Manu Pubby
New Delhi: The Army is placing a series of orders for indigenous drones capable of operating in spoofing and jamming environments after conducting rigorous trials that recreated conditions faced on the Op Sindoor battlefield.
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21 December 2025
The imperial past of Indian geopolitics
Ved Shinde
‘Every nerve a man may strain, every energy he may put forward, cannot be devoted to a nobler purpose than keeping tight the cords that hold India to ourselves,’ argued Lord Curzon, one of the few British viceroys in India to develop a lasting emotional attachment to the country. Curzon possessed a perceptive grasp of history and geography. It was geopolitics, for Curzon, that held the key to keeping India under British control.
In particular, having travelled across the larger Middle East in his formative years, Curzon understood the importance of the Persian Gulf for India’s westward security. Following in the footsteps of the Portuguese general Albuquerque, Curzon believed that a permanent British base in the Gulf could serve as a bridgehead to Bombay. The Persian Gulf is landlocked in all directions except the southeast. Mastery over the Gulf of Oman and the larger western Arabian Sea translated into control of the Persian Gulf. Geographically, Muscat is closer to Mumbai than Kolkata. If British ships could control the waterways of the Gulf, a seamless maritime highway would connect London’s interests in the larger Middle East to the Indian subcontinent. After all, other European powers had penetrated the East through the oceans. By the early twentieth century, when Curzon served in India as the Queen’s viceroy, Pax Britannica was writ large over the Persian Gulf. The cords of commerce connected the destinies of the Gulf sheikhdoms with the Indian subcontinent.
Pakistan’s Integrated Kill Chain Exposes India’s Airpower Vulnerability, Says Top US Aerospace Analyst
According to Dahm, “Pakistan is capable of integrating ground-based radars with fighter jets and airborne early warning aircraft,” a statement that underscores the growing operational sophistication of the Pakistan Air Force (PAF).
He added, “The Pakistani Air Force deployed… ‘A’ launched by ‘B’ and guided by ‘C’, hitting its intended target,” referencing a detailed May 12 report by China Space News, a publication closely affiliated with China’s defence-industrial complex.
The success of this kill chain, Dahm explained, is less about platform-versus-platform comparisons and more about how well each element—from sensor to shooter—is fused into a networked, real-time engagement loop.
In modern high-velocity conflict environments, where milliseconds can determine mission success or failure, the concept of the kill chain—an end-to-end cycle of detection, identification, tracking, targeting, engagement, and battle damage assessment—has become the heartbeat of 21st-century military operations.
Each stage of the kill chain is now supported by a vast architecture of ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance) assets, satellite links, high-speed data networks, and increasingly autonomous fire-control systems driven by artificial intelligence.
In the context of the Pakistan-India confrontation, Dahm believes the sequence likely began with a ground radar or air defence system detecting an Indian Air Force aircraft entering contested airspace.
China’s plan to quarantine Taiwan while avoiding war
Peter Olive
While an amphibious invasion remains the most dangerous scenario, most analysts agree it poses a range of challenges for the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), despite rapid expansion and increasingly complex mission rehearsals.
These include the logistical hurdles associated with the most ambitious amphibious invasion ever attempted in history, the risk of becoming bogged down on arrival and of triggering an outside intervention and escalation.
Given these challenges, focus has shifted to how the PRC might instead seek to cut off Taiwan’s maritime supplies of energy, food, medicines and other key commodities. The purpose would not be territorial conquest but rather to pressure Taiwan’s society, potentially forcing its government to negotiate on the future of cross-Strait relations on terms favorable to Beijing.
Chinese main battle tank, upgraded for high altitudes, could be sent to border with India
Liu Zhen
One of China’s newest main battle tanks, the Type 99B, is an upgraded model designed to perform better in high-altitude and cold weather operations, according to state media – suggesting it could be sent to the Himalayan border with India.
The tank is the latest of the Type 99 armoured vehicles and was among the military hardware unveiled during China’s huge Victory Day parade in Beijing in September.
State broadcaster CCTV reported on Thursday that the upgraded model has a raft of new features. It was shown going through testing of its driving capabilities and electronic systems in diverse terrain, as well as live-fire exercises.
The report did not say when or where the testing had been carried out.
The tank was shown being put through its paces, including a live-fire exercise. Photo: CCTV
The main upgrade is to the tank’s information-based command and communication capabilities and its integrated firepower, which the report said reflected “a new level of sophistication” in the People’s Liberation Army’s ground combat equipment.
Small Wars in the New Strategic Era: Why the United States Must Prepare for a World of Limited Conflict
Joe Funderburke
The 2025 National Security Strategy (NSS) signals a deliberate shift toward restraint, hemispheric prioritization, and selective engagement. Yet history shows that when major powers seek to avoid large wars, competitors often exploit gray-zone tactics, proxy campaigns, and limited conflicts to test boundaries. The United States must therefore prepare for an era in which small wars become more frequent, more ambiguous, and more strategically consequential for the balance of power and the credibility of American leadership.
The United States is entering a strategic realignment unlike any since the end of the Cold War. The 2025 National Security Strategy tightens the definition of vital interests, reorients national defense toward a revitalized industrial base and homeland protection, and places greater expectations on allies to shoulder regional burdens. By design, it moves the United States away from open-ended expeditionary campaigns and toward a more disciplined, selective posture abroad. The document explicitly frames this shift as a response to domestic demands for restraint, fiscal pressure, and the recognition that the United States cannot and should not police the international system alone.
Days later, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth reinforced this direction at the Reagan National Defense Forum, announcing the end of “undefined wars” and promising a new era of clarity in objectives, timelines, and exit strategies in the use of force. His remarks signaled to allies and adversaries alike that Washington intends to be more judicious about when and where it fights—and far more skeptical about long-duration stability operations.
Does the Road to Disarming Hamas Lead Through Qatar and Turkey?
John Haltiwanger
Despite the optimistic messaging of the Trump administration regarding its Gaza peace plan, moving the process to the next phase faces a slew of serious obstacles. The disarmament of Hamas, a key aspect of the 20-point plan, stands as perhaps the greatest challenge to overcome.
Armed resistance against Israel is a fundamental aspect of Hamas’s ideology, which is a large part of the reason the group has not agreed to disarm. Hamas recently signaled that it could be open to freezing or storing its arms, but Israel will not be satisfied with anything short of complete disarmament.
Spies must be fluent in code, says MI6 boss
Ann-Marie Corvin
In her first speech as head of Britain’s Security Intelligence Service, MI6, Blaise Metreweli is to push for the need to invest in technology to tackle threats to UK security.
In pre-released remarks, the agency’s first-ever female head is set to say: “Mastery of technology must infuse everything we do. Not just in our labs, but in the field, in our tradecraft, and even more importantly, in the mindset of every officer.”
“We must be as comfortable with lines of code as we are with human sources, as fluent in Python as we are in multiple languages.”
The new M16 chief is also set to warn of hostile state actors, Russia in particular, who are trying to destabilize the UK from abroad using cyberattacks, spreading false information, and employing criminals remotely.
“The export of chaos is a feature, not a bug, in the Russian approach to international engagement, and we should be ready for this to continue until Putin is forced to change his calculus,” she will add.
Metreweli was appointed head of M16 – a role publicly known by the codename “C” – in June this year, becoming the first female head in the spy agency’s 116-year history.
She was previously head of the tech side of espionage – known as “Q” and depicted in the Bond movies as providing agents with exploding pens and Aston Martin cars equipped with ejector seats, machine guns, and rotating plates.
Ghost Busters: Options for Breaking Russia’s Shadow Fleet
Benjamin Jensen and Jose M. Macias III
Victory in Ukraine will prove elusive without finding ways to counter Russia’s use of illicit maritime trade to sustain its war economy. That is, Ukraine and its Western backers need to resurrect the idea of commerce raiding and broad-based economic war to bust the ghost fleet and impose costs on Putin’s war machine. In the twenty-first century, states can conduct commerce raiding without ever firing a shot, effectively using open-source intelligence to support diplomacy, lawfare, and sanctions designed to attack a rival state’s economy. By finding ways to aggregate open-source data, the United States can support broader international efforts to restrict Russian illicit maritime trade.
Ghost Ships: How Putin Finances His War
Since sanctions limited oil exports in late 2022, Russia has purchased an illicit fleet estimated to range from 155 tankers and 435 total vessels, when support ships are included, to as high as 591 ships. This shadow fleet—or ghost fleet, as it is colloquially known—transports an estimated 3.7 million barrels per day, representing 65 percent of Russia’s seaborne oil trade, and generates an estimated $87 to $100 billion in revenue per year. To put that in perspective, revenue from this illicit trade network has matched, if not exceeded, the total value of economic and military assistance provided to Ukraine since the start of the war.
How the New National Security Strategy Misses the Mark on Cybersecurity
Mark Montgomery
To combat China and Russia’s cyber capabilities, the Trump administration must stop eliminating cybersecurity professionals and invest in federal programs that protect domestic critical infrastructure.
While there will be heated disagreements on how President Donald Trump’s new National Security Strategy characterizes America’s relationship with both China and Europe, few will disagree with the clear sentiment to defend the homeland. More than any strategy document released since the September 11 attacks, this one emphasizes defending the homeland or, more specifically, “the continued survival and safety of the United States” as the top national security priority.
When Trump took office earlier this year, it must have been clear to him that the homeland has never been less secure, with challenges extending well beyond the border issues, which he tried to address in his first Presidency, to now include imminent missile and cyber threats to the homeland.
The President’s efforts to secure the border and defend against missile threats are well underway—he has reduced illegal immigrant crossings by 95 percent from March 2024, and signed a new “Golden Dome” executive order backed with $25
Are Main Battle Tanks Becoming Obsolete? Yes and No
Brandon J. Weichert
The advent of advanced anti-tank weapons has pushed tanks further away from the front lines—but it would be a mistake to write them off altogether.
Are main battle tanks (MBTs)—the largest, heaviest, and most powerful class of tank, including the M1 Abrams, the Leopard 2, and the T-14 Armata—becoming obsolete?
That was the question I asked my colleague, retired United States Army Lieutenant Colonel Daniel L. Davis on my podcast. Davis spent his career in armor and proudly participated in the last great tank battle of the twentieth century in Desert Storm. According to Davis, the Ukraine War has fundamentally altered the role of MBTs in modern warfare.
But, Davis asserted, the MBT is not obsolete.
Understanding the Tank’s Real Role in Modern Warfare
For Davis, the tank in attack has changed. Its primary role is now relegated to fire support roles. The Russians, in particular, have used MBTs in this fashion since the second year of the Ukraine War, when NATO-provided drones and anti-tank weapons utilized by the Ukrainians proved to be serious problems for Russian armor on the battlefield.
It’s Time To Reboot U.S. Cyber Power
Andrew Brown
Nearly every aspect of American life runs on code, from national security to finance to healthcare to education. Yet the country is falling behind in cyberspace. A former U.S. Cyber Command (CYBERCOM) chief warned that America is “increasingly behind” its adversaries, while the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency revealed that China-backed hackers have gained “persistent access” to U.S. critical infrastructure, enabling them to disrupt power grids, pipelines, and communications at will. To catch up, the United States needs a new military service dedicated to cyberspace.
Created in 2009, CYBERCOM was tasked with directing, synchronizing, and coordinating military operations in cyberspace. Eight years later, it became a unified combatant command (UCC), which means that it integrates forces from multiple services under one structure to achieve cyber missions. But cracks appeared almost immediately. Within a year, the Government Accountability Office found that many of CYBERCOM’s teams were understaffed and failing readiness standards. CYBERCOM was so focused on conducting missions that it neglected its talent pipeline.
Ukraine strikes Russian Kilo-class submarine docked in port
Stavros Atlamazoglou
The Ukrainian military and security services pulled out another impressive feat by destroying a Russian Kilo-class submarine on Monday.
Using underwater drones, the Ukrainian forces landed hits on the Russian attack submarine while it was in the Novorossiysk port.
In a video released by the Ukrainian security services, naval drones can be seen rushing up the docked submarine without any opposition. A large blast ensues after contact is made with the Russian vessel.
