The Potomac Institute for Policy Studies'  fifth Cyber Challenge Symposium, on July 6, came as media reports continued to focus on an increase in incidents of hacking.  The symposium, entitled "Cyber Deterrence: Mutual Assured Disruption or Other Options?" featured a panel including former CIA Director Gen. Michael Hayden, USAF (Ret.),  professional "white-hat" hacker Michael Tiffany, and security expert Dr. James Mulvenon.  All three panelists were featured in a Reuters wire story on the growing hacking problem. Click here to read the article in full.

Potomac Institute for Policy Studies Senior Fellow Amb. David Smith, (Ret.), is the Director of the Georgian Security Analysis Center in Tbilisi, Georgia. In a recent column for the Georgian publication Tabula, he writes about the June election success of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdo?an and his Justice and Development Party, AKP: a victory that Smith notes positions Erdo?an and his government to become "the longest serving in Turkey’s history as a multi-party democracy."  But Smith also sounds a warning note. He writes, "Despite the many positive things that the AKP government has achieved, there is a real concern that democracy suffered during Erdo?an’s second term." Click below to read the article in full.

BGen David Reist, USMC (Ret.) is a Senior Research Fellow at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies and a former USMC Assistant Deputy Commandant for Installations and Logistics in Washington, DC.  In a live appearance on C-SPAN's Washington Journal, he discussed the logistical challenges of drawing down US troops in Afghanistan.  His appearance followed President Obama's announcement that all 33,000 "surge" troops would leave Afghanistan by September of 2012.  Click here to watch the interview in full.

Colonel Martin Leppert USARNG (Ret.) is a Research Fellow at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies.  He has had extensive experience in Afghanistan, commanding the 2nd Embedded Training Brigade, 205th Regional Command Assistance Group, (RCAG) in Zabul Province. His Brigade provided combat focused leadership, training, guidance and direct combat support to the 2100 Soldiers of the Afghan Army’s 2nd Brigade, 205th Corps in Zabul Province, one of the most heavily contested provinces in Afghanistan.  In a live interview on Washington, DC's FOX-5 news, he reacted to President Obama's announcement of a troop drawdown in Afghanistan. Click here to watch the interview in full.