Fault Lines National Security Institute

Recorded live at the Reagan National Defense Forum, Les and John interviewed Matthew Pottinger. Pottinger is the current Chairman for the China Program at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD). Previously, Pottinger served in the White House for four years, in senior roles within the National Security Council, including serving as Deputy National Security Advisor from 2019-2021. Pottinger is credited with playing a key role in changing how the United States approaches China and raised awareness of the Chinese Communist Party’s efforts to influence and interfere with U.S. institutions, including academia, the tech sector, and Wall Street.
 
Are global repressors, including Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea, really an “axis” of rogue regimes? How far does their collaboration go? Does the U.S. and its allies have the capacity to deal with these rogue regimes as well as managing the hot spots around the globe? Can, and should, the U.S. decouple from China? If so, how far can this de-coupling go?
 
Stay tuned for more of this Special Series at RNDF on Confronting the New Alliance of Global Repressors this week on Fault Lines! These are discussions you don’t want to miss!
 
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Today, Jamil, Jess, Les, and Morgan discuss the upcoming Reagan National Defense Forum (RNDF). This forum brings together the top U.S. defense and national security leaders from across the country to discuss and debate how the U.S. can lead the world in an era of increasingly complex challenges and opportunities. During RNDF, NSI and the Fault Lines crew will be recording live, conducting a series of interviews with bipartisan national security and technology leaders to discuss the growing collaboration between global repressor states such as China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran, as well as the critical importance of emerging technology and innovation to American national security.
Stay tuned for Fault Lines: RNDF Global Repressors Series going live next week! These are discussions you don’t want to miss!

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@notTVJessJones
@jamil_n_jaffer 
@lestermunson
@morganlroach
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Today, Jamil, Jess, Les, and Morgan discuss the failed coup that took place in Sierra Leone on Sunday, November 26. The coup attempt comes after a contentious election in June in which President Julius Maada Bio was reelected for a second term and on the heels of increased tensions in the West African region, highlighted by the eight military takeovers since 2020, including most recently in Niger and Gabon.
Should the U.S. be worried about the high number of coups?  How must and should the Biden Administration readjust foreign assistance in the region in light of these developments?  Are there larger forces in play and are outside actors like Russia’s Wagner Group or China fostering regional instability?
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/28/world/africa/sierra-leone-arrests-attempted-coup.html
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-67541285 
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/nov/26/sierra-leone-curfew-army-barracks-attack 
https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/sierra-leone-information-minister-says-weekend-attack-was-failed-coup-2023-11-28/
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/11/28/sierra-leone-attacks-were-a-failed-coup-attempt-officials-say
https://www.cnn.com/2023/11/27/africa/sierra-leone-military-barracks-foiled-attack-ignites-fears-over-coup-attempt/index.html
https://www.africanews.com/2023/11/28/coup-attempt-in-sierra-leone-authorities/ 
Follow our experts on Twitter: 
@notTVJessJones
@jamil_n_jaffer 
@lestermunson
@morganlroach
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Today, Jes, Les, and Jamil discuss the Argentinian presidential elections where the self-styled “anarcho-capitalist” candidate Javier Milei rode a wave of voter anger – including over skyrocketing inflation and national poverty rate of 40% - to claim victory. Milei has proposed dollarizing the economy, ditching the central bank, shrinking the federal government, and downgrading ties with Brazil and China. 
Can President-Elect Milei achieve his promises without strong allies across government? What does the election of Milei mean for democratic norms in Latin America? Can Argentina distance truly themselves from China?

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-67509691
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/11/21/argentina-milei-election-latin-america/
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2023-11-25/milei-s-softer-tone-shows-how-much-argentina-needs-china
https://apnews.com/article/milei-argentina-president-privatization-1a87d02035511982ab620104b9feb255
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/trump-tells-argentinas-president-elect-javier-milei-he-plans-to-visit-buenos-aires
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/11/25/argentina-milei-libertarian-agenda-history/ 
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@notTVJessJones
@jamil_n_jaffer 
@lestermunson
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Today, Jamil, Les, and Morgan discuss the recent Washington Post story in which anonymous Defense Department officials express frustration with what they consider an incoherent strategy by the Biden Administration for countering attacks by Iranian proxies on US forces in Iraq and Syria.  “There’s no clear definition of what we are trying to deter,” said one defense official.  In an oped over the weekend, President Biden attempted to outline his foreign policy in the wake of the War in Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas War without once mentioning Iran. 
What should U.S. deterrence policy look like? Is our current strategy effective at preventing a wider conflict? and How do we ensure U.S. personnel are safe overseas?
Want to learn more about this topic? Check out these articles that our experts used to frame our discussion: 
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/11/19/iranian-proxy-attacks-us-troops/
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/iranian-proxies-continue-targeting-us-troops-syria-iraq-total-since-pentagon
https://thehill.com/opinion/international/4314271-the-u-s-is-finally-hitting-back-at-irans-murderous-proxies/
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/defense-national-security/esper-us-military-strikes-against-iranian-proxies-syria 
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/11/18/joe-biden-gaza-hamas-putin/
Follow our experts on Twitter: 
@jamil_n_jaffer 
@lestermunson
@morganlroach
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Today, Jamil, Les, and Morgan discuss the meeting between President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping at APEC 2023 in San Francisco, the first face-to-face meeting in over a year and Xi’s first visit to the U.S. in six years. 
The talks aimed to normalize relations at a time when the relationship between the U.S. in China has been fraught with tension. Topics discussed during the summit included re-establishing military-to-military communications, stopping fentanyl precursors from being shipped to the US, and sending us more pandas! 
Shortly after the summit, though, President Biden (accurately) referred to President Xi as a dictator and many issues, including Chinese threats to Taiwan and IP theft and US export controls.
Was this summit all talk, or will we see a real reset? Is China’s effort to force the US to support reunification likely to make things more tense?  Should we take a harder line with China diplomatically?
Want to learn more about this topic? Check out these articles that our experts used to frame our discussion: 
https://www.npr.org/2023/11/16/1213401317/did-biden-and-chinas-xi-hit-a-reset-not-quite-but-they-did-agree-on-a-few-things
https://thehill.com/policy/international/4313668-xi-gets-standing-ovation-at-banquet-with-us-executives/
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/16/us/politics/biden-xi-china-power-balance.html
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/11/16/biden-xi-dictator-00127548
Follow our experts on Twitter: 
@jamil_n_jaffer 
@lestermunson
@morganlroach
Like what we're doing here? 
 
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