Terrorism & Extremism

For decades, the global economy has relied on a quiet but powerful assumption: the world’s most critical maritime chokepoints will remain open. Two of the most important among them are the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb. Individually, each is a pressure point. Together, they form a …

Nikolas K. Gvosdev The “world war” of the 18th century, with its shifting coalitions and proxy fronts, is more akin to the 21st century’s wars than the 20th century’s. At the close of the classic 1990 episode of The Simpsons, “Bart the General,” Bart Simpson solemnly intones that …

Peter Suciu Chinese research vessels have spent years studying the world’s seafloor for ostensibly civilian purposes—but have specifically done so in locations with high military significance. In October 2021, the United States Navy’s Seawolf-class fast-attack submarine USS Connecticut (SSN-22) collided with an uncharted seamount in the South China …

Dave McCormick Decisiveness, humility, and vigilance are needed if the United States is to prevail in the war with Iran. Editor’s Note: The following was adapted from Senator Dave McCormick’s (R-PA) remarks delivered before the Alexander Hamilton Society on March 11, 2026. It has been edited for style …

Justin Mitchell Both Moscow and Beijing stand to benefit from a prolonged war between the United States and Iran. Iran is isolated, fighting a war for its survival. Yet China and Russia, Iran’s supposed partners, are conspicuously absent. Both countries condemned the attacks on Iran and called for …

Mansoor Ahmad The world witnessed major conflicts in 2025, with one of the most alarming escalations between the two nuclear-armed neighbors, India and Pakistan. If it had not been stopped in time, there was a potential threat of a nuclear war. Donald Trump is taking credit for stopping …

Raphael Dosson The Iranian conflict is falling, predictably, into the escalation trap—from what began as a vertically limited, regime-targeting air campaign to a horizontally expanding regional war, with the potential to become one of the most consequential geostrategic crises of the century, carrying far-reaching implications for the global …

As the war in Iran impacts President Donald Trump’s legacy, Political tensions rise for Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, both seen as potential successors to Trump. They are involved in negotiations to help end the war while the Republican Party considers its future …

Lexy Reid 20% of the world’s oil passes through the Strait of Hormuz, a small chokepoint whose use is now being massively disrupted by war, drone strikes and the competing interests of great powers. The current Iran War has transformed the Strait of Hormuz from a potential risk …