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Over the last several decades, governments have collectively pledged to slow global warming. But despite intensified diplomacy, the world is already facing the consequences of climate…
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Signing Off
Today is my last day at the Council on Foreign Relations after eight and one-half fun and fulfilling years. An archive of everything I authored or co-authored remains here. Subsequently, this is the final post of this blog after more than 400 posts. Read More
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Late last month, I was honored to be a speaker at the Aspen Ideas Festival about my book Red Team: How to Succeed By Thinking Like the Enemy. The Festival, which the Aspen Institute began in 2005, in…
Months after promising to release the number of civilians that have been killed in U.S. lethal counterterrorism operations outside of "areas of active hostilities," the Obama Administration today rel…
Estimating and translating the probability of an event for decision-makers is among the most difficult challenges in government and the private sector. The person making the estimate must be able to …
On Saturday, the Pentagon released a remarkable statement: “Today, the Department of Defense conducted an airstrike that targeted Taliban leader Mullah Mansur.” Soon after, a tweet from the Office of…
This blog post was coauthored with my research associate, Amelia M. Wolf.
In our latest piece at ForeignPolicy.com, we evaluate the Obama administration’s long-standing claim that drone strikes are …
Tahrir Square, Six Years Later: A Conversation with Steven A. Cook
Zenko is joined by Steven A. Cook, CFR's Eni Enrico Mattei senior fellow for Middle East and Africa studies. They discuss Cook's latest book, False Dawn: Protest, Democracy, and Violence in the New Middle East, and U.S. policy in the Middle East and North Africa.
You Might Have Missed: Academic Journals VI
This is the sixth blog post in this series. The previous five were published in February, July, and October 2015, and January and May 2016, and highlight earlier academic findings. This post was coau…
Why Are Civilian Deaths in Iraq and Syria from U.S. Airstrikes Up 60% Under Trump?
Today, I have an op-ed in the New York Times, which they titled: “Why Is the U.S. Killing So Many Civilians in Syria and Iraq?” The piece documents the sudden increase in civilian deaths from the U.S…
The Need for New Cyber Thinking: A Conversation with Beau Woods
I spoke with the brilliant Beau Woods, security researcher, deputy director of the cyber statecraft initiative at the Atlantic Council, and founder of Stratigos Security. Woods is also the co-founder…
Did Killing Mullah Mansour Work?
In May 2016, President Barack Obama authorized a U.S. military drone strike that killed Taliban leader, Mullah Akhtar Mansour. A year later, we can judge whether this leadership “decapitation” strike achieved its intended political objectives.
