The Truth of the Matter

CSIS's Jon B. Alterman joins the podcast to discuss the complex set of options that Israel and the United States are facing to secure peace in the Middle East.

The New York Times’ David Sanger joins the podcast to discuss his best-selling new book, “New Cold Wars: China’s Rise, Russia’s Invasion, and America’s Struggle to Defend the West.”

CSIS’s Eliot Cohen joins the podcast to discuss Iran’s missile attack on Israel and its wider geopolitical implications.

CSIS’ Chris Johnstone joins the podcast to discuss next week’s official visit to the United States by Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, as well as the trilateral leaders’ summit between the United States, Japan, and the Philippines. 

CSIS’ Kari Bingen and Heather Williams join the podcast to discuss Russia’s new space-based anti-satellite weapon, its violation of the Outer Space Treaty and what steps the U.S. can take to mitigate the risks.

CSIS' Dan Byman joins the podcast to discuss his new report which examines several scenarios in which democratic government might consider before using deepfakes to advance their foreign policy objectives. Read full report at this link

In this episode of the Truth of the Matter, we feature a conversation from CSIS podcast, Smart Women, Smart Power. Host Kathleen McInnis spoke with Congresswoman Mikie Sherrill (NJ-11) about her whirlwind past couple of weeks. The pair discussed her recent trip to the Munich Security Conference, including the moment she found out about the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, and her...

 CSIS’ Seth Jones joins the podcast to discuss his new report which explains how China’s defense industrial base is operating on a wartime footing, while the U.S. defense industrial base is largely operating on a peacetime footing. Overall, the U.S. defense industrial ecosystem lacks the capacity, responsiveness, flexibility, and surge capability to meet the U.S. military’s production and warfight...

CNN national security analyst Peter Bergen joins the podcast to discuss how domestic terrorism is on the rise and what the United States can do to counter it.

Admiral James Stavridis, a retired four-star admiral in the U.S. Navy and former commander of NATO and SOUTHCOM, and award-winning author Elliot Ackerman, contributor at The Atlantic and veteran of the U.S. Marines, join the podcast to discuss their new novel, “2054,” which explores where the United States could find itself in the middle of this century. “2054” is a sequel to New York Times bestse...

Harvard CAPS-Harris Poll chairman Mark Penn joins the podcast to discuss the results of his February poll on U.S. attitudes toward Israel and Hamas.

Award-winning filmmaker Brian Knappenberger joins the podcast to discuss his new docuseries Turning Point: The Bomb and the Cold War, which debuts on Netflix on March 12, and how Cold War history is reflected in the current conflict in Ukraine.

For the past two years, CSIS’ Global Food and Water Security Program directed by Caitlin Welsh has analyzed the impacts of Russia’s war in Ukraine on global food security and on Ukraine’s agriculture sector and has shed light onto the ways that agriculture and food are central to Russia’s military strategy in Ukraine and its political strategy for expanding influence around the world. Caitlin join...

On the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion into Ukraine, CSIS’ Eliot Cohen joins the podcast to discuss how the conflict has become a “real war,” and what the consequences are for the United States and the West if Ukraine doesn’t prevail.

On this special episode, we are joined by Chris Miller, author of Chip War: the Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology, and Professor of International History at Tufts University. We discuss Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo's CHIPS Act announcement (1:38), how the semiconductor landscape has changed since Chip War was published (6:39), why U.S. export controls on Russia and China are le...

CSIS’s Ryan Berg joins the podcast to discuss the reelection of Nayib Bukele in El Salvador, the Central American leader who calls himself “the world’s coolest dictator.”

CSIS’ Norman Roule joins the podcast to discuss the recent U.S. strike in Baghdad and what U.S. policy is seeking to achieve in the Middle East in combating Iranian proxies. 

CSIS’ Seth Jones joins the podcast to discuss U.S. strikes on targets in Syria, Iraq and Yemen. In addition, Dr. Jones discusses his recent trip to Israel and meetings with senior officials there.

CSIS’ Joseph Majkut and Ben Cahill join the podcast to discuss the Biden Administration’s decision to pause the permitting process for new liquified natural gas export facilities in order to analyze their impact on climate change, the economy and national security.

In this episode, Andrew sits down with Gregory C. Allen, director of the Wadhwani Center for AI and Advanced Technologies and discuss 2023 AI biggest developments, newest policies, and our responses to it all. This episode is a crossover with the AI Policy Podcast, a podcast by CSIS' Wadhwani Center for AI and Advanced Technologies.

CSIS’ Eliot Cohen joins the podcast to discuss how the United States should respond to Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, plus, Dr. Cohen describes what he saw and experienced during his recent visit to Israel.  

Former national intelligence manager for Iran at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, CIA senior official and current CSIS senior adviser Norman Roule joins the podcast to discuss the war in Gaza against Hamas and how Iran and its proxies are provoking a potentially expanded Mideast war.

Jonathan Shank, CEO of Terrapin Station Entertainment joins the podcast to discuss live music, immersive entertainment and the impact of the Grateful Dead on social media and the future of rock and roll. 

CSIS’ Daniel Byman, who just returned from Israel where he met with senior military officials, joins the podcast to discuss how the war in Gaza is progressing, why the Israeli campaign has been so destructive and what success looks like for Israel and for Hamas.

CSIS’ Jon Alterman and Washington Post columnist Jason Rezaian, who serve as executive directors of the CSIS Commission on Hostage Taking and Wrongful Detention, join the podcast to discuss the ongoing hostage situation in Gaza, lessons from the Israel-Hamas hostage deal, and how global thought and policymaking regarding hostage situations should evolve.