General Tod Wolters and Ambassador David Satterfield talk about the key elements of their successful partnership in managing the US-Turkey security relationship (2019-2022): having a clear strategy, relying on the strong US/NATO/Turkey mil to mil relationship and holding frank talks.  Topics:  Turkey’s strong commitment to NATO;  US Turkish differences over the US partnership with the SDF in Syria;  Turkey’s purchase of a Russian missile defense systems; Greek/Turkish clashes & Turkey’s relationship with Russia ..read more

Ambassador Kathleen Doherty and former Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Rachel Ellehuus talk about their work together on Cyprus - the effects of the division of the island on US engagement in the region and on NATO,  the decision to lift the long standing US arms embargo,  the dispute over energy resources between Cyprus and Turkey,  Russia’s decades long ties to the island and the “time warp” of the UN monitored buffer zone ..read more

Ambassador Sanders (former US Ambassador to Nigeria & Congo) and General Ward (former Commander US AFRICOM) discuss US interests in the region including the opportunities (huge markets, a youth bulge, many UN Votes) and the dangers (political instability, sharply rising violence from criminal networks and extremists groups including Boko Haram). They talk about the region’s original rejection of the US African Command and its current request for a greater US military presence.  Finally, they discuss the issue of great power competition on the continent, the mixed messages coming from ..read more

General Crutchfield and Anne Richard talk about US diplomatic and military engagement with Myanmar/Burma, the persecution and statelessness of the Rohingya, the closed Burmese military mindset, the available US tools to influence behavior, and the shifts in US refugee policy ..read more

General Casey and Ambassador Negroponte talk about their partnership in Iraq after the end of the US occupation: correcting mistakes made by the CPA, adjusting to the reality that the country was not ready for reconstruction, rebuilding the army and police, transitioning to counterinsurgency operations, sharing bushels of pistachios and learning from DOD-DOS cooperation in conflict zones.  ..read more

General Brooks and Ambassador Lippert talk about US efforts to build a strong relationship between Japan and South Korea amidst historical sensitivities (including the issue of “comfort women”), Korea’s actual contributions to burden sharing, the effects of the suspension of military exercises after the Trump/Kim Summit, and the importance of people to people relations.  ..read more

Former USSOUTHCOM Commander, Admiral Faller, and former US Ambassador to Brazil, Ambassador Chapman, talk about singing together and their long friendship, their intense efforts to deepen the US-Brazil security relationship with staffs stymied by the COVID pandemic, the long-term significance of the military-to-military relationship, and the Trump/Bolsonaro dynamic ..read more

General Abrams and Ambassador Harris discuss their partnership,  the treaty alliance with the ROK,  the shift under the Trump Administration to a top down approach to foreign policy and to a transactional relationships with allies, US summitry efforts with North Korea, managing  ROK initiatives, the storming of the Ambassador’s residence, the threat of the PRC and the value of the Quad and AUKUS.   ..read more

Former US Ambassador to Russia John Huntsman and former US Defense Attaché Admiral David Manero describe the effects of the large expulsion of US diplomats from Russia during a period of heightened tensions, their ground game to advance US interests in a hostile environment, Russia’s toolbox and offensive tactics and US actions to counter them ..read more

Ambassador Roebuck and General Jeffers discuss: how the US diplomatic team in northeastern Syria was embedded and partnered with US Special Forces; the pushback of ISIS working with the SDF; managing encounters with Russian troops; the major fallout of US acquiescence of Turkey’s 2019 invasion to drive the SDF forces away from the border; prospects for a political solution to the unwinnable war and lessons learned on US dip/mil cooperation in conflict areas.  ..read more