July 2026

U.S. Soldiers assigned to the 65th Field Artillery Brigade, and soldiers from the Kuwait Land Forces fire their High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (U.S.) and BM-30 Smerch rocket systems (Kuwait) during a joint live-fire exercise, Jan. 8, 2019, near Camp Buehring, Kuwait. The U.S. and Kuwaiti forces train together frequently to maintain a high level of combat readiness and to maintain effective communication between the two forces. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. James Lefty Larimer)

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

The CIA Just Put a Number on How Long a Russian Recruit Survives in Ukraine — and It’s Measured in Minutes, Not Days or Weeks

CIA Director John Ratcliffe said Wednesday a Russian recruit's average life expectancy on the battlefield is twenty to thirty minutes, crediting Ukraine's AI-powered drones....

Jack BuckbyJuly 17, 2026

U.S. Soldiers assigned to the Blackhawk Battery, 1st Battalion, 14th Field Artillery Regiment, 75th Field Artillery Brigade, fire an M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System during a night live fire training as part of Exercise Spring Storm 23 held at Camp Tapa, Estonia, May 25, 2023. (U.S. Army National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Agustín Montañez)

Ukraine War

Something About the Claim That a Russian Soldier Lasts Twenty Minutes in Ukraine Doesn’t Add Up — and the Numbers Prove It Out

CIA Director John Ratcliffe told a defense forum that the average Russian recruit survives twenty to thirty minutes on the battlefield — in line...

Isaac SeitzJuly 17, 2026

President Donald Trump participates in a Kennedy Center Board Meeting, Monday, March 17, 2025, at the John F. Kennedy Center Performing Arts Center in Washington, D.C. (Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok)

Dollars and Sense

America Has a Problem at the Pump: It Pumps More Oil Than Any Nation on Earth but Still Pays a Price Set by the War With Iran

Gas prices are climbing again as renewed US-Iran strikes slow Strait of Hormuz traffic to a near stop. America produces more crude than any...

Steve BalestrieriJuly 17, 2026

The Treaty

Russians Just Stopped Vacationing in Putin’s Prized Crimea — and the Quiet Reason Says Everything About How This War Is Going

Ukrainian drone strikes have cut fuel, power, and transport links across occupied Crimea, and Russian vacationers are staying away, a Moscow Times op-ed reports....

Stephen SilverJuly 17, 2026

Ukraine War

The CIA Says Russian Recruits Last Twenty to Thirty Minutes at the Front — a Number First Floated by Russia’s Own War Bloggers

Ratcliffe's 20-to-30-minute life-expectancy claim, made at the Army War College, traces to Russian milbloggers' own reporting — and no official CIA assessment has confirmed...

Stephen SilverJuly 17, 2026

Dollars and Sense

The Mid-June Ceasefire Gave American Drivers a Month of Falling Gas Prices — and the War’s Return Is Taking It All Back

Brent hit $85.06 and WTI $79.88 as oil posted a 12 percent week, its biggest since April, with Hormuz transits collapsing to 13 ships...

Stephen SilverJuly 17, 2026

Finnish artillery units fire Howitzers At Rovajärvi exercise area In northern Finland.

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

The CIA Director Said It Out Loud: A Russian Recruit’s Life Expectancy on the Ukrainian Front Is Twenty to Thirty Minutes

CIA Director Ratcliffe says a Russian recruit's life expectancy at the front is now 20 to 30 minutes, crediting cheap AI-guided Ukrainian drones —...

Steve BalestrieriJuly 17, 2026

Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Wash. (Aug. 14, 2003) -- Illustration of USS Ohio (SSGN 726) which is undergoing a conversion from a Ballistic Missile Submarine (SSBN) to a Guided Missile Submarine (SSGN) designation. Ohio has been out of service since Oct. 29, 2002 for conversion to SSGN at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. Four Ohio-class strategic missile submarines, USS Ohio (SSBN 726), USS Michigan (SSBN 727) USS Florida (SSBN 728), and USS Georgia (SSBN 729) have been selected for transformation into a new platform, designated SSGN. The SSGNs will have the capability to support and launch up to 154 Tomahawk missiles, a significant increase in capacity compared to other platforms. The 22 missile tubes also will provide the capability to carry other payloads, such as unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs), unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and Special Forces equipment. This new platform will also have the capability to carry and support more than 66 Navy SEALs (Sea, Air and Land) and insert them clandestinely into potential conflict areas. U.S. Navy illustration. (RELEASED)

Dollars and Sense

The Gulf States Are Racing to Build Their Way Around Iran’s Grip on Hormuz — Pipeline by Pipeline, Toward Ports Outside the Strait

The UAE is doubling its Fujairah pipeline capacity, Saudi Arabia is expanding its Red Sea line, and Iraq is reviving Basra-Haditha — all to...

Caleb LarsonJuly 17, 2026

Donald Trump Back in 2025 White House Photo

Dollars and Sense

The World Has More Crude Oil Than It Can Use — and Still Can’t Make Enough Gasoline, Diesel, and Jet Fuel to Go Around

The world isn't short of oil — it's short of refineries, and two wars are why cheap crude won't mean cheap gas anytime soon.

Caleb LarsonJuly 17, 2026

National Security Journal

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

The CIA Just Put a Number on How Long a Russian Recruit Survives in Ukraine — and It’s Measured in Minutes, Not Days or Weeks

Ukraine War

Something About the Claim That a Russian Soldier Lasts Twenty Minutes in Ukraine Doesn’t Add Up — and the Numbers Prove It Out

Dollars and Sense

America Has a Problem at the Pump: It Pumps More Oil Than Any Nation on Earth but Still Pays a Price Set by the War With Iran

The Treaty

Russians Just Stopped Vacationing in Putin’s Prized Crimea — and the Quiet Reason Says Everything About How This War Is Going

Ukraine War

The CIA Says Russian Recruits Last Twenty to Thirty Minutes at the Front — a Number First Floated by Russia’s Own War Bloggers

Dollars and Sense

The Mid-June Ceasefire Gave American Drivers a Month of Falling Gas Prices — and the War’s Return Is Taking It All Back

Military Hardware: Tanks, Bombers, Submarines and More

The CIA Director Said It Out Loud: A Russian Recruit’s Life Expectancy on the Ukrainian Front Is Twenty to Thirty Minutes

Dollars and Sense

The Gulf States Are Racing to Build Their Way Around Iran’s Grip on Hormuz — Pipeline by Pipeline, Toward Ports Outside the Strait

Dollars and Sense

The World Has More Crude Oil Than It Can Use — and Still Can’t Make Enough Gasoline, Diesel, and Jet Fuel to Go Around

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