The Cipher Brief

Report for Wednesday, August 13, 2025

Trump–Putin Alaska Summit Set as Russia Advances in Eastern Ukraine and Putin Reaffirms Military Ties with North Korea

Pentagon Outlines $175B Golden Dome Missile Defense Plan Targeting Nationwide Deployment by 2028

U.S. Moves to Counter Chinese Espionage Risks associated with Undersea Cables

Trump’s Tariffs and Sanctions Threats Strain Quad Alliance, Undermining Cohesion with India and Japan in Countering China

China–Philippines Ship Collision Near Scarborough Shoal Fuels Manila’s Push for Binding South China Sea Code of Conduct in 2026

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The Experts

Cipher Brief Experts bring context to today’s global events

A New Model for Defense in Greece

A New Model for Defense in Greece

OPINION — In a world where global power is no longer solely fought over through use of military might but won through wit, diplomacy, and innovation, [...] More

What’s on The Cipher Brief’s Digital Channel

IN THIS WEEK’S COLLECTION: The head of Australia’s Security Intelligence Organization gets specific about foreign intelligence agencies that are stealing information to the tune of “billions” of dollars, Ukrainian troops keep finding incredibly creative ways to use drones to get them out of the stickiest of situations and the Dead Drop has some summer travel advice for those who want a little more relaxation and a little less risk of being arrested and charged with spying.A BILLION HERE, A BILLION THERE. PRETTY SOON YOU’RE TALKING REAL MONEY: Mike Burgess, the head of the Australian Security Intelligence Organization, the [...] More

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State Secrets

In a recent opinion piece published in The Cipher Brief, former senior CIA Executive Mark Kelton suggests that the country’s leading intelligence organization has a trust problem both with policy makers and the public. One component of that problem that Kelton argues poses an existential threat to the Agency, is leakers. Cipher Brief CEO & Publisher Suzanne Kelly talks with Kelton – who oversaw the CIA’s response to the devastating intelligence leaks made by Edward Snowden – about why he believes the future effectiveness of the Agency depends on restoring trust.

Cover Stories: Spies, Books & Entertainment

Lots of forces were released when the Soviet Union came apart in the early 1990s. Brad Meslin imagines the worst case scenario in his novel “The Moldavian Gambit” in which a man-portable nuclear device goes missing from a Soviet arsenal in Moldova and may have ended up in the hands of terrorists threatening to detonate in a western capital. Meslin has worked in “the intersection of aerospace, defense, private equity, and national security.” His debut novel was very favorably reviewed in the Cipher Brief by former CIA counterproliferation officer Jim Lawler who praised the book for its realism and heart-stopping plot. We will talk with Meslin about what inspired him to write the book and his sources and methods for keeping readers at the edge of their seats.