4 Mar At the start of the Biden administration, the United States and its allies are facing a number of critical challenges to their national security. In Asia, these challenges include the security threats posed by China and North Korea. In Europe, a resurgent and hostile Russia poses a threat at a time when the NATO alliance has been weakened through years of diminished support and commitment. In the Middle East, Iran continues to promote instability throughout the region and threatens its neighbors with terrorism, proxy wars, and the prospect of acquiring nuclear weapons. The current challenges to national security also include the threat of cyberattacks launched by hostile nations and non-state actors, the grave public health threat and drain on national resources and social order posed by the ongoing global pandemic, an increasing number of natural disasters caused by climate change, and the growing danger of domestic terrorism fueled by increasing ideological polarization and an attack on objective facts and truth posed by organizations such as QAnon.