Security Dilemma

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and John Gay spoke with Jonathan Guyer of the Institute for Global Affairs at Eurasia Group. Jonathan is the Program Director of IGA's flagship Independent America program, which is focused on interrogating the conventional wisdom of US foreign policy and informing the public about America’s changing role in the world. He was previously a senior foreign policy writer at Vox and managing editor of The American Prospect. Our conversation today discussed U.S. Middle East policy, the rise of Silicon Valley-based defense firms, and the "revolving door" between industry and government.LISTENER SURVEY: Please answer our two-question survey of Security Dilemma listeners. Respondents who provide their email address will be entered into a drawing. The first prize is a signed copy of John Mearsheimer's The Tragedy of Great Power Politics; there are also digital copies of our recent reading group book, Paul R. Pillar's Why America Misunderstands the World. Respond to the survey ⁠here⁠.

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi spoke with Ted Jones, the Senior Director for National Security and International Programs at the Nuclear Energy Institute. An expert on international energy markets and nuclear trade policy, he leads initiatives related to nuclear energy exports. In addition to his work on nuclear trade policy and promotion, Mr. Jones serves as liaison to stakeholders in the nuclear policy and national security communities. Mr. Jones previously served as policy director of the U.S.-India Business Council at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. During his tenure there, he led a successful campaign to change U.S. law and international rules to admit India to the global commercial nuclear trade. In this episode, we discussed the global nuclear supply chain, energy security, and careers with industry trade groups. LISTENER SURVEY: Please answer our two-question survey of Security Dilemma listeners. Respondents who provide their email address will be entered into a drawing. The first prize is a signed copy of John Mearsheimer's The Tragedy of Great Power Politics; there are also digital copies of our recent reading group book, Paul R. Pillar's Why America Misunderstands the World. Respond to the survey here.

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi spoke with Madison Schramm about why liberal democracies often initiate wars against dictatorships.Dr. Schramm is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Toronto and a Nonresident Senior Fellow with the Stimson Center’s Reimagining U.S. Grand Strategy Program. Her research focuses on international security, the domestic politics of foreign policy, political psychology, and gender and foreign policy. She was previously an Assistant Professor at the U.S. Army War College and is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations. In this episode, we discussed her book Why Democracies Fight Dictators, whether there is global competition between democracies and autocratic states, and threat inflation.

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Gay conducts a full reading of John Quincy Adams' July 4, 1821 "Monsters to Destroy" speech (which warned the United States against overreach abroad in the name of liberty), followed by a discussion with co-host A.J. Manuzzi about the enduring relevance of Adams' words for U.S. statecraft. You can read the full speech for yourself here.

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi spoke with Dan Caldwell and Jennifer Kavanagh about their recent Defense Priorities explainer on U.S. defense posture under a grand strategy of restraint. Dan Caldwell is a former senior adviser to the Secretary of Defense and worked on the Trump 2024 transition team. He is a veteran of the Marines and a former Capitol Hill staffer. Jennifer is a senior fellow and director of military analysis at Defense Priorities. She previously was a senior fellow in the American Statecraft Program at the Carnegie Endowment and a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation, where she directed RAND’s Army Strategy program for three years. Kavanagh’s research focuses on U.S. military strategy, force structure and defense budgeting, the defense industrial base, and U.S. military interventions.In this conversation, we discussed how the United States can realign its defense posture with realist core national interests and objectives, and what obstacles such a realignment would face. You can read their full paper here: https://www.defensepriorities.org/explainers/aligning-global-military-posture-with-us-interests/.

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and Michelle Newby spoke with Dr. Lindsey O'Rourke, an Associate Professor of Political Science at Boston College and a Non-Resident Fellow at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. She’s the author of Covert Regime Change: America’s Secret Cold War, which catalogues and analyses Cold War-era U.S. regime change efforts.We discussed why American regime change efforts are often futile, take a closer look at spheres of influence as a fact of life, and examined how an American regime change war in Iran would transpire, and why it would likely fail to achieve American interests.

