When we recently set out for meetings in London, Berlin and Brussels on improving transatlantic links on atrocity prevention, foremost in our minds was concern about the dramatic return over the past 18 months of first-tier international security challenges. The rise of ISIS against the backdrop of civil war and humanitarian catastrophe in Syria, the new adventurism of the Russia of Vladimir Putin, and the daunting challenge of the Iranian nuclear program combine to take up a lot of space in the in-boxes of senior policymakers in North America and Europe.

Hoover fellow Kori Schake discusses President Obama’s plan to slow troop withdrawal from Afghanistan. Schake notes that the end game of war should be dictated by the circumstances not by an artificial timeline. Schake believes that Obama does not want another Iraq on his hands and therefore he wants to leave troops in Afghanistan for a longer period of time.

The quality of ISIS video releases fluctuated as the organization gained momentum, but overall, the group’s media team improved steadily over time, even as the quantity of its output increased.

A recent terrorist attack, doesn't signal the country's slide into violence and repression. Still, Washington needs to ensure the country's future.