CHooper breaks down the key takeaways military strategists in Beijing...
Rubio Claims Iran War Aims to Undo Trump Era Policies
This is how we define winning: “The goal of the war in Iran is now to return it to how it was before Trump started the war.” --Marco Rubio https://t.co/VbfZabJ8r3
Trump's Weakened Stance Meets China's US‑controlled Maritime Chokepoints
The FT says Trump arrives in Beijing weakened after losing the trade war and the Iran war. Maybe, writes @BenPicton1 But China still depends on seaborne oil, LNG, & food moving through maritime chokepoints dominated by U.S. naval power My take: does...
First Russian Student Recruit Killed in Ukraine Drone Program
Valery Averin is the first publicly confirmed Russian soldier killed in Ukraine as part of Russia's campaign to recruit students to serve in its Unmanned Systems Forces. Averin was 23 and signed a contract on January 3, 2026. He completed...
Xi’s Leverage Forces US to Rethink Taiwan Policy
FT says Xi now holds most of the cards ahead of the Trump meeting Liberation Day tariffs flopped once China’s critical mineral chokehold started shutting U.S. factories Now the Iran war fiasco has weakened Washington further EXPECT A REVISION OF THE US POSITION...
Pentagon Admits Cost of Middle East Bases Remains Uncertain
Jules W. Hurst, the Pentagon's acting comptroller, tells lawmakers this morning that there are "a lot of unknowns there" when it comes to assessing the cost of military construction needed in the Middle East after the war with Iran. Cites several...
Pentagon Says Iran Ops Cost $29 B, up $4 B.
Pentagon Comptroller Jay Hurst tells HAC-D that the operations in Iran have cost about $29 billion to date, up from the previous $25 billion figure due to updated costs for repairing/replacing equipment and costs of keeping troops in theater.
NABU Probes Corruption in Ukraine's Defence and Energy Firms
"Semen Kryvonos, NABU's director, told reporters today the probe spanned the energy and defence sectors and that numerous Ukrainian weapons manufacturers, including drone companies, were under investigation for alleged corruption." @ChristopherJM https://t.co/p2iw7DoBU7 https://t.co/b47RZ0lxis
Trump Returns to Beijing as China Grows More Defiant
Trump Faces an Emboldened China in Return to Beijing—A decade after Trump’s last visit, Beijing is digging in on core issues of disagreement with the U.S., despite weaknesses at home https://t.co/Z4QKyot731 https://t.co/Z4QKyot731
Xi‑Trump Summit: Optics, History, and Taiwan’s Strategic Stakes
Julian Gewirtz joins me to chat about the Xi-Trump visit and all things US-China. We cover: -What to expect (and not expect) from the Trump-Xi “stalemate summit” -Historical echoes from the 1793 Macartney mission and the 1972 Nixon-Kissinger opening: summit optics, status games,...
China's Military Dominance and 2027 Taiwan Reunification Unaccounted
The hubris of Trump/Bessent IS China: “China leads in most military domains - and it's not even close” And China reunifying with Taiwan in 2027 is not priced in.
US‑Ukraine Draft Deal Enables Ukrainian Tech Exports, Joint Drone Production
"The governments of the U.S. and Ukraine have drafted a memorandum outlining the terms of a potential new defense deal between the countries, according to three sources familiar with the matter. The draft hashed out by the U.S. State Department and...
Iran Expands Strait of Hormuz Claim to 200 Km Radius
MAP OF THE DAY: Iran is claiming a much wider geographical footprint for the Strait of Hormuz than before, according to state media. Tehran says the SoH area goes from the port of Jask in the Gulf of Oman to...
