Security & Defense

Security & Defense

One of the most fundamental responsibilities of governments is to protect their citizens from all threats, internal or foreign. Policy makers must prepare for potential conventional warfare, terrorism and other asymmetrical attacks, and the repercussions of natural disasters and climate change to ensure the safety of their citizens. The motivation to protect against future threats must also be partnered with regular dialogue and partnership with allies and neighbors to prevent the triggering of violent conflict or destabilizing arms races.

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Putin wants peace talks. He doesn’t want peace.

Report Sep 8, 2026

Preparing for and countering limited nuclear attacks in East Asia: Guardian Tiger III

By Markus Garlauskas with John Park and Kyoko Imai. Contributors: Andrew Brown and Jonathan Corrado

The risk of North Korea launching a limited nuclear attack will likely increase over the coming decade. The United States and its allies are not preparing adequately to deter and prevail in the face of such nuclear strikes.
Indo-Pacific Korea
Putin wants peace talks. He doesn’t want peace.

Dispatches Sep 1, 2026

Where and how Putin could expand his war in Europe beyond Ukraine

By Atlantic Council experts

The CIA director’s recent unannounced visit to Moscow has raised speculation about Russian plans to escalate attacks.
Conflict Eastern Europe
Putin wants peace talks. He doesn’t want peace.

Report Aug 27, 2026

AI and autonomy in contested operations

By Owen J. Daniels

Any potential major conflict the United States engages in will be shaped by AI and autonomous systems. US forces should expect their systems to operate in denied, degraded, intermittent, and limited (DDIL) conditions imposed by jamming techniques, cyber-attacks, and anti-satellite capabilities designed to sever the connectivity and wreak havoc on military operations.
Artificial Intelligence Defense Policy

Programs

The Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security works to develop sustainable, nonpartisan strategies to address the most important security challenges facing the United States and the world.

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Content

Dispatches

Nov 6, 2026

Putin wants peace talks. He doesn’t want peace.

By John E. Herbst

The Russian president is using negotiations, including the upcoming US-Ukraine-Russia talks in Abu Dhabi, to buy time and extract concessions.

Russia Security & Defense

Dispatches

Nov 6, 2026

The six strategic mistakes that led to US defeat in Afghanistan

By Andrew L. Peek

Twenty-five years on, the United States' defeat in Afghanistan appears less inevitable than the result of decisions that undermined its ability to prevent the Taliban's resurgence.

Afghanistan Security & Defense

Issue Brief

Nov 6, 2026

To settle Russia’s Ukraine war, Europe needs to let Kyiv in. Trump can help (really).

By James Batchik, Andrew D’Anieri

Any deal to end the war in Ukraine must fix a date for Kyiv to join the EU, but countless hurdles stand in the way. Washington has the leverage to help Brussels clear them—if it can use that leverage in a new way.

European Union Political Reform

Dispatches

Nov 6, 2026

Not quite mercenaries: How Russia lures thousands of foreigners to fight in its war on Ukraine

By Andrii Latsyba

Many of Russia's foreign recruits were coerced into service due to vulnerable legal or financial statuses. What should become of them?

Europe & Eurasia Human Rights

UkraineAlert

Nov 5, 2026

Putin suffers Balkan setbacks as Russia struggles to retain influence

By Michael Getto

Russia’s recent setbacks in the Balkans are a reminder of the foreign policy challenges facing the Kremlin as the full-scale invasion of Ukraine approaches a sixth year with no end in sight, writes Michael Getto.

Conflict Elections

UkraineAlert

Nov 5, 2026

Last week’s brief Ukraine ceasefire did not stop Russian attacks on civilians

By Kristina Hook

A recent humanitarian ceasefire around the southern Ukrainian city of Oleshky made it possible to evacuate hundreds of residents, but Russian attacks on civilians elsewhere in Ukraine continue, writes Kristina Hook.

Civil Society Conflict

Fast Thinking

Nov 4, 2026

What the midterms will (and won’t) change for US foreign policy

By Atlantic Council

Our experts explain where the power shift could change foreign policy—and where it won’t. 

Artificial Intelligence Elections

UkraineAlert

Nov 3, 2026

Europe must weigh rising Ukraine costs against higher price of Russian victory

By Peter Dickinson

If Russia succeeds in overrunning an underfunded and exhausted Ukraine, the consequences for Europe will be catastrophic and the price tag of stopping an emboldened Putin will dwarf the current cost of supporting Kyiv, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

Nov 3, 2026

A strong defense industry may be Ukraine’s best security guarantee

By Leonid Baratz

Ukrainians have little faith in written guarantees and are well aware that nobody is going to fight Russia on their behalf. Instead, their most realistic security guarantee is a strong Ukrainian military backed by a powerful domestic defense industry, writes Leonid Baratz.

Conflict Defense Industry

Report

Nov 3, 2026

Religion as statecraft: What a decade of research reveals about the geopolitics of religious soft power

By Peter Mandaville

The post-Cold War assumption that international politics was converging toward a secular liberal framework in which religion would play at most a marginal role has not survived contact with the evidence. From China to Turkey to Saudi Arabia and Russia, states are integrating religion into their foreign policy in strategically significant ways.

China India
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Experts

Fellow

Rudolph Atallah

Former Nonresident Senior Fellow

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative

Peacekeeping and Peacebuilding Terrorism

Fellow

Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley

Distinguished Fellow

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Middle East National Security

Fellow

Ahmed Aboudouh

Former Nonresident Fellow

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative

Arabic China

Fellow

Elliot Ackerman

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Afghanistan Defense Policy

Fellow

Nic Adams

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative

Energy & Environment Middle East

Fellow

Paul Adamson

Senior Advisor

Europe Center

Economy & Business Europe & Eurasia
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Events

Online Event Tue, November 10, 2026 • 3:00 pm ET

Elisabeth Braw on “Undersea War” and the battle over cables and pipelines
Europe & Eurasia Maritime Security Security & Defense
Public Event Thu, November 12, 2026 • 9:00 am ET

From anthrax to AI: Biological attribution then and now
Crisis Management Infrastructure Protection National Security Non-Traditional Threats
Public Event Fri, November 20, 2026 • 9:30 am ET

Future pathways for the US-Korea alliance
Korea Politics & Diplomacy Security & Defense Security Partnerships