CNA Talks: A National Security Podcast

In this episode, we examine a new regulation from the Department of Commerce aimed at limiting China’s access to semiconductors and microchips, the impact it is having on China and how U.S. partner nations are responding. Guests  April Herlevi is a Senior Research Scientist with CNA's Indo-Pacific Security Affairs program. She is an expert in China's foreign economic policy, special economic zones, and economic statecraft.  Christopher Cairns is a Research Scientist with CNA's Indo-Pacific Security Affairs program. He is an expert in China's economic statecraft and technology acquisition efforts and U.S. ally and partner issues in the Indo-Pacific.  Links To subscribe to the Intersections newsletter, please email intersections@cna.org Intersections Issue 1: https://www.cna.org/our-media/newsletters/intersections/issue-1 Intersections Issue 2: https://www.cna.org/our-media/newsletters/intersections/issue-2  

Since the end of the Cold War, the United States has been the predominant foreign power in the Middle East, influencing the economic, political and security affairs of the region. But in recent years other great powers have begun to chip away at this power, carving out their own spheres of influence in the region. In this episode, we explore the strategic objectives of China and Russia in the Middle East, the tools they are using to achieve them, and what this means for U.S. policymakers. Guests Michael Connell is an expert in Persian Gulf security-related issues, the armed forces of Iran, U.S.-GCC security cooperation, and adversary cyber policy and strategy. Samuel Plapinger is an expert on strategic competition, irregular warfare, combat effectiveness, insurgency, terrorism, and Middle East security. Links Report: China’s Presence in the Middle East and Western Indian Ocean Podcast: Putin, Raisi and Their Common Enemy

This episode originally aired on CIMSEC's Sea Control Podcast. Special thanks to their team for allowing up to rebroadcast this episode.  Dr. Joshua Tallis joins the program to discuss the evolution of NATO's maritime command and control and the future for the Standing Naval Force. Dr. Tallis is a naval analyst at the Center for Naval Analyses, where he is a senior research scientist in the Operations Evaluation Group. He has embedded as an analyst with Carrier Strike Group Eight and most recently with U.S. Sixth Fleet. This episode was edited and produced by Nathan Miller. EPISODE NOTES Links 1. "NATO’s Maritime Vigilance: Optimizing the Standing Naval Force for the Future," by Dr. Joshua Tallis, War on the Rocks, December 15, 2022.

What do search engine optimization, airline schedules and standardized testing have in common? They are all vulnerable to Goodhart’s law, the idea that when a metric becomes a target it ceases to be a good metric.   In this episode Michael Stumborg and Timothy Blasius join John to discuss their report, “Goodhart’s Law: Recognizing and Mitigating the Manipulation of Measures in Analysis.”   Michael Stumborg is a Principal Research Scientist with CNA’s ​Strike and Air Warfare Program. Timothy Blasius is a Senior Research Scientist with CNA’s Strike and Air Warfare Program. CNA: Goodhart’s Law: Recognizing and Mitigating the Manipulation of Measures in Analysis Army War College: Lying to Ourselves: Dishonesty in the Army Profession

For the past 80 years, the Center for Naval Analyses has been the Navy’s partner and an essential resource for agencies across the federal government. In this episode, Executive Vice President of the Center for Naval Analyses, Andrew Mara sits down to discuss the Center’s accomplishments over the past fiscal year and where the organization is headed in the coming one.

On November 28, thousands of people across China took to the streets to protest the country’s ‘zero-COVID policies and censorship and to call for democracy. These demonstrations were an unprecedented show of dissent against the government in the era of Xi Jinping. How has the government responded to these uprisings, and how will they affect Beijing’s COVID strategy going forward? To answer these questions Heidi Holz and Josiah Case, analysts from CNA’s China Studies Program, join the podcast.   Heidi Holz is a Research Scientist in the CNA China Studies Program. Her research interests include China's media environment, Chinese military doctrine and operations, as well as U.S.-China military-to-military relations. Josiah Case is a Research Analyst in CNA's China Studies Program. His research at CNA has focused on PRC media and Beijing's global activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. CNA InDepth: Bejing's Zero-COVID Dilemma  CNA Report: Telling China's COVID-19 Story Well Propaganda, Disinformation, & Other Influence Efforts

Video Link to this Podcast: https://youtu.be/Aly90z-1-eI https://www.cna.org THE 20TH NATIONAL CONGRESS OF THE CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY: FOREIGN POLICY, TECHNOLOGY AND MILITARY DIMENSIONS A SITUATION SPOTLIGHT Part of CNA’s National Security Seminars series November 17, 2022 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. EST Featuring: Dr. David Finkelstein, Vice President, CNA and Director, China and Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Division, CNA (https://www.cna.org/about-us/leadership/center-for-naval-analyses/david-finkelstein.xml) Dr. Elizabeth Wishnick (https://www.cna.org/experts/Wishnick_E.xml), Senior Research Scientist, China Studies Program (https://www.cna.org/centers-and-divisions/cna/cip/china-studies), CNA, and Senior Research Scholar, Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University Dr. April Herlevi (https://www.cna.org/experts/Herlevi_A.xml) Senior Research Scientist, Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Program (https://www.cna.org/centers-and-divisions/cna/cip/indo-pacific-security-affairs), CNA For a recent analysis of the CCP Congress report see our InDepth blog posts by David Finkelstein and Brian Waidelich.

Analysis of the impact of the women-led protests since the death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of the morality police. Is this a new Iranian Revolution led by women? Featuring: Dr. Michael Connell, Principal Research Scientist, Strategy, Policy, Plans, and Programs Division, CNA Nazee Moinian, Non-Resident Scholar, Iran Program, Middle East Institute Moderated by: Nilanthi Samaranayake, Director, Strategy and Policy Analysis Program, CNA With Introductions by: Halleh Seyson, Vice President/Director, Institute for Public Research, CNA A Virtual Seminar by CNA’s Inclusive National Security & National Security Seminar Series October 25, 2022. Full Event: The Crackdown in Iran: A Women, Peace, and Security Situation Spotlight  

The Pacific Islands region is a massive and diverse region, and one with strategic value to both the United States and China. What challenges do the people of the Pacific Island Countries face and how can they navigate strategic competition between the great powers.  April Herlevi and Chris Cairns from CNA’s Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Program, sit down to discuss the latest from the Pacific Islands, and how China and the United States are engaged in the region. Further Reading Army War College: Enabling a More Externally Focused and Operational PLA CNA: Mapping the Information Environment in the Pacific Island Countries CNA: PRC Vessels Detained for Illegal Fishing in Vanuatu EEZ  CNA InDepth: China and the Solomon Islands: Drivers of Security Cooperation"  CNA InDepth: ​Pacific Connectivity and Tonga's Volcanic Eruption CNA InDepth: Tonga Aid

Brazil is currently amid a contentious presidential election between incumbent Jair Bolsonaro and former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. President Bolsonaro has consistently claimed that Brazil's election system is vulnerable to fraud, sparking fears that the peaceful transition of power could be threatened. Ralph Espach, from CNA’s Strategy and Policy Analyses Program, joins the show to discuss the Brazilian election, the threat to democracy in the country and what this could mean for U.S. interests in South America.