⚡️ Zelensky appoints new head of Ukraine's mission to NATO. President Volodymyr Zelensky on June 13 appointed Aliona Hetmanchuk as the head of Ukraine's mission to NATO, replacing Nataliia Halibarenko.

Possibly the news photo of the decade.

Cocomelon: MTV for two year olds

I’ve been called a national security “Swiss army knife several times in my career. This piece on fixing a visa loophole in the Northern Marianas is one reason why. www.csis.org/analysis/sea...

U.S. Foreign military sales are a proxy indicator of international support for U.S. global leadership.

Putting this out there again - my piece in @lawfare.bsky.social from last summer www.lawfaremedia.org/article/trum...

All — many Americans have asked how YOU can help Ukraine right now I’ll do another fundraiser soon — but 🇺🇦 has a great resource page. Donate directly into general funds for defense, humanitarian aid, reconstruction, or choose a legit 🇺🇦 charity that fits how you want to help war.ukraine.ua/donate/

Why would China stop the flow of fentanyl through Mexico when they can watch us step on endless rakes and get bogged down in Mexico instead of fighting in the Pacific?

Great Man Theory is going to kill us all

Thank you for your service, GEN Brown. You will be missed.

The move against Franchetti and her team who were just beginning to get a grip on structural problems fueling the US Navy's growing crisis is an act of strategic self-sabotage

45-50K is also the figure I used in my Monday BBC TV interview, meaning ~9 combat brigades (3x3). Same order of magnitude as in post-Dayton Bosnia (IFOR) and in Kosovo(KFOR) Western forces. Of course these were much smaller places but 🇺🇦 has a very large battle-hardened army providing smart mass...

Unlike the deal with the Taliban, Ukraine and Europe get a vote. Washington will eventually figure this out.

Europe can’t rely on the strength of the transatlantic relationship to help contain Russia’s threat – it must lead from the front and be the true force of support that Ukraine needs. Not just for Ukraine’s sake, but for a free and sovereign Europe.

How has the Women, Peace, and Security Act (WPS) evolved within the Department of Defense? How can WPS contribute to accomplishing U.S. strategic objectives? CSIS Smart Women, Smart Power expert @kjmcinnis1.bsky.social explains:

🖇️Joint statement of the NB8 countries: www.mk.gov.lv/en/article/n...

We talk about values because it’s *why* we shoot.

A reminder: Vladimir Putin could end the war in Ukraine right now, just by ordering his soldiers to go home. No need for treaties or negotiations.

One of the reasons the U.S. had / has presence in Europe was to prevent European allies from acquiring their own nuclear weapons. Wonder if that EUR calculation will be reconsidered.

Enacted by President Trump during his first administration, the Women, Peace, and Security Act helps to advance strategic, operational, and tactical security objectives. Learn more from CSIS's @kjmcinnis1.bsky.social about how the WPS Act strengthens U.S. security:

Boy howdy I hope this comes with big salary increases because doing four people’s jobs without additional pay won’t work out very well.

Yep.

Also rabies is a baaaaad way to kick the bucket

Serious question: if death threats are causing vote intimidation in our legislative branch, why can’t Congress establish its own secret service? Like another legislative branch organization alongside CBO, GAO, CRS?

What contemporary realpolitik folks don’t seem to appreciate is that hegemony isn’t created through fear; it is created by others choosing to support a leader because it’s in their interest to do so.

Grim morning thought - The thing I’m wondering: if we are no longer united & animated by the ideas enshrined in the constitution (a big if, perhaps)… what holds us together? Can anything hold us together? Do we Balkanize?

During my time in the military serving in peace and war around the world, I came to the singular conclusion that trust - not transaction - is the true coin of the realm in international relations.

This has always been one of his few core beliefs. Everything else is negotiable, but this is core.

One can be perturbed about TikTok (It’s pro-Beijing algo may have contributed to this situation BTW) and these moves at the same time.

TODAY Sunday at 3:00: Protest TODAY (Sunday) outside the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) bldg., where Musk & his cyber-thugs have seized control of the computers. 1900 E Street NW (corner of E and 19th Sts.), Wash. DC. Please spread the word to folks in DC.

The global economy is growing more and more dependent on critical minerals. There are vast reserves of these minerals in Ukraine. Margus @tsahkna.bsky.social in @TheNatlInterest @CFTNI

FWIW tariffs are violating Article 2 of the Washington Treaty (the one that establishes NATO).

For all federal employees: Before you are locked out of your systems, ensure you have copies of unclassified performance appraisals, awards & other relevant personnel docs. If you have access to your office, grab your more important personal items sooner rather than later.

🚨 BREAKING: OMB has just issued a memo *rescinding* the previous memo freezing all federal financial assistance programs. Full text, per government source:

The Navy will find some way to be mad at me for this but I really do think when we downsize the Army (significantly) we should offer cash bonuses to transfer and reclass to the Navy. You have a bunch of people that want to serve with a lot of skill sets and leadership experience that transfer.

Actually thinking about it I am pretty excited about this administration’s focus on meritocracy for defense. Lots of work to do to make sure young men don’t water down current standards (seriously). www.military.com/daily-news/2...

Important article. If you've spent time with deployed US military in the last few decades, you realize stuff described as "woke" or "DEI" was not foisted on them, but is an organic expression of their culture from front lines to generals --because it's more effective www.nytimes.com/2025/01/25/u...

Fascinating. This is how we lose today’s and tomorrow’s wars.

Then-Secretary Gates tried to do this. He called it “brass creep.”

The world all of us Americans have lived in is one where—despite our griping & not awesome moments & political narratives—the United States has been an engine of innovation, prosperity, security, human progress But if you take out enough screws, it will lurch to a halt & not be easy to resurrect /1

My new article on how deranged Russian nationalists were engaging in memory warfare online before the state got involved is out today! Here’s how grassroots myth-making around WWII shaped narratives that appear in Putin's propaganda now. 🧵 sciendo.com/article/10.2...

Anyone else getting bored by BABYGIRL commentary? I kind of wanted to see it before but now I’m meh

The thing is, might doesn’t make right. To be a hegemon - or a leader - others have to agree that you should be in charge. Peace through strength always required allies and partners who agree with our notion of peace

💯 "Putin will definitely return with an army 10 times larger than now, for the complete occupation of all countries of the former USSR," - Zelensky 🛡️ "If there are weak security guarantees, then Europe will only get words from Russia. And they will return again with war."

We already have problems with readiness & our arctic warfare capabilities are “low density” - meaning there’s not a lot of the stuff needed to pull off this kind of operation. So not sure I agree with this “dominant predator” thing

"Gender roles and identity are a center of gravity in the information environment for autocrats seeking to limit free expression and exchange in their societies." - @kjmcinnis1.bsky.social, Benjamin Jensen, and Jaron Wharton in @warontherocks.bsky.social. warontherocks.com/2022/11/why-...

Welcome to BACK TO THE FUTURE, 19th century edition

Trump: The U.S. will be a nation that "expands our territory" and pursues Manifest Destiny

Looking forward to actually being able to use TikTok when it’s sold in the next 48 hours. (I also really hope @mcuban.bsky.social ‘s idea of doing a Bluesky version of TikTok takes off!)