Foreign Podicy

Russia ravages Ukraine. China eyes Taiwan. North Korea prepares a nuclear test. And negotiations for a new — and worse — iteration of President Obama’s deeply-flawed Iran nuclear deal remain on life-support.   The rules-based, American-led order is hanging in the balance — and although they weren’t granted a seat at the negotiating table, Israel currently faces a unique threat with a build-up of Iranian weapons at almost each of its borders. Unlike with the Americans at the negotiating table, the theocratic regime in Tehran doesn’t want Israelis to submit — they want Israelis to perish. And also unlike the U.S., Israel takes this existential threat both literally and seriously.   Inside its borders, meanwhile, there’s been new wave of terrorist attacks in recent weeks as tensions in Jerusalem again approach boiling. All this as we reach the one-year mark since the Gaza conflict of 2021. Filling in for host Cliff May, FDD Senior Vice President for Research Jonathan Schanzer (who literally wrote the book on las

Can there be anyone not shocked and appalled by Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine – a war intended to extinguish Ukraine as an independent nation; a war in which it appears that war crimes are not just being tolerated by the Kremlin but actively encouraged; a war intended to establish that the only laws that apply in the world today are those of the jungle? The answer: yes. Such people prefer to call themselves ‘realists’, or ‘restrainers’, or ‘re-trenchers’, or ‘anti-interventionists’ or people who just want to prioritize “nation-building at home!” Objectively, one might call them isolationists. And they can be found on both the left and the right of the political spectrum. To discuss, Foreign Podicy host Cliff May is joined by FDD senior fellow Aaron MacLean. Aaron served as a U.S. Marine for seven years with two tours in Afghanistan. He later taught at the U.S. Naval Academy, where in 2013 he received the Apgar Award for Excellence in Teaching. Aaron received a B.A. in philosophy and the history of math and

"A well-informed citizenry is the best defense against tyranny." Thomas Jefferson said that or something close to it. But what happens when tyrants misinform us or — worse — disinform us? To help us understand disinformation and its consequences, Foreign Podicy host Cliff May is joined by three FDD scholars: RADM (Ret) Mark Montgomery, Senior Director of FDD's Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation (CCTI); Emanuele Ottolenghi, FDD Senior Fellow; and Ivana Stradner, Advisor to FDD's Barish Center for Media Integrity.

There’s a dangerous — even reckless — new Iran nuclear accord that appears to be nearing the finish line in Vienna. Meanwhile, the Biden White House is struggling to wield the right set of policy tools to bring Vladimir Putin’s war of aggression in Ukraine to end. The White House wants to put both of these challenges in the rear view so that it can pivot to, and focus on, a looming great power competition with China. But is America exhibiting the attributes of a great power? Shouldn’t a superpower be able to deftly address multiple threats simultaneously? Today, guest host Jonathan Schanzer (FDD’s Senior Vice President for Research) is joined by FDD Senior Fellow and former CIA operative, Reuel Marc Gerecht, as well as Ray Takeyh, a Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. They’ll discuss two recent articles by Reuel and Ray — one in National Review: “Saving the Ayatollahs: Biden’s Unwise Iran Policy,” and the other in the Wall Street Journal: “The Folly of the Pivot to Asia.”

Central to America's strategy in the Cold War was the principle of Mutually Assured Destruction (MAD). The idea was to make nuclear warfare a lose-lose proposition — a game you just can't win. Whichever side was attacked would retain the capability to counterattack. Both sides would end up devastated, if not annihilated. But MAD works only if both sides are equally averse to mass death and destruction. When it comes to Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Ali Khamenei, and Kim Jong-un, can we be confident of that? If not, what replaces MAD? Perhaps robust deterrence and comprehensive missile defense systems — neither of which can be achieved easily, cheaply, or quickly. And we've really not yet begun to pursue such goals. To unpack these issues, Foreign Podicy host Cliff May is joined by Rob Soofer. Formerly the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear and Missile Defense Policy, Rob is now a Senior Associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and Adjunct Professor at Georgetown Univ

Michael G. Waltz served as a Green Beret in the Middle East and Africa, and commanded a Special Forces company in the mountains of Afghanistan. He served as a counterterrorism advisor to Vice President Dick Cheney, and director for Afghanistan policy in the office of the Secretary of Defense. He is the author of a marvelous 2014 book: Warrior Diplomat: A Green Beret’s Battles from Washington to Afghanistan, the proceeds of which continue to benefit the Green Beret Foundation. He was also – we’re proud to say – a non-resident senior fellow at FDD years ago. He now serves in Congress, where he’s a member of the House Armed Services Committee. He continues to serve in the National Guard. He joins Foreign Podicy host Cliff May to talk about a range of critical national security and foreign policy issues.

