Regional Issues

China Landpower Studies Center | Jan. 6, 2026

If China Attacks Taiwan: The Consequences for China of "Minor Conflict" ...

Introduction by Bonnie S. Glaser: Research on the possibility and likely outcome of a conflict in the Taiwan Strait has expanded rapidly in recent years. Studies have focused on a broad range of questions related to deterrence, potential conflict

External Articles | Jan. 5, 2026

How Maduro’s capture went down – a military strategist explains what goe...

The predawn seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 3, 2026 was a complicated affair. It was also, operationally, a resounding success for the U.S. military.Operation Absolute Resolve achieved its objective of seizing Maduro through a

China Landpower Studies Center | Dec. 17, 2025

Security Implications of the China-Russia-North Korea Triangle

This article analyzes the evolving strategic dynamics within the China-Russia-North Korea triangle and their implications for global security. It argues that while the strengthened Russia–North Korea relationship poses risks for China’s global

China Landpower Studies Center | Nov. 13, 2025

China’s Foreign Police Training: A Global Footprint

New data reveal how China’s foreign police training programs have become an integral part of Beijing’s strategy to remake global security.

China Landpower Studies Center | Nov. 13, 2025

SSI Live 118 – The China Strategic Competition Seminar

In this episode of SSI Live, Major Brennan Deveraux interviews Colonel Kyle Marcrum and Lieutenant Colonel Paul Milas on the SSI-developed China Strategic Competition Seminar. The conversation explores the origin and relevance of the seminar,

Category: Regional Issues, China Landpower Studies Center, European Security, INDOPACOM (Indo-Pacific Region), South & Latin America

Adapting to Future Wars: The Reorganization of the PLA Army’s Special Operations Forces and the Move toward Professionalization
September 26, 2025 — The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) implemented major changes to the organization, accession, and training of its army’s special operations forces (SOF) beginning in 2017, including the creation of a 12-man SOF team and establishment of a probable national-level army-subordinate counterterrorism unit. Beginning in 2025, the PLA introduced several changes to improve officer accession and noncommissioned officer retention in its special operations community. This article assesses observed changes since 2017 designed to improve the PLA’s command and control of its army’s SOF units and to set the foundation for China’s elite forces becoming world-class by 2049... MORE

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Parameters | Autumn 2025
September 16, 2025 — Welcome to the Autumn 2025 issue of Parameters. We open with two In Focus commentaries. The first, “A Case for Military Proportionality: Disabling Nuclear Plants” by Henry Sokolski, offers practical ways in which military planners can disable civilian targets, such as nuclear infrastructure, without undermining operational goals, alliance cohesion, or long-term political objectives. Our second commentary, “The Consequences of Declining Patriotism in the United States” by Neil N. Snyder, presents findings from a national survey showing a decline in patriotism, especially among Generation Z nonveterans. His article highlights a growing civil-military values gap with implications for recruitment and national cohesion... MORE

China’s September 2025 Military Parade: How PLA Ground Forces Are Adapting to Future Wars and Force Projection
September 5, 2025 — China’s military parades are often viewed as a form of deterrence by giving Xi Jinping an opportunity to showcase the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) advanced weapons systems to the world and bring like-minded authoritarian leaders from partner states together in a show of unity against the Western-led international liberal order. The extravagant events, however, also open a window into understanding Beijing’s expectation of how and where it will fight in the future. Despite the unveiling of several new weapons driven through Tiananmen Square during the 70-minute parade, most of them, like the YJ-20 hypersonic anti-ship missile and LY-1 shipborne laser air defense system, were designed to deter and defeat the United States and its allies in the air and maritime domains of the Indo-Pacific region. Yet, the first formations of vehicles to cross in front of Xi and his guests, those belonging to the PLA Army (PLAA), PLA Air Force Airborne Corps (PLAAFAC), and PLA Navy Marine Corps (PLANMC), represented something different: an acknowledgement that future wars will be global and force projection needs to be accompanied by land-based firepower and protection... MORE

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Loyal Paraguay: The Peña Government’s Strategic Choice to Stay with Taiwan
August 26, 2025 — From August 11-15, 2025, the author was in Asuncion, Paraguay, in an International Republican... MORE

From the Last Frontier to the Final Frontier: The Polar Regions and Space Security
August 25, 2025 — This article examines the intersection of Arctic geopolitics and space security amid intensifying... MORE

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The Economic Argument for Keeping US Forces in Europe
August 15, 2025 — NATO’s Hague summit earlier this summer has generally been viewed as a qualified success, despite —... MORE

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A New World Cop on the Beat? China’s Internal Security Outreach Under the Global Security Initiative
August 13, 2025 — Global outreach by China’s internal security agencies is expanding. This nonmilitary security... MORE

Election, Crisis, and U.S. Opportunity in Bolivia
August 13, 2025 — Bolivia, strategically at the center of South America, faces a critical election that will define... MORE

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Understanding, Deterring, and Preparing for a Great-Power War in the Twenty-First Century
August 6, 2025 — This integrated research project highlights gaps in the US Army’s understanding of, and preparations for, a great-power war in the twenty-first century. The project employs historical analysis to enhance Army leaders’ understanding of great-power wars, provides novel ways to improve US strategies for deterring a great-power war, and explores ways the United States can better prepare for a great-power war... MORE

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More Than a Numbers Game: Comparing US and Chinese Landpower in the Pacific Requires Context
July 22, 2025 — As the US Army organizes, trains, and equips for an unforeseen future, service decisions should create or amplify relative operational advantages over the US military’s rising foe—the People’s Liberation Army. Discerning critical differences between American and Chinese land forces is a prerequisite for such efforts... MORE

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