Kagan Predicts U.S. Likely Defeat in Iran
Robert Kagan on why he believes U.S. faces likely defeat in Iran https://t.co/6JsAI19fL0 via @YouTube
Rigid Tactics Cripple Russia's R-37M/Su-35S Effectiveness
Russia pairs R-37M with Su-35S but rigid flight patterns, predictable airfields/routes & restrictive command-and-control authorisation requirements limit Russian air combat effectiveness. https://t.co/gxgwagC62I
U.S. and Iran Stuck in Oil‑Fueled Stalemate
Iran has Trump over an (oil) barrel. Quagmire. U.S. and Iran Are Locked in a Stalemate That’s Neither Peace Nor War https://t.co/9XTanI5UgG
Threats Hide in Plain Sight; Intelligence Beats Detection
As threats hide in plain sight, enterprises need intelligence and investigation, not just detection. https://t.co/KKOgpAAq5H
Hyperscalers May Lose Public‑Sector Data Contracts
US (and other global) hyperscalers could be pushed out of the running for contracts relating to sensitive public sector data. https://t.co/bzn1vgHBGg
Xi’s Power Lies in Rare Earth Monopoly
.@gideonrachman in FT op-ed: “It is Xi Jinping who ‘has the cards’—to use a phrase that Trump likes. The Chinese president’s ace is his country’s near monopoly over the production of rare earths and critical minerals.” https://t.co/kdHuHoSwcP
AI Powers Real‑World Zero‑Day Cyberattacks, Accelerating Threats
AI-assisted cyberattacks are no longer theoretical. Google says hackers used AI to discover an unknown software vulnerability, a glimpse of how offensive cyber capabilities may rapidly evolve. This is likely just the beginning. AI is accelerating not only innovation, but also the...
Kratos Defense Sees 3:1 Book‑
.@KratosDefense: Space/satellite division posts 3:1 book to bill in Q1, says @USSpaceForce contract to manage MEO constellation opens market for company's OpenSpace platform. New DoD focus preferring today's 80% to tomorrow's 100% could be opening for parabolic antennas. https://t.co/fQgUrjYRqw
Critical Xrdp Buffer Overflow Fixed in Latest Release
Our experts have discovered vulnerability CVE-2025-68670 in xrdp, a remote desktop server for Linux using the RDP protocol. A buffer overflow could lead to remote code execution without authentication. The issue has already been fixed in the latest versions. Details:...
Supply Chain Attacks Surge; Explore Mitigation Strategies and Vendors
Supply chain attacks are happening left and right with npm, PyPI and so many other places. It seems to be getting worse, everyone agrees. But what can you do about it? Some thoughts on possible approaches (all have tradeoffs). What did I...
Trump Unlikely to Hand Taiwan, TSMC Threatens His Security
This is why I would be surprised if Trump sold Taiwan out to China on this trip, as some are predicting. TSMC falling into Chinese hands would totally shift the compute balance toward China, making Trump and his family personally...
Trump Warns Fragile Iran Ceasefire, Urges Gas Tax Pause
President Trump just said the Iran ceasefire is barely hanging on and called Iran’s latest response “totally unacceptable.” He’s now pushing for a federal gas tax pause to help Americans with high fuel prices while the Strait of Hormuz...
US Submarines with Tactical Nukes Reveal Hidden Power
Trump doesn't really have any military options, says @ianbremmer I see that as a reasonable but narrow view US subs with tactical nuclear warheads just showed up very publicly at Gibralter Let that sink in for a while.
Iran Demands U.S. Relinquish Leverage Before Talks
Iran’s position is becoming clearer: Negotiations are acceptable only if the U.S. first gives up its leverage and accepts Iran’s war aims. That is not diplomacy in the conventional sense. It is an attempt to negotiate from perceived strategic advantage....
Real Mine‑Sweeping Still Exists in Certain Regions
Ya know. There is a place in the world where you could actually sweep for mines rather than pretending too.
Insufficient Destroyer Escorts Jeopardize Carrier Safety
How about ya’ll first worry about the fact you don’t have enough escort destroyers to sail a single carrier in harms way.
Navy Pushes Back on Nuclear-Powered Trump-Class Battleships
Trump Class Battleships Will Be Nuclear Powered Equipping the Trump class with nuclear propulsion presents benefits, but also massive challenges, and Navy officials had been pushing back against the idea. https://t.co/98Vbs9uZmK
U.S. Loses Narrative Control, Not Iran, in Middle East
The real story in the Middle East isn’t Iran, it’s the collapse of America’s ability to control the conversation. #iranwar #geopolitics https://t.co/O1zF2WSdCN
Army
YES And make them load and unload logistics ships and watercraft on the waterways and beaches. Prove to us the Army Corps of Engineers aren’t just contracting desk jockeys.
21st-Century Strongmen
When you add in the HTS victory in Syria, the destruction of Iran's proxy empire, and Trump's failure in Iran, you start to see a pattern forming: 21st century strongmen can't fight well.