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, A.J. Manuzzi and new guest co-host Michelle Newby, Programs Director at Defense Priorities and a 2024 JQAS Strategic Leaders Fellow, spoke with Kyuri Park. Dr. Park is a Postdoctoral Fellow with the Security and Foreign Policy Initiative at the Global Research Institute and a faculty affiliate of the Public Policy Program at the College of William & Mary. She studies international security and cooperation, with a regional focus on the Asia-Pacific. We discussed her book project on the behavior of Asia-Pacific secondary states diversify their partnerships amid U.S.-China competition and its implications for U.S. policymakers. We also discussed the future of the U.S.-South Korea alliance in the wake of the election of new President Lee Jae-myung and whether nuclear diplomacy with North Korea is viable. Our listeners should also check out Dr. Park's new article on South Korea's strategic autonomy in The National Interest co-authored with former SD guest Dave Kang: https://nationalinterest.org/blog/korea-watch/south-korea-will-not-choose-between-the-us-and-china

On this off-cycle episode of Security Dilemma, John Gay sat down with A.J. Manuzzi to discuss Iran's 6/20 missile attacks on Israel, why deeper U.S. involvement could lead to mission creep and shifting goals, and congressional efforts to block unauthorized U.S. entry into the war.

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi spoke with Sarah Streyder, the Executive Director of the Secure Families Initiative, a national organization that mobilizes military families to advocate for a less militarized foreign policy. Sarah is the spouse of an active-duty service member in the Space Force and was nationally recognized for her leadership. Before founding SFI, Streyder worked at the White House and the United Nations.Our conversation covered a lot of ground, including SFI's work on war powers reform and ending the war in Afghanistan.

On this impromptu episode of Security Dilemma, the Society's Executive Director John Gay sat down with SD cohost A.J. Manuzzi to discuss Israel's June 12 strikes on Iranian nuclear and regime targets, and several potential decisions the Iranians could make to retaliate, as well as what it all means for U.S. policy.

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi spoke with Khurram Dastgir Khan. Mr. Khan is a former member of Pakistan's cabinet, having led the ministries of Energy, Foreign Affairs, Defence, and Commerce since 2014. He served as a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan between 2008 and 2023. Our conversation covered the recent conflict between India and Pakistan, as well as Pakistan's relationships with the United States and China.

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi spoke with Michael Brenes. Dr. Brenes is Co-Director of the Brady-Johnson Program in Grand Strategy and Lecturer in History at Yale University. His research interests include United States foreign policy, political history, and political economy. He is the author of For Might and Right: Cold War Defense Spending and the Remaking of American Democracy, published by University of Massachusetts Press in 2020, as well as the co-author (with fellow former Security Dilemma guest Van Jackson) of The Rivalry Peril: How Great-Power Competition Threatens Peace and Weakens Democracy. Our conversation focused on why a framework of "great power competition" is unlikely to reinforce peace and democracy, Cold War liberalism, and the principles of a progressive foreign policy.

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi spoke with Candace Rondeaux, the author of Putin’s Sledgehammer: The Wagner Group and Russia’s Collapse into Mercenary Chaos. She serves as the Senior Director for the Future Frontlines and Planetary Politics programs at New America, and is a professor of practice at Arizona State University. Previously, she advised the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction and served as the South Asia bureau chief for The Washington Post. Our conversation today discussed the origins of the Wagner Group, the role of mercenaries in Russia’s national security strategy, and more. You can purchase the book, which was released May 13, here: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/candace-rondeaux/putins-sledgehammer/9781541703087/?lens=publicaffairs

This week on Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi spoke with Daniel McCarthy, Editor-in-Chief of Modern Age. Mr. McCarthy is a leading light in the conservative movement for a more restrained U.S. foreign policy. He is a regular contributor to The Spectator, and the former editor of The American Conservative, the magazine founded by conservatives opposed to the war in Iraq. He also worked on the Ron Paul 2008 presidential campaign. Our conversation covered the connection between liberalism and empire, how the experience of the American Revolution shaped U.S. foreign policy, as well as about contemporary conservative foreign policy thought from Pat Buchanan to Trump.

