Hudson Institute Events Podcast

The international system is less stable than at any time in recent decades. In the Middle East, Israel is taking the offensive in response to Hamas’s unconscionable terrorist attacks on the Jewish holiday of Shemini Atzeret. In Europe, Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine shows no signs of abating after 20 months of grinding conflict. And from the Balkans to the Caucasus, long-festering tensions risk exploding into all-out war. In these trying times, the transatlantic alliance is crucial for maintaining a favorable balance of power in Eurasia and ensuring that the United States–led international system endures. Hudson is delighted to host one of the West’s foremost strategists, National Security Advisor of the Czech Republic and former Czech Ambassador to Israel Tomáš Pojar for a fireside chat on the most pressing issues of the day. He’ll be joined in conversation by Peter Rough, senior fellow and director of Hudson’s Center on Europe and Eurasia, to discuss Czech-US relations, the future of the transatlantic alliance, Israel’s war against Hamas’s terror, the war in Ukraine, and the politics of Central and Eastern Europe.

The United States began working to prevent the Chinese Communist Party’s illicit surveillance of Americans through Chinese-made telecom equipment long before the infamous spy balloon traversed the continental US. Yet in the past two decades, thousands of state and local governments in the US have purchased potentially compromised devices. This threat extends beyond America’s borders as countries across the globe—including those that host US military bases—have turned to Chinese companies like Huawei for telecom equipment, services, and infrastructure.Miles Yu, senior fellow and director of the China Center, will host Federal Communications Commissioner Nathan Simington and a panel of distinguished experts for a virtual discussion of how CCP-controlled telecommunications companies pose a uniquely pervasive threat to American national security.

Governor Doug Burgum will deliver a foreign policy address at Hudson Institute. Following his remarks, the governor will sit down for a “fireside chat” with Hudson President and CEO John P. Walters.

Senator Tim Scott will deliver a speech at the Hudson Institute about standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Israel, wiping Hamas off the map, and confronting those who are enabling terrorism.Following the remarks, Senator Scott will sit down for a conversation with Hudson Senior Fellow Michael Doran.

Mobile wireless services have been central to America and its allies’ economic growth and national security over the past three decades. Billions of people, including many of the world’s poorest, use wireless services daily. New services such as 5G depend on spectrum availability, and countries like China are making far more of the spectrum available for new technologies than the United States. America’s economic growth, social welfare, and national security depend on its ability to find more spectrum for new technologies.Hudson’s Center for the Economics of the Internet welcomes James Andrew Lewis of the Center for Strategic and International Studies to discuss his research in this area. A light lunch will be served.

Under the cover of heavy rocket fire, hundreds of terrorists belonging to Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad invaded Israel from Gaza in the early hours of Saturday, October 7. They breached two security fences and stormed in by foot, jeep, motorcycle, and paraglider; yet they encountered virtually no resistance from the Israeli military. The terrorists murdered hundreds of civilians and left close to 2,000 wounded. They took an undisclosed number of soldiers and civilians captive, including women and children, who are being held in the Gaza Strip. The magnitude of the attack makes an Israeli ground incursion into Gaza a virtual certainty.Join Hudson Senior Fellows Michael Doran, Jonathan Schachter, and Can Kasapoğlu for an analysis of these events.

The United States military faces multiple intensifying challenges. China, a peer adversary, has eroded the US military’s post–Cold War dominance and threatens the sovereignty and economic prosperity of the US and its allies and partners around the globe. Facing flat budgets, the Pentagon is pursuing resilience, flexibility, interoperability, and affordable scale to gain an edge. Far from the exquisite precision strikes of Operation Desert Storm, US forces will need to assemble kill chains in the field from a changing variety of commercial and military systems to undermine enemy decision-making and sustain a potential protracted fight.In order to implement the interoperability and command and control that the US military needs for a more adaptable and resilient force, leaders from the Department of Defense and its industry partners will have to cooperate. Join Hudson Senior Fellow Bryan Clark and Lockheed Martin Chairman, President, and CEO Jim Taiclet for a conversation about how the Pentagon and its suppliers can work together to overcome these challenges and ensure US forces can continue to dissuade aggression.

On September 19, Azerbaijan launched a rapid military operation to take full control of Karabakh, a region that is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, but which is home to tens of thousands of Armenians. What led to Azerbaijan’s latest move? What are the move’s implications? Will it bring Armenia and Azerbaijan closer to a lasting peace?To answer these questions, Hudson Senior Fellows Michael Doran and Luke Coffey host a discussion with Ambassador Elchin Amirbayov, representative of the president of the Republic of Azerbaijan on special assignments.

Pentagon leaders largely view the Indo-Pacific through an air and maritime lens. But in the region, armies are the dominant military branch in national security priorities and doctrine. This gives the United States Army an opportunity to build relationships with its counterparts across the Indo-Pacific and establish security infrastructure for use in future conflicts. The resilience these “interior lines” provide could be decisive in deterring aggression.Join Hudson Senior Fellows Bryan Clark and Dan Patt for a discussion with General Charles A. Flynn, commanding general of the US Army, Pacific, about the Army’s changing role in the region and how long-term campaigning can help the US compete with and deter China.

Xi Jinping’s revanchist nationalism has led European officials to rethink their China policies, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has ended any chance of a Russia-Japan entente. Europe, Japan, and Australia increasingly work together to support Ukraine, conduct combined military exercises and development, and enact policies to de-risk their industrial bases from Chinese economic coercion.Hudson’s Japan Chair will host Eva Maydell, a member of the European Parliament and vice chair of the Delegation on Japan Relations, to speak on recent developments between Europe and the Indo-Pacific as well as the future of the relationship. Following her remarks, Hudson Japan Chair Kenneth R. Weinstein will moderate a question and answer session.