Through its publications, INSS aims to provide expert insights, cutting-edge research, and innovative solutions that contribute to shaping the national security discourse and preparing the next generation of leaders in the field.
Aug. 25, 2025
Moving at WARP Speed Toward Developing the Cyborg Soldier
There is an adage that the fruits of scientific achievement applicable to real-world settings tend to blossom with the fertilization of time and trends.
July 30, 2025
COMMENTARY: Insect-Sized Microdrones: A Tiny Vector for Big Biothreats
Recent demonstrations by China’s National University of Defense Technology, aired on state broadcast CCTV-7, revealed mosquito-sized robotic micro-unmanned aerial vehicles that are approximately two centimeters long and weigh 0.3 grams.
July 22, 2025
Drone Delivery of Bioweapons: Responsibilities for Force Readiness
The U.S. National Drone Association recently sponsored the inaugural international U.S. Military Drone Crucible Championship to provide a venue for American and allied military drone training, advanced piloting, operational utility, and countermeasure capability.
June 24, 2025
Brain Scanning: Assessing Emigration of U.S. Scientific Talent to Surveille Strategic Implications for China’s Dual-Use Technological Capabilities
Intensifying global competition in science and technology (S/T), particularly in fields with considerable disruptive potential - such as artificial intelligence (AI), quantum computing, synthetic biology, and neurotechnology—has become a defining feature of 21st-century geopolitical dynamics.
June 11, 2025
Re-examining National Missile Defense Strategy: Defending Against China
Dr. Kathleen Ellis, CSWMD Senior Policy Fellow, authored a National Institute for Public Policy (NIPP) Occasional Paper, “Re-examining National Missile Defense Strategy: Defending Against China,”
April 30, 2025
INSS Participates in Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) Balkans Regional Engagement in Slovenia
On 15 April, Mr. Paul J. David-Justus and Senior Policy Fellow Dr. Kathleen Ellis facilitated a tabletop exercise at the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) Balkans Regional Engagement in Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Feb. 19, 2025
Drones and Biotechnological Weaponry: Emerging Risks, Strategic Threats, and Viable Readiness
Dr. Diane DiEuliis (CSWMD), in collaboration with Dr. James Giordano (CDTFW) from INSS, delve into the formidable challenge posed by the convergence of drone technology, synthetic biology, and gene-editing.
Oct. 7, 2024
Thirty Years of the Center for the Study of Weapons of Mass Destruction
NDU’s Center for the Study of Weapons of Mass Destruction (CSWMD), part of the Institute for National Strategic Studies, has been a trusted resource on WMD challenges to senior Defense and other interagency policy leaders for 30 years.
Sept. 23, 2024
China's Theater-Range, Dual-Capable Delivery Systems: Integrated Deterrence and Risk Reduction Approaches to Counter a Growing Threat
China has engaged in a dramatic buildup of its nuclear forces over the past decade. While much of the attention on China’s new nuclear arsenal has focused on its development and expansion of its strategic nuclear triad, this growth has also included significant numbers of theater-range, dual-capable delivery systems. These forces are not capable of reaching the U.S. mainland but can range U.S. and allied forces and bases across strategically significant swathes of the Indo-Pacific.
Feb. 16, 2023
Private-Sector Research Could Pose a Pandemic Risk. Here’s What to do About It
In 2018, Canadian academics with pharmaceutical industry funding made a stunning announcement. They had synthesized horsepox, a pathogen that no longer exists in nature and that is closely related to the smallpox virus, variola. The controversial product was meant as a vaccine candidate—intended to infect humans and confer immunity without being