What does “peace through strength” mean in 2025—when AI, drones and great-power rivalry are reshaping the battlefield? In this episode of State Secrets, Cipher Brief CEO Suzanne Kelly sits down with David Trulio, President & CEO of the Reagan Foundation and head of the Reagan National Defense Forum (RNDF), to unpack how one of the nation’s most influential defense gatherings is responding to a far more dangerous world.
Trulio walks through the origin story of RNDF, why it was designed as a bipartisan space for national security leaders, and how this year’s forum, taking place at the Reagan Library in California, shapes the tone of debate. Kelly and Trulio discuss this year’s agenda - from AI and “deterrence by design” - to fixing the defense industrial base and making acquisition fast enough to compete with China.
They also explore former President Ronald Reagan’s enduring principles—from “trust but verify” to the centrality of allies and partners—and how those ideas are being stress-tested today in Europe, the Middle East and in the Indo-Pacific.