Read featured commentary from CSIS experts on the latest developments in defense and national security.
Nothing in D.C. has the ability to unite political adversaries like a mutual hatred of the Pentagon’s OCO funding. But eliminating OCO — instead of reforming it — could further imperil the greater transparency and accountability that its detractors seek.
JADC2 is supposed to give U.S. forces a competitive advantage by connecting sensors to shooters. But centralizing data streams only makes a bigger target — one that U.S. adversaries are already planning to take down. JADC2 should instead be reenvisioned into a more flexible, bottom-up system.
The inability to carry over O&M and MILPERS funding into the fiscal year after they are appropriated encourages year-end spending spikes and negative outcomes. This is a problem Congress can easily fix, writes a former DoD comptroller.
The Department of Defense is prioritizing speed in its acquisitions and development strategy. However, fixating on speed could lead to issues with program management, sustainment, and other areas.
DoD should not make the mistake of preparing for “great power competition” by investing only in high-intensity capabilities. While the U.S. should indeed be prepared for direct conflict, much of the fighting will be conducted through irregular warfare operations.
While the U.S. is prioritizing relationships with nations that have highly-developed space programs, China is building out partnerships with nations that have underdeveloped programs. If the U.S. does not reorient its focus, it risks ceding leadership in this critical domain to China.
A presidential transition usually means a new direction for NASA. But in this case, the Biden administration should prioritize two key Trump-era initiatives — the Artemis Program and LEO commercialization — given their importance to the future of space exploration and development.
Justifying ongoing U.S. military occupations by warning that China or Russia will stand to benefit from the ensuing power vacuum is illogical. There are a number of reasons to think that adversaries will struggle to gain meaningful influence following a U.S. withdrawal.
Despite criticism, the creation of the Space Force as an independent service was a timely, strategically-important decision. It would be a bad idea to roll it back into the Air Force.
Calls to revive the Cold War-era United States Information Agency (USIA) are rooted more in the lack of cohesive strategy for global public diplomacy than in any real suitability of the agency for the modern era. Instead, the government should deploy existing tools and resources to engage global publics and advance U.S. interests.