Foreign Policy and National Security

An Open Letter on BRAC

The Department of Defense has sought for years to reduce excess military infrastructure. And the Trump administration, like the Obama administration before it, has called for a round of base closures in its most recent budget proposal. A new letter, from a broad, bipartisan consensus from across the think tank community, calls on members of Congress to respond to these requests and authorize a Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) round.

Evaluating the Iran Deal

The Iran deal may not survive the Trump administration. While the president acknowledged that Iran technically complied to the letter of the agreement, he claims they violated the deal’s “spirit.” The deal’s success at limiting Iran’s nuclear program upsets hawks on both sides, some argue, precisely because it reduces tensions and lowers the odds of war. To discuss the deal and its prospects, Cato hosted Ambassador Wendy Sherman, who led the U.S. negotiating team for the Obama administration. She was interviewed by Laura Rozen, Al-Monitor’s diplomatic correspondent. Benjamin H. Friedman moderated.

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Of Special Note

Our Foreign Policy Choices

The world today is certainly safer for Americans than it was under the existential threat posed by the Soviet Union. But the world is undoubtedly more complex, as nonstate actors, shifting alliances, and diverse domestic political factors complicate U.S. foreign policy. A robust debate on America’s foreign policy choices is urgently needed.

Non-interventionism

Confronting “Isolationism”

Some interventionists have characterized Cato’s views as “isolationist,” but that is inaccurate. In fact, Cato scholars argue that the United States should be an example of the principles of liberty, democracy, and human rights, not their armed vindicator abroad. This page includes several articles by Cato scholars as well as a few by outside experts showing that the “isolationist” slur is inappropriate.

Cyberskepticism

The Cyberskeptics

In the last few years, concerns about cybercrime, cyberterrorism, and cyberwar have escalated dramatically in the United States. Billions of dollars are being thrown at these problems, and most of the discussion is alarmist in the extreme. This page challenges the assumption that cyberdoom is approaching.

A Dangerous World? Threat Perception And U.S. National Security

A Dangerous World? Threat Perception And U.S. National Security

In 2012, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey contended that “we are living in the most dangerous time in my lifetime, right now.” In 2013, he was more assertive, stating that the world is “more dangerous than it has ever been.” Is this accurate? In this new book, experts on international security assess, and put in context, the supposed dangers to American security. The authors examine the most frequently referenced threats, including wars between nations and civil wars within nations, and discuss the impact of rising nations, weapons proliferation, general unrest, transnational crime, and state failures.