Russia’s brutal war continues, and President Zelensky is asking for more assistance as the people of Ukraine attempt to exercise their right to defend themselves from an imperialist aggressor seeking to end their existence as an independent nation. The Biden administration’s efforts to revive Barack Obama’s fatally flawed deal with Iran’s rulers — in an even weaker form — may be close to completion. Once that happens, Iran’s theocrats will be enriched. They will have more to spend on terrorism, missile development, and proxy wars. Their path to a nuclear weapons capability will be clear — even if they abide by the agreement which, based on past performance, seems highly unlikely. It’s probable that, as a provision of that agreement, Biden will grant Russia’s demand for substantial opportunities to evade sanctions. It’s possible that China’s rulers will take over Russia’s role as a caretaker of Tehran’s highly enriched uranium, which should not inspire confidence. It’s also likely that the three strongest revi

As Vladimir Putin’s troops ravage Ukraine, his envoy in Vienna is steering the U.S. nuclear negotiations with the Islamic Republic of Iran. Israelis, who know all too well what it means to have bigger neighbors determined to erase your nation from the map, are trying to bring an end to the war and help those suffering as a result of the war — but they can’t forget that Putin has military forces stationed just over their northern border in Syria. To discuss these and related issues, Foreign Podicy host Cliff May is joined by FDD Senior Vice President Jonathan Schanzer, recently returned from a week of meetings with senior officials in Israel, and FDD Senior Advisor Richard Goldberg, who served for many years as a key staffer in both the House and Senate and, most recently, on the White House National Security Council as Director for Countering Iranian Weapons of Mass Destruction.

Vladimir Putin is waging a war of aggression, a war of conquest, an imperialist war. This should not come as a surprise. It’s long been evident that he views himself as a modern czar, a Caesar (which is where the word “czar” comes from), an emperor whose mission is to restore — and, if he can, enlarge — the ancient Russian empire which for a few decades was rebranded as the Soviet empire. In 2008, he seized two provinces from neighboring Georgia. He began his war against Ukraine in 2014 by annexing Crimea and beginning a low-intensity, long-term conflict in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. Western leaders responded with a salad of carrots but not enough sticks to make a campfire. To discuss what has happened, what is happening, and what should happen vis-à-vis Russia and Ukraine, Foreign Podicy host Cliff May is joined by a sailor, a solider, and a spy. (Maybe a tinker and a tailor will be invited next time.) Rear Admiral (Ret.) Mark Montgomery, senior director of FDD's Center on Cyber and Technology Inn

As feared and anticipated, Vladimir Putin sent his troops over the border into Ukraine – an act of aggression and a blatant violation of international law. If Ukrainians, over the days ahead display courage, defiance, and determination, can they stop Putin from stripping them of their right to independence, sovereignty, and self-determination? Having shown little will to contain Putin after he dismembered Georgia in 2008, or after he seized Crimea from Ukraine and annexed it in 2014, what can – and should – American and European leaders do now? And if Putin emerges victorious from this war, will that sate his appetite — or whet it? Discussing these issues with Foreign Podicy host Cliff May are James Brooke, FDD visiting fellow who has lived in and covered Russia for The New York Times, Bloomberg, the Voice of America and other publications; Ivana Stradner, Jeane Kirkpatrick Visiting Research Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute; and John Hardie, research manager and research analyst at FDD.

Joel C. Rosenberg is a New York Times-bestselling author. He’s written 15 novels and four non-fiction books with five million copies in print. Among his readers and fans: George W. Bush, Mike Pence, and Mike Pompeo. He also has a second vocation as what you might call a religious-political activist. And he has a new book based on that work. It’s titled: “Enemies and Allies.” Joel talks about his life and his literature with FDD Senior Fellow Reuel Marc Gerecht, a former Middle East specialist at the CIA’s Directorate of Operations, and "Foreign Podicy" host Cliff May.

Beijing is conducting the most ambitious military modernization and expansion effort in the history of the People’s Republic of China. And the more powerful the People’s Liberation Army becomes, the more aggressively Beijing is behaving. Given the vast distances and expanses of ocean, when Americans think of the Indo-Pacific and the Pentagon’s role there, they may think first of the U.S. Navy and Air Force. Those services will, indeed, play a pivotal role in deterring and defeating aggression in the Indo-Pacific. Fully funding and supporting a modernized, capable, and forward-positioned U.S. Navy and Air Force is vital.  But what about the U.S. Army? That service plays a vital role in Europe and on the Korean peninsula, for example. But what role does the U.S. Army currently play in the larger Indo-Pacific? And what role could and should the Army play there going forward in terms of defending U.S. interests, building partner capacity, and defeating adversaries? As Congress allocates finite resources to and wi

Vladimir Putin is threatening to erase the sovereignty, independence, and self-determination of Ukraine. What caused this crisis?  What are the likely consequences not only for Russia and Ukraine but for the U.S., Europe, and NATO? How would a war between Russia and Ukraine turn out? What lessons are the rulers of China and Iran learning? How do Russian energy resources – and Europe’s need for them – factor in? What are Putin’s goals – short-, medium-, and long-term? What should be the goal of the U.S. and its allies? James Brooke is a former New York Times foreign correspondent and Voice of America Moscow bureau chief who just days ago left Ukraine where he had lived for six years as editor-in-chief of Ukraine Business Journal. Bradley Bowman is senior director of FDD's Center on Military and Political Power (CMPP). He previously served as a Senate national security advisor, U.S. Army officer, and assistant professor at West Point. Brenda Shaffer is FDD’s Senior Advisor for Energy. They join Foreign Podicy h

