Hudson Institute Events Podcast

The integration of uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUVs) with Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines is transforming undersea warfare. This breakthrough enhances autonomous launch and recovery, extends stealth and survivability, and strengthens electronic warfare and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) operations in even the most complex undersea environments.Join Hudson Institute’s Bryan Clark for a panel discussion on how crewed-uncrewed teaming and advanced electronic warfare integration are redefining undersea dominance. The conversation will explore the next generation of autonomous maritime defense, where stealth, surveillance, and strike capabilities promise to reach new heights.

The United States Department of Defense is unlikely to get the sustained funding required to achieve its desired scale and capabilities. Therefore, maintaining costs will be a central challenge for the department. Norm Augustine warned several decades ago about the punishing increases in platform costs, and operating costs have continued to climb. What capital and operational strategies should the department consider? To what extent should the DoD be concerned about deferred costs like veterans’ benefits? And how might the Pentagon address political and cultural obstacles to change?

The Indo-Pacific appears to be a key area of focus for the Trump administration. Members of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue—which is known as the Quad and includes the United States, Australia, Japan, and India—have received particular attention. The Japanese and Indian prime ministers were among the first foreign leaders to meet with President Donald Trump. And Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s first major diplomatic engagement was a foreign ministers’ summit with his Japanese, Indian, and Australian counterparts. But much like Washington’s longtime allies in Europe, American partners in the Indo-Pacific are concerned about the future of the US-led alliance network.Join Hudson for a conversation with Representative Ami Bera, MD (D-CA) on how bipartisan foreign policy cooperation can reinforce America’s longstanding commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific.

Ukrainian Member of Parliament Oleksii Goncharenko joins Hudson’s Luke Coffey for a conversation on the current state of United States–Ukraine relations, ongoing peace negotiations, and why Ukraine’s fight for sovereignty matters to both the US and Europe. Goncharenko will discuss the war, the many risks and opportunities of peace talks with Russia, and how continued Western support is vital to ensuring a just and lasting peace in Europe’s most consequential conflict since World War II.

As democracies with open media ecosystems, the United States and Japan face the constant challenge of information uncertainty. Bad actors, including those associated with nation-states, constantly seek to undermine the two nations’ civil societies by spreading disinformation on social media, as well as traditional media and other outlets.Join Hudson for an expert discussion on how the US and Japan approach the threat of information uncertainty and foreign influence.

The Middle East is undergoing a dramatic shift. The Assad regime in Syria has fallen, Iran’s proxies are vanishing, and Turkey is expanding its regional influence. Meanwhile, the Trump administration may withdraw United States forces from the region. Washington’s next move will be critical.Senior Fellows Michael Doran and Can Kasapoğlu will discuss the evolving situation, what is next for Syria, and the future of US foreign policy in the region with Research Fellow Zineb Riboua.

Ecuador, once among the most peaceful countries in Latin America, faces an existential threat from an array of criminal groups. These organizations have committed unprecedented violence, infiltrated political structures, and challenged the government’s authority. Meanwhile, the country is going through an economic contraction and an energy crisis triggered by severe drought.In a repeat of snap presidential elections held in 2023, Ecuadorians will vote on April 13 in a runoff pitting incumbent Daniel Noboa against Luisa Gonzalez, a protégé of former leftist president Rafael Correa.  Former United States Ambassador to Ecuador Mike Fitzpatrick, Atlantic Council scholar Isabel Chiriboga, and US Naval Academy Professor John Polga-Hecimovich will join Hudson’s Daniel Batlle to examine Ecuador’s fight against organized crime and how the election results will shape the country’s security strategy.

When President Donald Trump hosted Prime Minister Narendra Modi in February, the two leaders committed to doubling bilateral trade, deepening their defense partnership, and furthering their cooperation in critical technologies. With shared democratic principles and deeply rooted people-to-people ties, the United States and India are committed to advancing global prosperity and security in the twenty-first century.Please join Hudson’s Dr. Aparna Pande and Dr. Ashley Tellis, Tata Chair on Strategic Affairs at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, for a conversation on US-India relations under the second Trump administration and the road ahead.This event is part of the Motwani Jadeja US-India Dialogue Series funded by the Motwani Jadeja Family Foundation.

The West’s attempted transition away from fossil fuels has given its adversaries an advantage. China dominates much of the green energy sector, and Russia continues to fund its war against Ukraine with oil and natural gas profits. Meanwhile, Iran has capitalized on this shift by using its oil revenues to bolster its regional influence, fund proxy militias, and strengthen ties with both Russia and China. The Trump administration has begun to reverse the energy policies that created this dangerous paradigm, but the United States will need the cooperation of its allies and partners—particularly in the Middle East—to regain its status as an energy superpower and weaken the Russia-China-Iran axis.Dr. Brenda Shaffer, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council and senior advisor for energy at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, will join Hudson’s Zineb Riboua to discuss the geopolitical implications of rising global energy competition, particularly for the Middle East.

As Iran’s regime tightens its grip at home, it is also strengthening its anti-Western alliance with China and Russia. But with President Donald Trump back in the White House, Tehran will likely face maximum pressure sanctions and increased strikes on its proxies. With simmering domestic unrest and escalating regional tensions, where does Iran go from here?Join Zineb Riboua, research fellow and program manager at Hudson’s Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East, for a conversation with Mariam Memarsadeghi, a senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, and Dr. Ladan Boroumand, cofounder of the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center. They will examine Iran’s resistance movement and shifting political landscape to identify the implications for regional stability.