A weapon is mounted on the Lehit ground robotic system, developed by specialists of the International Legion under the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, during a demonstration in Ukraine on December 9, 2025. (Getty Images)
Cover: Edited version of US Air Force, US Navy, and US Marine Corps aircraft along with US Army Patriot missile batteries line up on the runway for an elephant walk during a routine operational readiness exercise at Kadena Air Base in Japan on May 6, 2025. (US Air Force)
A weapon is mounted on the Lehit ground robotic system, developed by specialists of the International Legion under the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, during a demonstration in Ukraine on December 9, 2025. (Getty Images)
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen delivers remarks on challenges to the global economy at the Center for Global Development in Washington, DC, on October 6, 2022. (Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images)
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands during a reception following their talks at the Kremlin on March 21, 2023. (Photo by Pavel Byrkin / SPUTNIK / AFP)
Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on June 19, 2023. (Leah Millis/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
The Guard of Honor of the Chinese People's Liberation Army escorts the national flag during a flag-raising ceremony at the Tiananmen Square to celebrate New Year's Day on January 1,2023, in Beijing, China. (VCG/VCG via Getty Images)
Senior lecturer in the Department of Security Studies and Criminology at Macquarie University, Council of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute