Defense and Security | Council on Foreign Relations

China

Hyperventilating Over Hypersonics

Last summer, China tested a hypersonic missile that traveled through orbit. The test shocked many observers and led to widespread concern about the potential for nuclear-armed missiles that can evade detection and defense systems. The technology is not as new as it might seem, but this latest test highlights an underlying threat that the world has been living with for decades.

Podcast with Gabrielle Sierra November 12, 2021 Why It Matters
Cybersecurity

AI Code Generation and Cybersecurity

AI will revolutionize the way that we write computer programs. The U.S. government and industries need to invest in AI as a cybersecurity tool.

Blog Post by Chris Rohlf November 9, 2021 Net Politics
Intelligence

Virtual Roundtable: Life Lessons Learned With Sue Mi Terry

Editor's note: On July 16, 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice arraigned CFR Senior Fellow Sue Mi Terry on charges of violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). CFR has a rigorous FARA compliance policy and takes these allegations very seriously. Dr. Terry was placed on unpaid administrative leave as soon as CFR was made aware of the indictment.

Webinar by Sue Mi Terry and Gideon Rose November 9, 2021 U.S. Foreign Policy Program

Nigeria

Nigeria Security Tracker Weekly Update: October 30–November 5

This update represents violence in Nigeria and related to Boko Haram in Cameroon, Chad, and Niger from October 30 to November 5, 2021.

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin November 9, 2021 Africa in Transition
Cybersecurity

Cyber Week in Review: November 5, 2021

China's personal information law goes into effect; Israeli companies targeted by ransomware; NSO Group blacklisted; Social media's falling revenue; Biden announces bounty on DarkSide leaders; Yahoo pulls out of China.

Blog Post by Adam Segal November 5, 2021 Net Politics
Taiwan

Twenty-Sixth Term Member Conference

The Stephen M. Kellen Term Member Program is supported by a generous gift from the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation.

Virtual Event by Sarah Kapnick, Bonny Lin, Stewart M. Patrick, Shelley Rigger, Paul J. Angelo, Amaka Anku, Abigail S. Bellows, Ellen Cushing, Yael Eisenstat, Mieke Eoyang, Vishaal Hariprasad, Bruce Hoffman , Daniel R. Russel, Nargiza Salidjanova, Jacquelyn G. Schneider, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, Hagar Hajjar Chemali, R. David Edelman, Bay Fang, Razi Hashmi, Katherine Kranz Jordan, Marcus Mabry, Nick Schifrin, Calvin Sims, Vijay V. Vaitheeswaran, David H. Young, Alex B. Zerden and Katherine Zimmerman November 4, 2021

China

DoD's 2021 China Military Power Report: How Advances in AI and Emerging Technologies Will Shape China’s Military

China is leveraging emerging technologies such as autonomous systems, quantum, cyber and more to challenge U.S. interests in the Indo-Pacific. The latest DoD report on Chinese military power explains what the PLA is doing.

Blog Post by Michael C. Horowitz and Lauren Kahn November 4, 2021 Net Politics
Wars and Conflict

Ethiopia’s State of Emergency, China’s Communist Party Central Committee Convenes, and More

Ethiopia declares a state of emergency as its civil war intensifies, China holds a crucial meeting of the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee, and Sudan moves toward a new power-sharing deal to reverse last week’s coup.

Podcast with Robert McMahon and Michelle Gavin November 4, 2021 The World Next Week
Space

A New Age of Space Defense

A handful of countries including China and Russia are breaking new ground in developing space weapons. Does that mean the world is headed for an arms race in space?

Explainer Video with Anshu Siripurapu, Thamine Nayeem and Michael Kohler November 3, 2021
Refugees and Displaced Persons

Preview Screening and Discussion of "Simple As Water"

Ten years after the beginning of the Syrian civil war, Syria is still the world’s largest refugee crisis. In Simple As Water, the documentary from Academy Award-winning director Megan Mylan, portraits of Syrian families filmed over five years in five countries reveal the impact of war, separation, and displacement and reify the universal importance of family. Panelists discuss this soon-to-be released HBO documentary, the Syria crisis, and the obstacles refugee families face.

Virtual Event by Robert Carey, Megan Mylan, Lina Sergie Attar, Deborah Amos and Robin Hessman November 2, 2021
Nigeria

Nigeria Security Tracker Weekly Update: October 23–29

This update represents violence in Nigeria and related to Boko Haram in Cameroon, Chad, and Niger from October 23 to October 29, 2021.

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin November 2, 2021 Africa in Transition
Ethiopia

One Year On, Ethiopia’s Tigray Conflict No Closer to Political Solution

Ethiopia's outlook a year on from the start of the Tigray crisis is increasingly dire.

Blog Post by Michelle Gavin November 1, 2021 Africa in Transition
Cybersecurity

Cyber Week in Review: October 29, 2021

REvil forced offline; FTC investigating Facebook; Nobelium attacks again; Blinken announces new cyber czar at State Department; Iranian gas stations hacked; the reemergence of NFTs in China

Blog Post by Adam Segal October 29, 2021 Net Politics
Middle East and North Africa

Unvaccinated Police Officers Could Become America’s Own Insurgents

Iraq and Egypt show how hard it is to get rid of a militarized security force.

Article by Steven A. Cook October 28, 2021 Middle East Program
Artificial Intelligence (AI)

U.S. Leadership in Artificial Intelligence Is Still Possible

Open-source algorithms are disrupting the meaning of global artificial intelligence (AI) leadership. Here’s how the US government can use the next wave of AI to its advantage.

Blog Post by Lauren Kahn October 28, 2021 Renewing America