The Cipher Brief

Colombia’s Election Exposes a Country Still Split

Colombia stands at a crossroads because of the narrow victory of right‑wing outsider Abelardo de la Espriella over leftist Senator Iván Cepeda. On August 7, 2026, Colombia will close the country’s ...
Opinion
The Cipher BriefOpinion

Gen. Dunford: Military Leaders Must Advise, Not Advocate

We [the Joint Chiefs of Staff] often times in the national security decision-making process or White House meetings -- outside of the Pentagon process -- will go back and forth between military issues ...
The Cipher Brief

Cole's Digital Danger Is A Useful Guide For The Wrong Audience

AI, Cybersecurity and the Fight for our FutureBy Dr. Eric Cole / Amplify Publishing,Reviewed by: Glenn S. GerstellThe Reviewer: Cipher Brief Expert Glenn S. Gerstell is a Principal with the Cyber ...
Opinion
The Cipher BriefOpinion

The West Needs to Prepare for a Russian Defeat in Ukraine

We are good at winning wars and generally bad at what comes after. Far from a partisan observation; this is a pattern with receipts. We removed Saddam Hussein in three weeks and then spent eight years ...
Opinion
The Cipher BriefOpinion

AI Agents Need Accountability That Travels With Them

Most enterprise AI agents today are still being deployed in controlled environments. They sit inside a platform, perform a defined task and operate under the identity and access controls of that ...
Opinion
The Cipher BriefOpinion

The War Before the War Has Already Begun

There are 65 active state-based conflicts in the world today, according to the Uppsala Conflict Data Program. That is not 65 separate crises. It is 65 living laboratories.The contest that matters is ...
The Cipher Brief

Congress Questions Pentagon Spending—and the Future of Trump’s Battleship

I’m deeply concerned that the Presidential proposal for $350 billion mandatory funding [to be carried in a reconciliation bill and not an appropriations bill] for defense will have no Appropriations ...
The Cipher Brief

When Hackers Get AI Co-Pilots: Frontier AI and the National Security Clock

Five intelligence services rarely speak with one voice. When they warn the window of vulnerability has narrowed to months, the real question is whether the defenders can move as fast as the ...
The Cipher Brief

America's Empty CT Chair

The world's counterterrorism chiefs are meeting in New York this week. We brought a list of demands and not much else.A plot ...
The Cipher Brief

Transparency Matters: Inside Canada's UFO Files

Disclosing Government Files on What Is Happening in Our SkiesBy Chris A. Rutkowski / Dundurm PressReviewed by: Jean-Thomas NicoleThe Reviewer — Jean-Thomas Nicole is a Policy Advisor with Public ...
The Cipher Brief

Why One Former CIA Executive Never Stopped Playing

When I was three years old, I fell in love with the violin thanks to an unlikely duet between Itzhak Perlman and a grumpy green Muppet. Watching Perlman’s bow dance across the strings on Sesame Street ...
The Cipher Brief

The Nord Stream Sabotage: Mystery Attacks Explained

The Inside Story of the Explosions That Shook the WorldBy Bojan Pancevski/ Henry Holt and Co.Reviewed by: Jean-Thomas NicoleThe Reviewer — Jean-Thomas Nicole is a Policy Advisor with Public Safety ...