The media have changed a lot in recent years – not for the better. The New York Times certainly isn’t the newspaper it used to be.  Ashley Rindsberg has written a book making the case that, even in its best days, The Times often failed to live up to its reputation as the newspaper of record, pursuing and publishing the truth, as the paper’s founder put it, “without fear or favor, regardless of party, sect or interests involved.” The title of Mr. Rindsberg’s book: The Gray Lady Winked: How The New York Times’s Misreporting, Distortions and Fabrications Radically Alter History. Ira Stoll is a journalist and author, the media columnist of the Algemeiner, and editor of Smartertimes.com. They join host Cliff May to talk about The Times in particular and the state of journalism in general on this special edition of Foreign Podicy in association with FDD’s Barish Center for Media Integrity. 

John Bolton has had quite a few challenging jobs. Among them: presidential national security advisor, ambassador to the United Nations, and several senior positions in the State Department. He has an original and provocative new essay in National Review on the so-called “rules-based international order.” He discusses that and other current issues, crises, and conflicts with Reuel Marc Gerecht, a senior fellow at FDD, formerly a case officer at the CIA, and Foreign Podicy host Cliff May.

Negotiations between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran have not gone well. President Biden may soon have to choose between two unappealing options: allowing the theocratic regime to become a nuclear-weapons power or using military force to prevent that outcome. Mark Dubowitz, FDD’s chief executive, and Matthew Kroenig, a former senior policy advisor at the Pentagon, now a professor of government at Georgetown University, and director of the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Strategy Initiative, recently published an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal arguing that one of those options is decidedly worse than that other. They join Foreign Podicy host Cliff May to discuss.

Lt. Gen. (Ret.) H.R. McMaster is a soldier and a scholar and, these days, a commentator – one might even say a pundit. His recent essay for National Review is titled: “Preserving the Warrior Ethos” – a contrarian theme in an age where the dominant culture valorizes victims and too many political leaders fail to grasp the nexus between military strength and diplomatic effectiveness. He discusses warriors, wars and related topics with Foreign Podicy host Cliff May, and Bradley Bowman, senior director of FDD’s Center on Military and Political Power.

In recent years, it’s become apparent that the People’s Republic of China intends to eat America’s lunch. No one is more responsible for revealing that than Matthew Pottinger, a former journalist who went on to earn an honest living serving in the U.S. Marines, and, in the previous administration, as Deputy National Security Advisor. He’s currently a distinguished Fellow at the Hoover Institution and he chairs FDD’s China Program. China’s rulers have an impressively comprehensive strategy for achieving dominance in Asia sooner, and globally later. One important component has now been revealed by FDD Adjunct Fellow Craig Singleton who previously spent more than a decade serving in a series of sensitive diplomatic national security roles with the U.S. government. He has published a new report on the “modern-day Trojan Horses” that have gained entry into America’s universities – supporting the military-industrial complex of the People’s Republic of China. Matt Pottinger and Craig Singleton join FDD Foreign Podic

On December 9th and 10th, President Biden hosted what he called the Summit for Democracy – a virtual conference to which he invited 110 governments. Three principal items on the agenda: defending against authoritarianism, fighting corruption, and advancing human rights. Did this “summit” make any progress or at least chart a way forward? What’s been the reaction from authoritarians, corrupt politicians, and human rights abusers? Based on what criteria were invitations issued – or not issued? What, if anything, comes next? To discuss such riddles, Foreign Podicy host Cliff May is joined by Brian Katulis, Vice President for Policy at the Middle East Institute, non-resident Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress, and co-editor of the Liberal Patriot; and Reuel Marc Gerecht, formerly a Middle East specialist in the CIA’s Directorate of Operations, now a senior fellow at FDD.

The People’s Republic of China recently tested an advanced new hypersonic glide vehicle that circles the Earth and is designed to evade U.S. defenses and conduct a nuclear attack against the American homeland. A new Pentagon report reveals that Beijing is expanding the size of its nuclear arsenal much faster than expected and that in 2020 China’s rulers launched more ballistic missiles for testing and training “than the rest of the world combined.” Moscow conducted an anti-satellite test on November 15 that created more than 1500 pieces of trackable space debris, putting American astronauts (and Russian cosmonauts) on the International Space Station in danger. The test also demonstrated again Russia’s ability to target American satellites that we depend on for our security. Meanwhile, Iran continues to expand its ballistic missile arsenal and inch toward a nuclear weapons capability. As the Biden administration prepares its Nuclear Posture Review for publication next year, what should we understand about the