Forward Defense quick reads

Experts react: Scholz’s coalition has collapsed. What’s next for Germany?

By Atlantic Council experts

After months of infighting, the German government’s “traffic light” coalition of the Social Democratic Party, the Free Democratic Party, and the Greens has come apart. Atlantic Council experts share their insights on the political turmoil in Berlin.

Donald Trump just won the presidency. Our experts answer the big questions about what that means for America’s role in the world.

By Atlantic Council experts

When Trump returns to the presidency on January 20 next year, a number of global challenges will be awaiting him. Our experts outline what to expect.

How the US can counter Russian and Chinese nuclear threats in space

By Peter L. Hays and Sarah Mineiro

As China and Russia bolster their counterspace capabilities, the United States must modernize its space-based nuclear command.

Inside the Navy’s plan to improve its readiness for conflict, with Admiral Lisa Franchetti

Franchetti spoke about the new plan at a Commanders Series event, hosted by the Atlantic Council’s Forward Defense initiative.

Senator Mark Warner on the top five risks for the next administration to watch

By Katherine Golden

At an Atlantic Council Front Page event, the senator outlined those risks, ranging from competition with China to the ongoing crisis in Venezuela.

Experts react: What’s behind the Hezbollah beeper and walkie-talkie explosions

By Atlantic Council experts

Our experts explain what the explosions of communication devices in Lebanon could mean for the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.

This is not the time for the United States to go soft on Hezbollah

By Jonathan Rosenstein and Eliana Aiken

If Israel decides on a major campaign in Lebanon to remove the threat from Hezbollah, the US should have its ally’s back.

Senator Chris Murphy on why US foreign policy is ‘mismatched’ to its challenges and what Democrats can do about it

By Katherine Golden

Murphy argued that the United States is spending heavily on military aid and investment but not enough on solutions to the “most serious threats” for the United States.

How the Israeli intelligence community got its mojo back

By Marc Polymeropoulos

Israel’s recent preemptive strikes against Hezbollah targets helped avert a wider war and showed how Israeli intelligence has bounced back from the failures of October 7.

Don’t cut corners on US nuclear deterrence

By Matthew Kroenig, Mark J. Massa

Bipartisan support for modernizing and expanding the US nuclear arsenal will be essential for the United States to deter its adversaries.

General CQ Brown, Jr., on the US role in Gaza, Ukraine, and other crises around the world

By Katherine Golden

It’s time to plan for the long term in the Middle East, the general said at an Atlantic Council event.

Congress should save the Sentinel ICBM—its true value is more than simply its cost

By James McCue

The value of the new intercontinental ballistic missile program should be measured over its full lifetime and not just by its current price tag.

NATO must ‘win up front but be ready to win long’ in modern warfare, says General Christopher Cavoli

By Katherine Golden

At an Atlantic Council Front Page event, Cavoli spoke about the war in Ukraine, NATO’s modernization efforts, the China challenge, and more.

The drones are small—the arms race may not be. Here’s how the US can win.

By Matthew Rose, Kathryn Levantovscaia

With rapid advances in drone technology, the United States needs to develop an updated, comprehensive counter-drone strategy.

Great power competition is back. What does that mean for US special operations forces?

By Alyxandra Marine

With their wide array of capabilities, US special operations forces can play a central role in strategic competition.

Pax Americana vs. autonomy: How the US and EU defense industrial strategies diverge

By Kathryn Levantovscaia

This is the first year in which both the United States and the European Union have formally introduced defense industrial strategies.

Is the United States falling behind the North Korean ICBM threat? Congress needs answers.

By Robert Soofer

Washington must not wait until Pyongyang is regularly test-launching ICBMs with multiple re-entry vehicles and countermeasures to improve US defenses.

Aiding Ukraine is a strategic investment, not charity

By Kathryn Levantovscaia

Some members of Congress are concerned about costs, but US support for Ukraine is an investment in US economic and national security that is already paying off.

This year’s bipartisan immigration bill offers a border blueprint for 2025

By Thomas S. Warrick

The consequences of another year of inaction on border security and immigration policy may convince a supermajority in the Congress to take up again in 2025 many of the ideas in this year’s bipartisan Senate compromise—no matter which party captures the White House in November.