The Drone Revolution That Isnβt
Today, before a tank explodes, before a trench is overrun, and before an artillery battery is silenced, someone is usuallyΒ recording.
Today, before a tank explodes, before a trench is overrun, and before an artillery battery is silenced, someone is usuallyΒ recording.
Autonomous weapons systems (AWS) are changing the nature of modern warfare through AI-enabledΒ decision-making.
This past March,Β the FBI warnedΒ state law enforcement that Iran might be planning to attack targets in California using drones launched from vessels floating offshore. As it turned out, the threat wasnβt real. The warning was based on βunverifiedβ intelligence, and there was no evidence of an actual plot. Californians could breathe a sigh ofΒ relief.
Whatever oneβs views on Secretary of Defense Pete Hegsethβs tenure, there is no denying that he has been unambiguous about some of his stated objectives. In a January 2025Β Message to the Force, he committed the Department of Defense to rebuilding the military and reestablishingΒ deterrence.
The expertise of the South Asian sub-region is robust, so the title of Worst Defense Acquisition System is in safe hands. But Britainβs allies in a post-American world should worry that Blighty is as far up the list as itΒ is.
For decades, Chinese military planners haveΒ viewedΒ logistics as the decisive factor in any campaign against Taiwan and across the broader Indo-Pacific. Sustaining large-scale operations across the strait would require moving and supplying forces under intense pressure, making logistics both a critical vulnerability and a priority forΒ reform.