Is this you? As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.
Claim your profile
Articles by David F. Lasseter
Defending the freedom of navigation in contested waters Original
A U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker refuels a U.S. Navy P-8 Poseidon during the U.S. blockade against ships entering or exiting Iranian ports on Tuesday, April 21, 2026. (U.S. Central Command photo) For centuries, the freedom of the seas principle has sustained the world economy and nations. It has served as an indispensable pillar of international stability, maritime security, and global commerce.
From Hormuz to the South China Sea: Defending Freedom of Navigation in Contested Waters
For centuries, the freedom of the seas principle has sustained the world economy and nations. It has served as an indispensable pillar of international stability, maritime security, and global commerce. The ability of commercial shipping vessels, naval fleets, and fishing boats to navigate international waters unhindered is not a diplomatic luxury—it is the bedrock of international order.
Defending Freedom of Navigation in Contested Waters
Click below to continue reading this story, discover more U.S. Navy stories from over 25 years of RealClear archives, or follow this topic to stay in the know. David F. Lasseter • RealClearDefense ... these foundational rights face unprecedented threats across critical maritime chokepoints, from the Middle East to the Indo-Pacific.... Read it on RealClearDefense Stephen Ruiz • We Are the Mighty A recent book, "A Soul on Trial," chronicles Rosa Sutton's fight for answers...
From Hormuz to the South China Sea: Defending Freedom of Navigation in Contested Waters
For centuries, the freedom of the seas principle has sustained the world economy and nations. It has served as an indispensable pillar of international stability, maritime security, and global commerce. The ability of commercial shipping vessels, naval fleets, and fishing boats to navigate international waters unhindered is not a diplomatic luxury—it is the bedrock of international order.
From Hormuz to the South China Sea: Defending Freedom of Navigation in Contested Waters
For centuries, the freedom of the seas principle has sustained the world economy and nations. It has served as an indispensable pillar of international stability, maritime security, and global commerce. The ability of commercial shipping vessels, naval fleets, and fishing boats to navigate international waters unhindered is not a diplomatic luxury—it is the bedrock of international order.
The NIH-Pentagon deal isn’t a cash grab. It’s a rescue.
Aerial view of the Pentagon with the Washington Monument and Jefferson Memorial in the background. Last month, an Interagency Agreement (IAA) between the Department of War and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) became a political flashpoint. Stories raged of a “Pentagon cash grab,” of military plans to “tap huge sums,” and “outrage” over funneled research dollars. Ultimately, this was a misread of the situation.
The Radioactive Brink: Securing the American Warfighter in 2026
In November 2024, I warned that the threat of a future nuclear battlefield had never been greater. Today, in May 2026, that threat has evolved from embers on the horizon to a fire at the door. New START is dead. China refuses to discuss limits on it’s burgeoning nuclear arsenal. Iran and Russia refuse to play nice with others.
Can DoD Protect the Warfighter on a Nuclear Battlefield?
Can DoD Protect the Warfighter on a Nuclear Battlefield?
A 99-1 Problem: Can DoD Protect the Warfighter on a Nuclear Battlefield?
The threat of a future nuclear battlefield has probably never been greater in world history. Today, there are nuclear weapon states, three of which are U.S. adversaries. Of these, Russia is currently engaged in an unlawful war of aggression where the possibility of nuclear weapon use has been intimated multiple times.
Freedom of the Seas Requires U.S. Leadership
Freedom of the Seas Requires U.S. Leadership U.S.-led Freedom of Navigation operations have dropped off in the South China Sea, at the same time as China has intensified its coercive actions in the region. Read Full Article »
Freedom of the Seas Requires US Leadership - Tribune Content Agency
A recently conducted joint patrol of the South China Seas (SCS) between the United States, Australia, Japan, and the Philippines marked the first combined multinational maritime patrol in those contested waters. It’s about time. Freedom of Navigation operations, or FONOPs, have served a critically important role in U.S. diplomacy and security for decades.
Freedom of the Seas Requires US Leadership
A recently conducted joint patrol of the South China Seas (SCS) between the United States, Australia, Japan, and the Philippines marked the first combined multinational maritime patrol in those contested waters. It’s about time. Freedom of Navigation operations, or FONOPs, have served a critically important role in U.S. diplomacy and security for decades.
Freedom of the Seas Requires US Leadership - David F. Lasseter
Columnists Actual . Favourites . Archive Aa Aa Aa - A + ..... © The Diplomat visit website
Congress can’t afford to let the Feds lose this critical intelligence tool
In 33 days, a key authority within the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act is slated to sunset, leaving the U.S. without one of its best sources of intelligence on terrorists, adverse state actors and drug traffickers. Allowing this national security authority to expire would be a grave mistake. Congressional reauthorization of the provision known as Section 702 is a must, but it won’t be easy.
America Failing to Fight Chemical and Biological Weapons
America Failing to Fight Chemical and Biological Weapons Chemical and biological weapons pose a greater threat to global security today than at any point since the end of the Cold War. The COVID-19 pandemic revealed the United States’s disastrous vulnera… Read Full Article »
America is failing to fight chemical and biological weapons - but we can change that
Chemical and biological weapons pose a greater threat to global security today than at any point since the end of the Cold War. The COVID-19 pandemic revealed the United States’s disastrous vulnerability to infectious pathogens, novel diseases continue to spread worldwide, and the norms against the use of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs) are eroding.
China's Vertical Nuclear Expansion is Real
As the People’s Republic of China (PRC) continues to flout international norms, the world is falling behind in terms of any meaningful effort to confront their calculated aggression.
Guest opinion: Finally, despite the complaining, Space Command heads to Alabama
This is a guest opinion column In May, after two years of political push-back from Congressional delegations not chosen to house SPACECOM (U.S. Space Command) , the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the Department of Defense (DoD) Inspector General (IG) confirmed that the U.S. Air Force (USAF) process to decide the best location for U.S. Space Command (SPACECOM) was appropriate, comprehensive, and permissible. SPACECOM is heading to Huntsville, Alabama.
Putin’s Disinformation & Opportunity: Weapons of Mass Destruction
Back in early 2020, when COVID-19 was spreading around the globe and public health professionals were struggling to make sense of the virus, the Russians, like the Chinese, were conducting information operations blaming America for the outbreak.
Syria Placement on WHO Executive Board an Embarrassment for All
On Saturday, Hend Zaza, the youngest Olympian at the Tokyo Games, lost her first-round match in women’s singles table tennis. Besides the incredible distinction at age 12 of being the fifth youngest ever to compete in the Olympic Games, there is a more unenviable reality about this capable and talented young lady. She was born, reared, and trained to become an Olympian in Syria, a country in the midst of civil war made longer every day by a ruthless dictator, Bashar al-Assad.
Securing America Against the Next COVID-19
Just two years ago it would have been hard for most of us to imagine a global pandemic on the scale of what we have experienced over the past 19 months. Millions died and many more remain hidden or unknown due to lack of transparency, honesty, and health security limitations. Add in the economic devastation, and what we’re talking about sounds more like an apocalyptic movie than what happened. America needs to prepare for a dark encore. Read Full Article »
Countering a Growing Global Biological Threat Environment
Related Topics: Coronavirus (COVID-19),Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD),biological weapons,Biological Threat Reduction,biotechnologies,Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR),Biosurveillance,biosecurity,Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA),Global Health Security,Pandemic,biological warfare,DoD,infectious disease
The U.S. Department of Defense Must Continue Countering a Growing Global Biological Threat Environment
The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the often-quoted adage that biological threats do not respect national borders. An infectious disease threat anywhere is a threat everywhere. Over a year into the pandemic, we have all seen first-hand the significant toll that COVID-19 has had on our global society's economic and social structures, including its impact on militaries and defense departments around the world.
Robust Freedom of Navigation Operations Must Continue
Robust Freedom of Navigation Operations Must Continue FONOPs benefit the United States as well as the rest of the international community – and enjoy bipartisan support in Washington. Read Full Article »
Robust Freedom of Navigation Operations Must Continue
The Debate | Opinion FONOPs benefit the United States as well as the rest of the international community – and enjoy bipartisan support in Washington. The French amphibious assault ship LHD Tonnerre (L9014), left, and the guided-missile cruiser USS Monterey (CG 61), right, patrol the open seas, January 25, 2018. Credit: Flickr/Official U.S. Navy Page Since its founding, the United States has protected freedom of navigation.
Defending Freedom of the Seas
June was National Ocean Month for the United States, a time to reflect on the economic, national security, and environmental impacts of the world’s oceans on our country. Throughout our nation's history, the oceans have served to protect our shores and facilitate our economic prosperity. Because our national identity, wealth, and security are so inextricably linked to the oceans, safeguarding the freedom of the seas has been a long-standing imperative for the United States.
Show More
loading
Actions
Is this you?
As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.Get in touch with David F.
Contact David F., search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack