Dennis Ross in Bloomberg News: “The U.S. and Saudi Arabia Can’t Get a Divorce”
“Few American foreign-policy challenges are more vexing or divisive than relations with Saudi Arabia today. U.S. interests would seem to dictate close ties, but American values argue otherwise. For President Trump, who is all about transactions, it is a no-brainer to focus on arms sales and oil, and little else …
Read MoreMichael Camilleri quoted in The Washington Post article, “Social media remains key to Venezuela’s opposition, despite efforts to block it”
“Michael Camilleri, a director at the Washington-based think tank Inter-American Dialogue, said social-media and online messaging services had become the most critical ways Venezuelans communicated beyond the reach of government censors. The opposition to Maduro has publicly mobilized on Twitter and Instagram and privately communicated through group chats on the …
Read MoreBridge Colby in Die Zeit: “What Does German History Actually Say About German Defense Spending”
“Few aspects are more sensitive in Germany’s fraught relationship with history than the role and status of its military. Indeed, many Germans seem to think that, given its past, the country cannot have strong armed forces; such a military, they contend, is inconsistent with Germany’s postwar history and its repudiation …
Read MoreNick Rasmussen on The PBS NewsHour: “How the U.S. should respond to growing wave of domestic terror attacks”
“The deadly weekend shooting at a San Diego synagogue appears to be the latest in a series of hate-driven domestic terror attacks across the U.S. This time, the killer left a manifesto praising other recent assaults. How is the Trump administration responding, and is it enough to quell the growing …
Read MoreDavid Cohen and Zoe Weinberg in Foreign Affairs: “Sanctions Can’t Spark Regime Change”
“In the last several decades, financial and economic sanctions have become a key tool of U.S. foreign policy. The Trump administration has made particularly heavy use of this tool, especially in its efforts to induce regime change in Venezuela and Iran. On March 21, for instance, National Security Adviser John …
Read MoreMichèle Flournoy featured on Dick Clarke’s Future State Podcast on the future of war
“Michèle Flournoy, former Under Secretary of Defense and Dick Clarke discuss the near-term and long-term outlook for the United States Department of Defense and the potential for ‘hyperwar.’ With a budget over $700 billion, is the US maintaining military superiority over our adversaries, like Russia and China? Some experts are …
Read MoreDanny Russel quoted in Bloomberg News article, “Xi Jinping’s Second Belt and Road Forum: Three Key Takeaways”
“This year’s joint statement — released after Xi chaired a round table with participating leaders — repeatedly called for “high-quality” projects and standards. The 2017 communique didn’t use the phrase. The document also encouraged developed nations to invest in “connectivity projects” in developing countries, and said cooperation “will be open, …
Read MoreLiz Rosenberg in Foreign Policy: “Maximum Pressure on Iran Won’t Work”
“This week, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo moved to end sanctions waivers on Iranian oil—a major step to increase financial pressure on Tehran. The new policy, once it goes into force on May 2, aims to force China, India, Japan, South Korea, and Turkey to stop buying crude from …
Read MoreDanny Russel quoted in The Washington Post article, “‘Stopping the bad stuff:’ Japan’s Abe visits White House in latest bid to soothe Trump’s ego — and avoid his ire”
“‘There’s a certain amount of domestic dismay and criticism of Abe for what is perceived in many quarters in Japan as shameless pandering to Donald Trump,’ said Daniel Russel, who served as assistant secretary of state for East Asia and the Pacific in the Obama administration. ‘I’ve certainly heard that …
Read MoreNick Rasmussen quoted in The Washington Post: “The hazy link between the attacks in Sri Lanka and New Zealand”
“Determining the motivations behind extremist acts can be challenging, experts say, and extremists are generally vague about their reasoning. ‘Terrorist organizations are often opportunistic in the way that they claim justification or rationalization for their attacks,’ Nicholas Rasmussen, a former senior director for counterterrorism on the National Security Council, told …
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