The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) claimed that the Russian submarine suffered “critical damage” as a result of the attack and was “put out of action.” However, it might be some time before a proper post-attack assessment reveals the extent of the damage. SBU identified the Russian submarine as the Kilo-class Varshavyanka, which presumably costs $400 million.
The Ukrainian forces very likely targeted the Russian submarine because of its participation in Russia’s long-range fires campaign against Ukraine. The vessel was allegedly carrying Kalibr cruise missiles, which Moscow has used in conjunction with suicide drones and air-launched ballistic and cruise missiles to target Ukraine’s critical infrastructure and energy grid.
US, Israel Team Up to Create ‘World’s First’ NDAA-Compliant Fiber-Optic FPV Drone
Ethan M. Encarnacion
A fiber-optic, first-person view (FPV) drone touted as the first in the world to be fully compliant with the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is soon hitting military arsenals.
US firm Neros Technologies, in collaboration with Israeli-based Kela Technologies, unveiled the Archer Fiber drone, a platform built to operate even in intense electronic warfare (EW) environments.
NDAA compliance means it avoids critical components sourced from China, removing a major hurdle for adoption by US and allied forces.
The design departs from typical fiber-optic drones, which often rely on commercial Chinese FPV cameras and electronics.An Archer drone variant demonstration flight. Video: Neros Technologies
“Archer Fiber marks a decisive leap forward in secure FPV capability,” said Sรธren Monroe-Anderson, Chief Executive Officer of Neros Technologies.
Why Energy Dominance Is Now a National Security Imperative
Larry Behrens
While it may have escaped widespread notice, President Donald Trump’s newly released National Security Strategy signals a long-overdue return to seriousness in American defense thinking. For years, Washington has issued strategies heavy on green buzzwords and light on reality.
The message from this White House is different. It confronts a dangerous world with a simple, clarifying message at its core: what strengthens America’s security and prosperity, and what doesn’t.
Two themes stand out for anyone concerned about energy and national defense.
First, the strategy is blunt about the need for the United States to develop and control its own resource pipeline, especially energy. Second, it marks a clean break from the notion that “climate change” and “net zero” should be guiding principles for our national security.
The Achilles’ Heel of Force Design 2030
James Deitch
Why Logistics Must Lead the Marine Corps’ Maritime Strategy
As the United States shifts its defense posture toward the Asia-Pacific, the Marine Corps faces a crucial decision. Force Design 2030 seeks to bring about a significant transformation, aiming to keep the Corps relevant amid great power competition, especially against peer rivals like China.[i] However, beneath the surface of innovative ideas, stand-in forces, distributed operations, and advanced platforms, there is a constant and often overlooked weakness: logistics.
The Strategic Context: Why Logistics Matters More Than Ever
The Indo-Pacific region features vast distances, limited infrastructure, and restrictions on basing due to political reasons.[ii] The era of unrestricted access to secure ports and airfields has come to an end. The Marine Corps now must operate ahead of fixed bases, often at the edge of contested areas, where the ability to sustain forces is just as vital as projecting power.
The Pernicious Myth That America Doesn’t Win Wars
Mike Nelson
False narratives have a way of becoming taken as fact in popular understanding. After years of repetition, these statements calcify into articles of faith, not only going unchallenged, but having any counterarguments met with incredulity, as though the person making the alternative case must be uninformed or unaware of the established consensus. Once accepting these narratives, one is free to form a world view and make decisions based upon them – denying the reality that, if the underlying assumption is wrong, then so are the decisions that flow from it.
One of these which has taken hold among many since the humiliating end to the war in Afghanistan, is that the American military doesn’t win wars, or that it hasn’t since the end of World War II. This critique of the armed forces, foreign policy, or use of force has become an ironclad truth among many using it as a starting point to advocate for their own preferred change. Advocates of Secretary Hegseth’s vision for the military have echoed it – “the military had grown weak and woke, so we need to change the culture, ignore or at least diminish adherence to legal restraints, and remake the composition of the military.” Restrainers, isolationists, and America Firsters have joined the chorus – “America has given up blood and treasure on stupid wars in which we were failures.”
