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Global Security

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Global security includes military and diplomatic measures that nations and international organizations such as the United Nations and NATO take to ensure mutual safety and security. RAND provides analyses that help policymakers understand political, military, and economic trends around the world; the sources of potential regional conflict; and emerging threats to the global security environment.

Report

Weighing U.S. Troop Withdrawal from Iraq

May 19, 2020

Supporting a stable and friendly Iraq is in the long-term interest of the United States. This does not require continuing the combat assistance mission, but would mean maintaining a small force of military advisers to help train and develop Iraqi capabilities so that Iraq could defend itself.
Q&A

The Future of Warfare: Q&A with Raphael Cohen

Sep 8, 2020

What will the next decade of warfare look like? Raphael Cohen led a project to answer that question for the U.S. Air Force. The team considered not just technological or force changes, but also how global politics, economics, and the environment will shift and evolve between now and 2030.

Explore Global Security

Blog

Russian Propaganda, Domestic Terrorism, America's Electric Grid: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on how Americans react to Russian memes on Facebook, the possibility of domestic terrorism during election season, protecting the U.S. electric grid, and more.

Oct 16, 2020
Commentary

PIF Fragmentation May Alter U.S.-China Competition in the Pacific

The Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) may be on the verge of fragmentation, and if it happens, the consequences for U.S.-China geostrategic competition could be significant. A divided PIF would likely present several opportunities and challenges for China and the United States as their competition ramps up in Oceania.

Oct 14, 2020
Report

Understanding Russian Black Sea Power Dynamics

Russian investment since 2014 has profoundly shifted the military balance in the Black Sea. NATO has taken some steps to assert its presence but the United States and regional allies may have limited options to expand existing defense and deterrence measures.

Oct 13, 2020
Commentary

China's Friends Are Few and Unreliable

Amid escalating competition, China and the United States are actively shoring up their diplomatic relationships in the Indo-Pacific and beyond. Compared to the United States, China's friends are certainly not as numerous, nor are they as reliable. That is a major challenge for Beijing.

Oct 12, 2020
Multimedia

What Role Should Allies and Partners Play in U.S. Military Strategy and Operations?

An overview of testimony by Christine Wormuth presented before the House Armed Services Committee on September 23, 2020.

Oct 9, 2020
Blog

Election Interference on Twitter, Insulin Prices, Remote Learning: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on evidence of interference in the 2020 election on Twitter, U.S. insulin prices compared to those of other countries, how parents can help their kids' education stay on track during the pandemic, and more.

Oct 9, 2020
Commentary

The United States Can Achieve AI Dominance with Its Allies

Close collaborators in any AI alliance must be able to usefully contribute to the work and be trustworthy enough to share in cutting-edge technical advancements. While achieving this close collaboration with allies may be difficult, it will be essential if the United States hopes to achieve the data dominance needed to succeed in future combat.

Oct 9, 2020
Commentary

Two Vignettes: How Might Combat Operations Be Different Under the Information Joint Function?

RAND researcher Christopher Paul employs storytelling to illustrate two distinct approaches to Joint Combat Operations. While both vignettes result in the expulsion of adversary forces and the restoration of territorial integrity, they take different approaches to kinetic and informational power.

Oct 8, 2020
Report

Report

Counter-Radicalization Bot Research: Using Social Bots to Fight Violent Extremism

As the online recruitment of violent extremist organizations grows, the U.S. government may benefit from promising emerging technology tools to rapidly detect targets of such recruitment efforts and deliver counter-radicalization content to them.

Oct 8, 2020
Journal Article

Journal Article

The Future Role of the U.S. Armed Forces in Counterterrorism

This essay provides observations on the future role of the armed forces in counterterrorism and the future role of counterterrorism forces in great power competition.

Oct 6, 2020
Commentary

Belarusian Mortgage on Russia's Future

In September, President Vladimir Putin signaled that Russia was throwing its weight behind embattled Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. But any move to enforce Putin's will in Belarus could invite tougher Western sanctions and scare investors. This would exacerbate problems facing Russia's flagging economy.

Oct 5, 2020
Report

Russia, NATO, and Black Sea Security

The Black Sea region is a locus of the competition between Russia and the West for the future of Europe. What is Moscow doing to advance its goals there? And how might NATO allies and partners respond?

Oct 5, 2020
Commentary

How to Build Better Militaries in Africa: Lessons from Niger

To help counter the threat of terrorism and build the capacity of African militaries, the U.S. government spends over $1.5 billion a year on security assistance to the African continent. Does this support work?

Oct 2, 2020
Commentary

North Korea Has Agreed to Denuclearization. Trump Could Try to Make It Happen

President Trump came into office determined to rein in the North Korean nuclear weapons program. But it has become quite clear that North Korea has no intention of giving it up. How might the United States bring North Korea into compliance with its denuclearization commitments?

Sep 28, 2020
Commentary

Ambiguity Has Its Uses

As China's thirst to resolve the Taiwan issue intensifies, the United States' halfhearted commitment to the island will become increasingly perilous: too weak to deter Chinese aggression but strong enough to drag the United States into a war. No U.S. approach to Taiwan will offer a perfect guarantee of peace. But the United States has many options short of the provocative, costly, and diplomatically risky step of an unconditional security pledge.

Sep 24, 2020
Testimony

The Role of Allies and Partners in U.S. Military Strategy and Operations

America's time as the world's sole superpower is ending, and the country faces significant challenges. The United States needs to strengthen its network of partnerships to prepare for a new era of great-power competition.

Sep 23, 2020
News Release

News Release

New Game, the First Offered by RAND to Public, Challenges Players to Design Defense Strategies for Uncertain World

The RAND Corporation has released a boxed version of Hedgemony: A Game of Strategic Choices that researchers originally developed to help the Pentagon craft its capstone guidance document, the 2018 National Defense Strategy. It is the first wargame offered by RAND to the public and carries a $250 price tag.

Sep 22, 2020
Multimedia

Hedgemony: A Game of Strategic Choices

Hedgemony is a tabletop game designed to challenge players to outline a strategy and then make tough choices as they try to develop, manage, posture, and employ their forces in alignment with their strategies.

Sep 22, 2020
Tool

Hedgemony: A Game of Strategic Choices

In this tabletop military strategy game, players represent the United States, its allies, and its key competitors. They must use “hedging” strategies and decide how to best manage their resources and forces.

Sep 21, 2020
Blog

Wildfires, America's Wealth Gap, Screening for COVID-19 at Work: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on the growing risk of wildfires, how Americans' incomes have grown (or not), workplace screenings for COVID-19 symptoms, and more.

Sep 18, 2020

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RAND Topic:
Global Security

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