The extreme violence, vandalism, and chaos across Mexico that followed the death of “El Mencho” is a brutal reminder that the War on Drugs has never ended, only ebbed and flowed as criminal organizations have continuously evolved.[1] On 22 February 2026 at dusk, a contingent of Mexican Special Forces attacked a small residence near the outskirts of the small … Read more
Sarah Womer’s February 2026 LinkedIn post (“Fuehrer LLM Project: An Attempt at an Extremist Nazi-Dedicated OS Hybrid LLM with Decentralization, Simulation, and Possible Cryptocurrency Funding”) documents her discovery of FuehrerLLM, an early-stage AI project built to promote Nazi ideology. Womer flags it as an example of how extremist actors are increasingly adapting AI tools for indoctrination and recruitment. Who’s the … Read more
Access National Security News HERE. Access Korean News HERE. National Security News: 1. Ideas Without Rank: Small Wars Journal and the Democratization of Strategic Thought After 9/11 2. The Essence of Irregular, Unconventional, and Political Warfare: Solving Complex Political-Military Problems and Creating Dilemmas for Adversaries 3. How SpaceX Became Embedded in America’s War Machine 4. Opinion | Ukraine Is Tired and Brimming With Energy … Read more
Signed June 5, 2026, NATIONAL SECURITY PRESIDENTIAL MEMORANDUM/NSPM-11 is the Trump Administration’s most comprehensive statement yet on integrating artificial intelligence into U.S. defense and intelligence operations. Rescinding and replacing the Biden-era NSM-25, the memorandum signals a decisive shift in posture from cautious governance first to speed of adoption first. Structure The document is organized around four policy pillars and a cascade … Read more
From the Warlord Loop to Small Wars Journal to the Digital Marketplace of Strategic Ideas The attacks of September 11, 2001, transformed American national security. Entire institutions adapted to confront terrorism, insurgency, irregular warfare, and strategic competition. Less appreciated, however, was another revolution that occurred simultaneously. The way military professionals, scholars, journalists, policymakers, and practitioners discussed war changed fundamentally. For … Read more
Abstract The four-day air war between India and Pakistan in May 2025, precipitated by India’s unilateral missile strikes on Pakistani territory on May 7, produced the most intense air combat between nuclear-armed states in recorded history. Pakistan’s measured, proportionate, and operationally sophisticated response demonstrated both the effectiveness of its integrated Chinese-origin defense architecture and the fundamental inadequacy of existing limited … Read more
Access National Security News HERE. Access Korean News HERE. National Security News: 1. Defense revolution is underway (in Taiwan) by Palmer Luckey 2. Hormuz Crisis Exposes a Global Flaw That Will Take Years to Fix 3. Pentagon Sees Growing Espionage Threat From Israel 4. Taiwan’s Top Diplomat Opens Up About Trump’s Maneuvering 5. Countering terrorist propaganda in the age of … Read more
Small Wars Journal El Centro’s Dr. Robert Bunker was quoted in an USA Today investigation exploring how Mexican cartel leaders like El Mencho blend Catholic devotion and folk saint worship with extreme narco-violence. In the June 7, 2026, USA Today article “Inside El Mencho’s altar: faith amid cartel violence,” by Marc Ramirez, Dr. Bunker provided sharp insight into the moral … Read more
In honor of today’s anniversary of D-Day please watch the following 15 minute video: Operation Overlord: OSS and the Battle for France (80th Anniversary) https://vimeo.com/1017308385/4a5209382f?share=copy Access National Security News HERE. Access Korean News HERE. National Security News: 1. Cognitive Warfare at the Crossroads: Defining and Developing Capabilities 2. Iran’s Resistance Units Strike Back Against Regime’s Execution Wave – OpEd 3. These LLMs are … Read more
The National Security Agency is deploying approximately six Anthropic engineers on-site to operationalize Mythos — the company’s restricted frontier cybersecurity model — for intelligence applications, per a Financial Times report citing anonymous sources, and a follow-up TechCrunch brief. The exact scope of operational use, including whether Mythos is active in offensive cyber missions, remains unconfirmed. Legal Ambiguity The development is … Read more
Access National Security News HERE. Access Korean News HERE. National Security News: 1. Exclusive | Real-Time Satellite Intelligence Is Making Ukraine’s Drone Strikes Deadlier Than Ever 2. How the Strait of Hormuz standoff flipped the energy security debate 3. U.S. Officials Discuss Taking Financial Stakes in AI Industry 4. Sen. Kelly, back from Ukraine, sees good morale but problems due to US stockpile shortages … Read more
Introduction: The Biopsychosocial Complementarity of Cognitive Warfare To date, there continues to be some discussion, including essays that have appeared in this forum, as to whether and to what extent cognitive warfare represents anything other than psychological operations (PSYOPS) with more sophisticated tools and methods, or if it actually is a unique and evolving domain of combat. To be sure, … Read more
Editor’s Note: This essay is from the Security & Defence PLuS Emerging Voices Series, which highlights the next generation of scholars and practitioners shaping thinking on strategy, security, and defense. The series brings together perspectives from PhD candidates and early career researchers, grounded in the complex geopolitical realities of the 21st century. The collection explores a “Latticework of Resilience” that connects … Read more
Fire in the Jungle: A Study of One of America’s Most Successful Unconventional Warfare Campaigns by Larry Schmidt. Blacksmith Publishing, 2019. ISBN: 9780997743456. pp. 232. $14.95 Colonel (Ret.) Larry S. Schmidt’s Fire in the Jungle is an informative and insightful study of the Philippine resistance movement during the Japanese occupation of World War II. The book particularly focuses on the establishment … Read more
The Biological Foundation of Cognitive Warfare Dr. James Giordano stresses that all warfare is fundamentally biological because the human element, whether as a warfighter, subject, or victim, is always the primary target. In the context of cognitive warfare, the human brain-mind is viewed as a biological system that is embodied within a physical organism. This organism is further embedded in … Read more
2026 Marine Corps Essay Contest Cosponsored by MajGen Charles F. Bolden Jr., USMC (Ret.), and Mr. Dirk P. Mosis III The Challenge Bring new thinking about how the U.S. Marine Corps will tackle the security challenges of the coming decades. No issue is too big or too narrow — as long as it aims to make the Marine Corps stronger … Read more
The U.S. State Department’s recent sanctions on Cuban actors accused of conducting subversive anti-American activities reflect an enduring feature of U.S.-Cuba relations: the use of economic and diplomatic pressure to address perceived threats emanating from Havana. While the sanctions are framed as a response to contemporary activities, they also raise a broader strategic question: how should policymakers evaluate the potential … Read more
WASHINGTON – Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, fresh from a weekend visit to Ukraine, said the country’s chances of winning its war with Russia remain strong but he is concerned about the impact of the U.S. war with Iran on weapons deliveries. Ukraine has done a “fantastic job” with the resources at its disposal, he said. “Things in the last several … Read more
Access National Security News HERE. Access Korean News HERE. National Security News: 1. U.S. and intelligence allies issue rare joint warning about China 2. China Uses LinkedIn to Lure Spy Recruits in West, U.S. and Allies Warn 3. Lariat Advance: Insights from the Cold War for the Twenty-First Century 4. Opinion | What the U.S. Has Accomplished in Iran by Condoleezza Rice 5. Opinion | … Read more