Institute for National Strategic Studies (INSS)

As we wrap up the month of May, we're reflecting on one of the many ways INSS experts contributed to National Defense University's mission of educating for warfighting advantage.

Earlier this month, INSS faculty and fellows joined colleagues from across NDU in facilitating discussions on U.S. defense strategy, Indo-Pacific security, and developments in the Middle East during a visit by the NATO Defense College's Senior Officer Course delegation.

By fostering strategic dialogue among allies and partners, these exchanges help strengthen shared understanding of emerging security challenges and support collective defense.

Read more: https://inss.ndu.edu/Research-and-Commentary/View-Publications/Article/4485702/inss-facilitates-strategic-discussions-during-nato-defense-college-visit/

🛰️ Strategic competition in space is raising new questions surrounding deterrence, stability, and escalation.

INSS Senior Fellow Todd Pennington participated in a panel discussion at AIAA - The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics's ASCEND 2026, their annual conference on spacepower. The panel focused on deterrence, stability, and escalation in space.

INSS Participates in ASCEND 2026 Panel Discussion Mr. Todd Pennington, INSS Senior Fellow for Space Strategy and Policy, was a panelist at ASCEND 2026, the American Institute for Aeronautics and Astronautics' annual conference on spacepower.

The Institute for National Strategic Studies (INSS) is National Defense University's research arm.

We deliver timely, applied research, rigorous analyses, and wargaming exercises to support the joint warfighter and Department of War decision-makers.

Research focuses on:

Critical Threats 🛡️
Defense Industrial Base ⚙️
Future Warfare 🌐
Homeland Defense 🇺🇸
Military Alliances 🤝

Explore the latest research and analyses supporting the joint force: https://inss.ndu.edu/Research-and-Commentary/

Cyber, space, and electromagnetic operations are becoming increasingly interconnected in strategic competition. ⚡

INSS Senior Fellow Todd Pennington brought a space operations perspective to a panel at the 2026 U.S. Cyber Command Legal Conference. The panel examined legal and policy clarity at the intersection of cyber and electromagnetic operations.

The discussion reflected Department of War focus areas related to cyber operations, strategic competition, and the evolving operational environment across interconnected domains.

INSS Participates in 2026 U.S. Cyber Command Legal Conference Mr. Todd Pennington, Senior Fellow for Space Strategy and Policy, participated in a panel on "Ambiguity in the Electromagnetic Spectrum: Legal and Policy Clarity at the Intersection of Cyber and

Stay updated with National Defense University Press - NDU Press by visiting their website!

Beginning in June, Strategic Insights will shift from a weekly to a monthly release.

Our monthly edition will engage the same palette of key issues in critical technologies’ use, effects, and implications in future warfare and upon joint warfighters, to provide a deeper and broader focus, more detailed discussion and focal recommendations for fortifying capabilities and readiness of the United States Department of War and the United States at large.

We thank all our readers to date and look forward to continuing to offer insights on these cutting-edge strategic issues. Stay tuned.

Read all Strategic Insights posts to date: https://inss.ndu.edu/Strategic-Insights/

Deterring biological threats is becoming an increasingly important national security challenge in an era of AI, synthetic biology, and strategic competition.

As the U.S. Department of War continues prioritizing deterrence, resilience, preparedness, and emerging threats, biological threats are reshaping how the U.S. and its allies think about biological security and biodeterrence.

The recent NATDEF Podcast discussion featuring INSS' Dr. Diane DiEuliis draws on the report, "A Framework for Biological Weapons Deterrence."

Listen to the podcast here: https://inss.ndu.edu/Media/News/Article/4482338/inss-joins-natdef-podcast-to-discuss-a-biodeterrence-framework/

🎉 Please join us in congratulating INSS Research Fellow Dr. Elise Annett, who was formally hooded and received her doctoral diploma from Georgetown University! 🎓👏

Here at INSS, Dr. Annett focuses on integrating autonomous, generative, and agentic AI in military and national security operations, including the development of SYNTHComm, a synthesized command-and-control framework that models human–AI interaction and reconfigures operational oversight to maintain decision advantage and coordinate effects across domains.

Her research advances frameworks for AI deployment in defense settings, strengthening strategic readiness, enhancing human–machine teaming, and embedding advanced technologies within disciplined, mission-aligned governance.

Learn more: https://inss.ndu.edu/Media/Biographies/Article-View/Article/4407268/elise-g-annett/

As strategic competition intensifies, dialogue among allies and partners remains critical to strengthening collective security and warfighting advantage. 🌍🤝

National Defense University recently hosted the NATO Defense College's Senior Officer Course delegation for discussions on today’s evolving global security environment.

INSS faculty and fellows joined NDU colleagues for panel discussions on U.S. national defense strategy, Indo-Pacific security, and recent developments in the Middle East and their implications for NATO, regional stability, and allied partnerships.

Read more: https://inss.ndu.edu/Events/Event-View/Article/4485702/inss-facilitates-strategic-discussions-during-nato-defense-college-visit/

"Irregular Warfare, Part Two" examines how adversaries are using AI-driven influence operations to target perception, trust, morale, and decision-making at scale — expanding irregular warfare into the cognitive domain.

INSS Senior Fellow Dr. James Giordano and Jocelyn Garcia, Director of Strategic Communications at Small Wars Journal, argue that the U.S. Department of War must treat AI-enabled, non-kinetic IW as a present operational challenge requiring cognitive resilience, doctrinal innovation, and strategic investment alongside traditional military capabilities.

Read more: https://inss.ndu.edu/news/Article/4484166/irregular-warfare-part-two-ai-approaches-implications-and-proposed-recommendati/