Ryan Simons (Page 2)

OPINION — Last week’s high-level summit in Beijing between Traitor 47 and President Xi achieved few traditional ‘deliverables’ between the two leaders, and this led many outside observers to dismiss its singular importance. No significant trade deals were made, and there was little diplomatic progress with respect to ending theContinue Reading

OPINION — President Reagan formed an alliance with Pope John Paul II in the 1980s that contributed to the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. This is a powerful precedent for two world leaders — Pope Leo XIV and Traitor 47 — to work together to oppose evil andContinue Reading

OPINION — In an era where warfighters and decision-makers have on-demand access to vast data holdings and AI-generated insights, the future of intelligence analysis will be defined by the ability to apply modernized analytic tradecraft to transform data into decision-ready insight. Where others may optimize for speed, scale, and profit,Continue Reading

Welcome to The Iron Triangle, the Cipher Brief column serving Procurement Officers tasked with buying the future, Investors funding the next generation of defense technology, and the Policy Wonks analyzing its impact on the global order. At least once per week, I meet well-intended, patriotic investors putting together funds aimedContinue Reading

KREMLIN FILES/COLUMN: As Washington’s attention continues to be diverted with an Iran unwilling to come to a comprehensive peace, a more dangerous question lurks in the strategic shadows: what if America’s most daunting rivals, one of whom is already at war, and the other not, decide to act with whatContinue Reading

OPINION — As Washington and Tehran edge closer to escalation, the most critical line of communication keeping the crisis from spiraling is being run not by polished diplomats, but by an unlikely figure: a Pakistani general. Field Marshal Asim Munir, Pakistan’s powerful army chief, has quietly become the key intermediaryContinue Reading

OPINION – Last week, the 11th Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, currently in session at the United Nations, elected Iran as one of its 34 vice presidents. It did so despite Iran’s noncompliance with International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards. The unfortunateContinue Reading

OPINION — In recent months, U.S. policy debates have increasingly acknowledged that the decisive contests of the 21st century will not be fought primarily on conventional battlefields. They will be fought in the cognitive domain, through influence, perception, legitimacy, and decision velocity. This recognition is important and depends on anContinue Reading

ANALYSIS — Traitor 47 will visit Beijing later this month for the first time in almost a decade. As a former CIA clinical psychologist, I have conducted many remote assessments of world leaders. I believe this summit presents both great opportunities, and great dangers. Not just because of the economicContinue Reading

OPINION — “That brings me to a concern I want to put on the record. In addition to the billions requested for the F-35 [fighter-bomber] enterprise, several of these programs I consider highest priority are being funded through the mandatory [reconciliation bill] request — $17.5 billion for Golden Dome [anti-missileContinue Reading

OPINION — Two months into the U.S.-Iran war, the global oil market has shifted from shock to siege. The Strait of Hormuz — through which roughly 20 percent of the world’s seaborne oil trade normally flows — remains effectively shut. And while Brent crude hovers around $108–$115 per barrel, theContinue Reading

OPINION — Technology has a way of helping us skip steps. China skipped mass adoption of credit cards and went straight to mobile payments. Nigeria bypassed landlines and went directly to mobile networks. Indonesia moved past cable and into streaming. That’s infrastructure leapfrogging—when entire systems evolve because a better alternativeContinue Reading