This week on Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi spoke with Curt Mills, the Executive Director of The American Conservative, where he previously served as senior reporter and contributing editor. He specializes in foreign policy and campaign coverage. Our conversation touched on some of the Trump Administration's seminal initiatives, including diplomacy with Russia and Iran, the potential annexation of Greenland, and more. We also discussed the President's national security personnel and where the respective political parties could go on foreign policy in 2028.

This week on Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and Michael Culp spoke with John Vick, the Executive Director of Concerned Veterans for America. John Vick enlisted in the Marine Corps in 2003, and deployed to al-Anbar, Iraq in 2005. He has also served in the Navy, mobilizing twice in support of Operation Inherent Resolve, and he continues to serve in the Navy Reserve as an intelligence officer supporting U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM). Our conversation discussed U.S. Middle East and Africa policy, careers in military intelligence, and how to combat the U.S. military's recruiting crisis.

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi interviewed Sabreena Croteau. Sabreena is a Research Fellow at Defense Priorities and recently defended her dissertation to earn her doctorate in Political Science from the University of Chicago. Her dissertation, titled “Security the Seas: The Political Economy of Naval Force Structure,” uses an economic approach to examine the variance in the development of naval power across states, and intends to draw policy-relevant implications for U.S. grand strategy, the pivot to Asia, and competition with China as a rising economic power. Our conversation discussed how economic considerations influence how great powers construct their navies, how U.S. policymakers should think about sea lanes, and China and Russia's Arctic ambitions.

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi spoke with Aude Darnal, a Research Analyst and Project Manager at the Stimson Center, and the founder and leader of the Global South in the World Order Project — hosted by the Reimagining US Grand Strategy Program. Prior to joining Stimson, Aude served as an associate director at the Atlantic Council’s New American Engagement Initiative. She is originally from Martinique, in the French Caribbean. Our conversation discussed how Global South countries are responding to the Trump Administration in light of its recent tariffs and foreign aid cuts, as well as how U.S. grand strategy can meet the moment in an increasingly multipolar world."Order of Oppression" by Tim MurithiStimson's Global South in the World Order Project site

Is a career in political risk right for you? On March 13, JQAS recorded a webinar about careers in the private geopolitical risk sector with several alumni of the Society. The panelists and co-hosts John Allen Gay and Julie Thompson-Gomez discussed what a typical day in the life for someone in the industry looks like, how prospective applicants can be competitive candidates for roles in the space, and various tips and tricks for navigating careers in this emergent sector. Panelist bios are as follows:Natalie Armbruster is a Senior Middle East Intelligence Researcher at Seerist. She is a former Research Associate at Defense Priorities.John Goodnight is the Chief of Staff at John Hulsman Enterprises. Prior to this role, he was the Southern Regional Director at JQAS.Scarlett Kennedy is an Analyst at Valens Global, as well as an alumna of the Society's Marcellus Policy Fellowship.

On this week's episode of Security Dilemma, John Allen Gay and A.J. Manuzzi interview Spencer Ackerman, a Pulitzer Prize and National Magazine Award-winning reporter, who has covered the War on Terror and U.S. foreign policy for The New Republic, Wired, The Guardian, The Daily Beast, and Zeteo. He is also the author of Reign of Terror: How the 9/11 Era Destabilized America and Produced Trump and the Forever Wars newsletter, and he is currently writing the new Iron Man series for Marvel Comics and The Torture and Deliverance of Majid Khan. Our conversation discussed the impact of the GWOT on U.S. politics, whether the GWOT is actually over, and the Biden Administration's foreign policy legacy.