Vital Interests
This is the archive page for Vital Interests, which is no longer actively sending. Once each week, Thomas Joscelyn, who is sought out by the nation’s top foreign policy and national security policymakers, sent a deeply researched but highly readable analysis of American power on the world stage.
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An Update on Vital Interests
The newsletter is taking a break, but our national security and foreign policy coverage will continue.
What a New Report Tells Us About Al-Qaeda and ISIS
Both groups continue to evolve, and jihadism remains a major security concern.
Xi and Putin’s Summit for Autocracy
The two leaders stressed the strength of their relationship and vowed to protect each other’s interests.
The U.S. Must Better Explain Al-Qaeda to the Public
The government is doing too little to inform Americans about the threats presented by suspected terrorists it is targeting.
The Intelligence Community Must Work to Gain the Public’s Trust
As threats mount across the globe, the public’s faith in government institutions has been shaken.
Biden-Xi Summit Only Highlights Fundamental Differences Between U.S. and China
Xi’s buzzwords that mimic progressive rhetoric can’t hide the country’s totalitarian intolerance of any speech the CCP deems unacceptable.
Warfare Is More Than Just Bullets
Understanding the “Three Warfares” concept China is already using against Taiwan—and the U.S.
The Taliban’s Man in Washington
Zalmay Khalilzad is blaming Afghans for the failures that resulted from his deal with the Taliban.
Biden Creates His Own ‘Strategic Ambiguity’ on Taiwan
The White House had to walk back his remarks that ‘we have a commitment’ to defend Taiwan against China.
China and Russia Blame America for a ‘New Cold War’
The two countries continue to bolster each other’s hand against the U.S. and its allies.
The Taliban Is Using the Doha Accord to Protect Al-Qaeda
That's one of many problems with ‘over the horizon’ counterterrorism operations in Afghanistan.
Reading Between the Lines of Biden’s and Xi’s U.N. Speeches
Xi paid lip service to democracy while gaslighting the U.S., while Biden called out authoritarianism without mentioning China’s treatment of Hong Kong or Taiwan.
A New Partnership to Counter China in the Pacific
No story has been more important the last month than our disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan ...
A New Partnership to Counter China in the Pacific
Australia is on the frontlines in the great power rivalry between the CCP and the U.S.
How Taliban Revisionism Helped Doom Our Mission in Afghanistan
America’s policy has been divorced from reality for some years now.