For years, the U.S.-led international campaign to isolate North Korea depended on a united front between the United States, China, and Russia. Now, North Korea has been gifted perhaps its greatest strategic asset: a fractured world in which great-power rivalry has eroded the political foundations that once made these sanctions effective. Sanctions aren't entirely dead, but relying on economic isolation alone to compel North Korea’s denuclearization is no longer a viable strategy in an era of intense geopolitical rivalry.
Donald Trump is trying to reprise the Iran nuclear deal that he left eight years ago. Iran and the U.S. have resumed hostilities after the collapse of the ceasefire. The JCPOA's fallout will continue to define and confound attempts to solve the Iran problem.
The German military will participate in a nuclear exercise under a French initiative to deepen European nuclear cooperation. France has been the only nuclear power in the 27-nation European Union since Brexit. France's initiative came amid doubts about U.S. reliability when it comes to Europe's defense.
No military in modern history has possessed the technological reach, global mobility and combat capability of the United States. Washington has repeatedly demonstrated its capacity to defeat formidable opponents, overthrow governments and deploy troops. Iran itself has proven resilient, with external pressure often hardening rather than weakening its strategic posture.
For decades, South Korea's strategy rested on a stable hierarchy within the international order. Seoul can no longer assume that this foundation will stay stable. In 2025, the United States announced sharply differentiated “reciprocal” tariffs on South Korea, Japan, and the European Union. Europe and Asia have been building connections that would have seemed highly ambitious a decade ago. The European Union signed security and defense partnerships with Japan and South Korea in November 2024. This year, the EU and Japan launched a defense-industry dialogue, while the EU signed a digital trade agreement and began implementing cooperation on maritime security, cyber and hybrid threats, information manipulation, space and the defense industry. Dem
German-French cooperation in nuclear deterrence still leaves a lot to be desired. Next year it could be over again. Thomas Jansen made a comment from July 17, 2026, 3:28 p.m. at the Nörvenich air base.
CAATSA allows the president to punish foreign governments, companies, banks, and individuals engaging in “significant transactions ” with Russia’s defense or intelligence sectors. CAATSA was passed by the U.S. Congress with overwhelming bipartisan support and signed into law by Trump during his first term in 2017. Trump's recent decision to lift sanctions on Turkey will have wider consequences for Moscow's strategic partners across the Indo-Pacific region, including India, which continues to purchase Russian arms.
Ten European nations signed a declaration in Paris on Monday to establish the Integrated Anti-Ballistic Missile Coalition with Ukraine. Analysts say it's a response to a changing political climate in Washington. The coalition is more of a strategic "insurance" policy than a break with Washington, according to analysts.
For years, the U.S.-led international campaign to isolate North Korea depended on a united front between the United States, China, and Russia. Now, North Korea has been gifted perhaps its greatest strategic asset: a fractured world in which great-power rivalry has eroded the political foundations that once made these sanctions effective. Sanctions aren't entirely dead, but relying on economic isolation alone to compel North Korea’s denuclearization is no longer a viable strategy in an era of intense geopolitical rivalry.
Donald Trump is trying to reprise the Iran nuclear deal that he left eight years ago. Iran and the U.S. have resumed hostilities after the collapse of the ceasefire. The JCPOA's fallout will continue to define and confound attempts to solve the Iran problem.
The German military will participate in a nuclear exercise under a French initiative to deepen European nuclear cooperation. France has been the only nuclear power in the 27-nation European Union since Brexit. France's initiative came amid doubts about U.S. reliability when it comes to Europe's defense.
No military in modern history has possessed the technological reach, global mobility and combat capability of the United States. Washington has repeatedly demonstrated its capacity to defeat formidable opponents, overthrow governments and deploy troops. Iran itself has proven resilient, with external pressure often hardening rather than weakening its strategic posture.
For decades, South Korea's strategy rested on a stable hierarchy within the international order. Seoul can no longer assume that this foundation will stay stable. In 2025, the United States announced sharply differentiated “reciprocal” tariffs on South Korea, Japan, and the European Union. Europe and Asia have been building connections that would have seemed highly ambitious a decade ago. The European Union signed security and defense partnerships with Japan and South Korea in November 2024. This year, the EU and Japan launched a defense-industry dialogue, while the EU signed a digital trade agreement and began implementing cooperation on maritime security, cyber and hybrid threats, information manipulation, space and the defense industry. Dem
German-French cooperation in nuclear deterrence still leaves a lot to be desired. Next year it could be over again. Thomas Jansen made a comment from July 17, 2026, 3:28 p.m. at the Nörvenich air base.
CAATSA allows the president to punish foreign governments, companies, banks, and individuals engaging in “significant transactions ” with Russia’s defense or intelligence sectors. CAATSA was passed by the U.S. Congress with overwhelming bipartisan support and signed into law by Trump during his first term in 2017. Trump's recent decision to lift sanctions on Turkey will have wider consequences for Moscow's strategic partners across the Indo-Pacific region, including India, which continues to purchase Russian arms.
Ten European nations signed a declaration in Paris on Monday to establish the Integrated Anti-Ballistic Missile Coalition with Ukraine. Analysts say it's a response to a changing political climate in Washington. The coalition is more of a strategic "insurance" policy than a break with Washington, according to analysts.