America’s Drone Delusion
Justin Bronk
After nearly four years of fighting, few aspects of Russia’s war in Ukraine have gained as much attention among Western militaries as the rapid expansion of drone warfare. Since 2023, both sides have deployed millions of cheap quadcopter-type drones across the battlefield. In some parts of the front, these small drones now account for up to 70 percent of battlefield casualties. Meanwhile, Russia is using thousands of Geran-2 and Geran-3 propeller-powered one-way attack drones in almost nightly long-range strikes on Ukrainian cities, and Ukraine has been using a wide array of its own one-way attack drones for regular strikes on Russian bases, factories, and energy infrastructure.
Watching these developments, many Western defense strategists have made urgent calls to shift military priorities. In June, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order to accelerate drone production. Since then, the U.S. Department of Defense has made several policy changes to facilitate the rapid integration of low-cost drones into the U.S. arsenal, and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has called for the United States to establish “drone dominance.” In the private sector, meanwhile, software and AI companies that have bet heavily on developing uncrewed military technologies, such as Anduril, Palantir, and Shield AI, are racing to win lucrative new defense contracts. It is certainly the case that small uncrewed aircraft systems have fundamentally changed the way that infantry combat is fought, and that the U.S. Army and other parts of the force are behind on these capabilities—and, more concerning, on counter-UAS technologies—compared to Russian or Chinese forces.
US’ new hypersonic missile can hit targets 2,175-mile away in just 20 minutes
Kapil Kajal
LRHW at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station during Operation Thunderbolt Strike.Spc. Chandler Coats, U.S. Army
US Army officials have disclosed new details about America’s long-range hypersonic weapon program during a recent visit by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to Redstone Arsenal in Alabama, offering a clearer picture of the reach and intended role of the Army’s first operational hypersonic strike system.
During the visit, Hegseth announced that Redstone Arsenal will become the new headquarters for the US Space Command.
As part of the tour, senior Army leaders briefed Hegseth and accompanying media on the service’s missile portfolio, including the Long Range Hypersonic Weapon, also known as Dark Eagle, The War Zone reported.
New Issue Out
Stephen Kotkin
Not long ago in the sweep of history, countries that had once been buried behind the Iron Curtain, and even some Soviet republics, were transformed into members of the solidly democratic club. Some of those that weren’t, such as Ukraine, Georgia, and Kyrgyzstan, experienced mass revolts against rigged elections and corrupt misrule amid widespread public yearning to join the West. Free trade was again celebrated as an instrument of peace; Kant’s “democratic peace theory” enjoyed a revival.
Western democracy promotion, inept as it could be, struck fear into authoritarian corridors of power. Ever-shriller authoritarian denunciations of supposed Western conspiracies to foment “color revolutions” seemed to confirm a direction toward democracy. In the early 2010s, spontaneous uprisings rocked the heavily autocratic Middle East and North Africa. Hopes for political loosening persisted in the stubborn holdouts of China, Iran, and Russia. Large-scale demonstrations had broken out in Iran in 2009 and, in 2011–12, similar protests accompanied Vladimir Putin’s announcement that he would return to the Russian presidency after a brief stint as prime minister. Many clung to what they considered signs that Xi Jinping, who rose to become China’s top leader in 2012, would be a reformer.
The only number that really matters
Brian-Albrecht
In 1972, the King of Bhutan announced that “gross national happiness is more important than gross domestic product.” It was a charming sound bite that captured imaginations worldwide. Finally, someone was brave enough to say it: Happiness matters more than money.
At the time, Bhutan was poor. More than 50 years later, Bhutan still ranks near the bottom of countries globally in per capita gross domestic product (GDP), a metric that captures the dollar value, per person, of the goods and services that a country produces.
In Bhutan today, life expectancy is 73 years — higher than the 51 years in 1972, but still only right at the world average. Meanwhile, politicians are concerned about “unprecedented” levels of people leaving the country, mostly for economic opportunities elsewhere. While Bhutan’s own Gross National Happiness surveys show rising happiness since data collection started in 2010, internationally comparable surveys show a fall in self-reported happiness in the country.
