Responsible Statecraft

3 days ago | responsiblestatecraft.org | Dan Grazier

With the stroke of a pen, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has gutted the Pentagon’s weapon testing office. His order is intended to “eliminate any non-statutory or redundant functions” by reducing the office to 30 civilian employees and 15 assigned military personnel. The order also terminates contractor support for the testing office. The ostensible reason for the change is to save $300 million at a time when billions are being added to the defense budget.

1 week ago | responsiblestatecraft.org | Giorgio Cafiero

Of all powers in the Middle East, none did as much as Iran to help President Bashar al-Assad weather the Syrian civil war. When Assad’s regime fell in late 2024 to a coalition of rebel groups led by Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), Tehran lost its closest Arab ally, constituting a major crisis and humiliating setback for Iran.

1 week ago | responsiblestatecraft.org | Kelley Vlahos

Former Israeli official Merav Ceren, who caused a stir when she was appointed in April to head of the Israel and Iran desk at Trump's National Security Council has lost her position in a agency-wide purge that left "scores" political appointees and career officials cleaning out their desks on Friday.

1 week ago | responsiblestatecraft.org | Sam Carliner

The Trump administration has transferred thousands of acres of federal land along the U.S.-Mexico border to be controlled by the Department of Defense (DoD). The transfer is part of an ongoing expansion of the military’s presence along the border which the administration claims is necessary to “control” illegal immigration.

1 week ago | responsiblestatecraft.org | Kelley Vlahos

A former CIA officer who once headed American schemes to train right wing contras in Nicaragua in the 1980s has been working with the Israelis to hatch a new aid organization, call it "independent," and proceed to deploy it on the starving Gaza population with the assistance of foreign entities and U.S. security contractors, according to new reports. To say something stinks here is an understatement.