France’s Nuclear Push Fueled Strategic Autonomy and Nixon Shock
I know I am probably 65+ years late to this, but I think I under appreciated how long France has been banging on about strategic autonomy for. And to what degree De Gaulle used negotiations around “force de frappe” as...
OpenAI Launches Daybreak to Accelerate Continuous Cyber Defense
OpenAI is launching Daybreak, our effort to accelerate cyber defense and continuously secure software. AI is already good and about to get super good at cybersecurity; we'd like to start working with as many companies as possible now to help them...
MQ‑9 Reaper Fires Laser‑Guided Rockets at Drones
MQ-9 Reaper Slings Drone-Killing Laser-Guided Rockets In Tests The MQ-9 successfully tested APKWS rockets against air and ground targets, as the demand for lower-cost counter-drone weapons surges. https://t.co/xrhkYcwR9F
NightBeacon Slashes Detection to Seconds, Cuts False Positives 87%
NightBeacon is changing the game for us @Binary_Defense - we have this technology so dialed into every aspect of what we do. Our MTTD and MTTR has drastically been reduces to seconds and minutes, not multiple minutes or hours....
Former Communist Journalist Turned FBI Informant Revealed Party Secrets
My latest for Journalist and Spy: Louis Budenz was an American journalist and communist spy. A member of the Communist Party USA, he shared gossip with Soviet intelligence. He later renounced communism and debriefed the FBI on the party's inner...
Navy Jet Strikes MT Sea Star III, Vessel Ablaze
Images of MT Sea Star III that was hit by a Navy F/A-18 off USS George H. W. Bush on fire off Jask in the Gulf of Oman. H/T @TankerTrackers
UAE Deploys Small, Powerful Force to Counter Iran
Another eye-popping scoop from the @WSJ Middle East bureau. The U.A.E. is using its small but potent military to retaliate against Iran. https://t.co/ESPoY7pRg1
Bipartisan Senators Press Trump for Taiwan Arms Sales
Ahead of Beijing Summit, Shaheen, Tillis, Bipartisan Colleagues Urge President Trump to Permit Taiwan Arms Sales https://t.co/0rXeGvjerL
UK Sanctions Iranian-Linked Network over Attack Plots
JUST IN: The UK sanctions a network linked to Iran, citing attack plots and finance operations.
US Navy Commits to 15 New Battleships over 30 Years
Just in-- The US Navy said it plans to buy at least 15 new battleships endorsed by President Donald Trump over the next 30 years, according to its new shipbuilding plan, marking a deeper commitment than previously revealed to what...
Iran's Nuclear Capability Would Redefine Strategic Calculus
Chris Perkins: We can't have a nuclear arms Iran. If the Iranians had nuclear weapons right now, it would be a very different calculus. 👀 https://t.co/BIrBhgvWAN
Trump, Netanyahu Hint at Risky Iran Uranium Raid
Possibility Of Operation To Retrieve Iran’s Enriched Uranium Appears To Rise As Negotiations Sputter Both Trump and Netanyahu made comments in the last 24 hours that point to a possible high-risk operation to snatch Iran's nuclear material. https://t.co/ODSnl4h3je
Trump’s Unpredictability Undermines Consistent Taiwan Policy
Why would anything Trump says bind a future president, or even bind himself? He turns on a dime and could reverse his words next Thursday. American policy toward Taiwan used to put a premium on consistency and predictability. Neither of...
New “Cope Cage” Shields Russian Boat Against Drones
Anti-Drone “Cope Cage” Appears On Russian Patrol Boat Ukrainian drone attacks on naval targets are driving the development of new defenses, but overhead screens alone have dwindling efficacy. https://t.co/ntZu2XQ8Sh
China Controls Rare Earths Powering U.S. Tech
My take in @FortuneMagazine on China’s ace - rare earths: “Every advanced weapons system, electric drivetrain, wind turbine, and smartphone in the US runs through China’s critical materials.” The rules are being rewritten, and they are being rewritten in Beijing. https://t.co/m5S1TtrB5g
Autonomous Weapons Offer Ethical Path to No Casualties
No Man Left Behind. From Daniel Penny, Alex Oliver, and Zach Chen on the moral case for autonomous warfare.