South Korea took the opposite approach. In 1961, General Park Chung-hee seized power in a country with a GDP per capita of around $93, well below even Bhutan at the time. His goal was modernization: build industries, end dependence on US aid, and export goods to the global market competitively. To track progress, his government launched five-year economic development plans with specific targets measured by economic growth.
What Is America Still Doing in Syria?
Andrew Latham
An M1A1 Abrams tank operated by Soldiers with the 2nd Battalion, 70th Armored Regiment, 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, fires over a barricade at the Douthit Gunnery Complex on Fort Riley, Kansas, Oct. 20, 2022. The tank crew was conducting gunnery qualification. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Jared Simmons)
Key Points and Summary – Recent U.S. troop and contractor deaths in Syria highlight a mission that no longer matches America’s core strategic interests.
-The regional balance of power is now driven by Turkey, Israel, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, whose competing ambitions collectively prevent any single hegemon from dominating the Levant.
British Royal Air Force Regiment troop cycles M500 Shotgun at the Winston P. Wilson (WPW) and 27th Armed Forces Skill at Arms Meet (AFSAM) at Robinson Maneuver Training Center, Ark, 2018. The annual events, hosted by the National Guard Marksmanship Training Center (NGMTC), offer Servicemembers from the National Guard and international community an opportunity to test marksmanship skills in a battle-focused environment.
An ally under suspicion
Tasha Kheiriddin
In an unprecedented move last week, Denmark labeled its ally the United States as a potential security risk. A report by the Danish Defense Intelligence Service argued Washington is using its economic and military power to “assert its will,” creating new security risks for Europe and for Greenland, Denmark’s semi-autonomous territory.
NATO allies have been at odds before: Turkey and Greece clashed over Cyprus when Turkey invaded the island in 1974, Canada and Spain during a 1995 dispute over fishing rights. But the Danish report stands apart: It is one of the strongest warnings about the US to come from another member state.
How we got here. Concerns over Greenland’s sovereignty have escalated since US President Donald Trump took office. He has repeatedly insisted the island is critical for national security. Economic factors are at play too: Greenland is rich in rare earth minerals needed to manufacture much of today’s technology, from advanced batteries to military jets. The island’s position in the Arctic puts it in the middle of an international competition with Russia and China over shipping and deep sea mining. Trump has even refused to rule out taking Greenland by force, a stance that has strained relations between Copenhagen and Washington.
The European Crisis: Origin and Future
George Friedman
The release of the 2025 U.S. National Security Strategy has brought into focus a fundamental tension that has been simmering since before President Donald Trump took office: the understanding between the United States and Europe that the geopolitical system that emerged from World War II was to be permanent. The National Security Strategy essentially says that this geopolitical relationship is obsolete, resulting in a sense that the U.S. has betrayed Europe. Thus is Europe’s crisis. In assuming that U.S. security guarantees were an enduring feature of global geopolitics, the Continent, as a whole, has made little effort to guarantee its own security.
U.S. guarantees were a direct byproduct of World War II. After 1945, the Soviet Union occupied and installed communist regimes in Eastern Europe. U.S. and British allies occupied Western Europe and formed a variety of democratic systems. The division left Western Europe extremely vulnerable to Soviet military action.
What Britain Failed to Fully Understand After Training 60,000 Ukrainian Troops and Learning Invaluable Lessons from Them
Continuing to provide defensive support to Ukraine is beneficial for the United Kingdom from several angles. Most notably, it is British military personnel who are learning from the Armed Forces of Ukraine, rather than the other way around. At the same time, the need to manufacture weapons for Ukraine is helping to stimulate the recovery of the UK's industrial base.
Such complementary conclusions are outlined in a recent publication by the authoritative British think tank RUSI. A careful reading of the report, however, makes the implicit "but" in this arrangement particularly revealing.
Under Operation Interflex, British instructors have trained a total of 60,000 Ukrainian soldiers over the past three years. This figure is significant in terms of strengthening Ukraine's defensive capabilities. Yet it is equally important to examine what specific knowledge British military personnel themselves have absorbed through the principle of "learning by teaching others."