Fault Lines

National Security Institute
  • 4.4 (43)
  • Politics
  • Updated Semiweekly

Fault Lines, the National Security Institute’s flagship podcast, gets you quickly up to speed, three-times-a-week, on the national security and foreign policy debates shaking up America. Our regular cast of foreign policy experts includes NSI Founder and Executive Director Jamil N. Jaffer, NSI Advisory Board Member Lester Munson, and NSI Senior Fellows Morgan Viña, and Jessica Jones.  Tune in to learn more about the issues dominating headlines and the news stories you may have missed. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. 1d ago

    Fault Lines Episode 630: UNGA, Multilateralism, and the Limits of Global Institutions

    Today, Jess, John, Les, and Algene break down a packed week at the UN General Assembly in New York, where world leaders delivered speeches ranging from Trump's stark warnings toward Iran to Zelenskyy's push for a settlement framework and ongoing maneuvering over Ukraine. However, Xi Jinping’s to skip New York for a White House meeting also puts the UN’s role in global diplomacy under scrutiny. Is the UN still a consequential venue, or has it become a backdrop while the real deals get cut bilaterally? Should the United States lean into the UN as a sharper foreign policy tool rather than ceding that ground? What would meaningful Security Council reform actually look like, and is there any realistic path to it? Check out the answers to these questions and more in this episode of Fault Lines. @NotTVJessJones @lestermunson @JohnCLipsey @AlgeneSajery Like what we're doing here? Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe. And don't forget to follow @faultlines_pod and @masonnatsec on Twitter! We are also on YouTube; watch today's episode here: https://youtu.be/xnBGK-_Skgc Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  2. 3d ago

    Fault Lines Episode 629: The New Fight for Greenland

    Today, John, Les, Jess, and Jeffrey break down the new U.S.-Denmark-Greenland security agreement, which amends the foundational 1951 defense pact. The deal expands American control over security and investment in Greenland, while notionally recognizing Greenlandic sovereignty. It lacks any expiration and seeks to lock any future independent Greenland into the agreement and NATO alignment. The backdrop is a rapidly changing Arctic, where open sea lanes, Russian military activity, and attempted Chinese investment have quietly made Greenland one of the most strategically contested pieces of territory near American shores. Is this agreement a genuine update to American strategic posture, or does it largely formalize what the 1951 arrangement already provided? What would a growing China presence in Greenland — through port, telecommunications, and mineral investment — mean for U.S. security? Does tying the hands of a potentially independent Greenland represent shrewd geopolitics or a troubling erosion of self-determination? Was the diplomatic crisis necessary or worth it? Check out the answers to these questions and more in this episode of Fault Lines. @NotTVJessJones @lestermunson @JohnCLipsey Like what we're doing here? Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe. And don't forget to follow @faultlines_pod and @masonnatsec on Twitter! We are also on YouTube; watch today's episode here: https://youtu.be/KOqtlenfBGo Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  3. 5d ago

    Fault Lines Episode 628: Xi in Washington: Trade, Tech, Taiwan, and the Iran Wild Card

    Today, Les, John, Jess, and Amy break down the high-stakes summit between President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, taking place in Washington, D.C. against the backdrop of the 81st UN General Assembly in New York. The two leaders are meeting as tariff suspensions hold, an AI race intensifies, and China quietly continues supplying Iran with economic and military support even as it reduces its own energy imports from Tehran. Beijing has also detained two American citizens in the past year, raising the question of whether Trump — who has made a trademark of bringing Americans home — can secure their release as an early win. Will Trump walk away with anything more than incremental commercial agreements, or are the bigger national security breakthroughs simply out of reach? How will Xi balance the need for U.S. relationship stability against domestic pressures as he eyes a fourth term? Can Washington and Beijing find any genuine alignment on Iran, or will China continue acting in its own interest regardless of what is said in the room? And as the U.S. and China race toward AI dominance, does America have any real strategy for what comes after winning?  Check out the answers to these questions and more in this episode of Fault Lines. @NotTVJessJones @lestermunson @JohnCLipsey @amykmitchell Like what we're doing here?  Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe.  And don't forget to follow @faultlines_pod and @masonnatsec on Twitter! We are also on YouTube; watch today's episode here: https://youtu.be/PINwafy5kLY Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  4. Sep 18

    Fault Lines Episode 627: The Saudi Arabia Squeeze

    Today, Jess, Les, John, and Andrew dig into the Houthis' resurgent offensive and the widening regional crisis it has triggered. With Houthi strikes targeting Saudi Arabia, Iraqi militias hitting Saudi’s East-West pipeline, and the Strait of Hormuz under pressure, Riyadh finds itself encircled.  after Washington declined to intervene on its behalf, Riyadh has turned to China, Iran’s top trading partner, for help. Will China move to exert genuine leverage over Iran? What does Saudi Arabia's outreach to Beijing signal about the durability of American partnerships in the Gulf? What options are there to break the network sustaining the Houthis? Check out the answers to these questions and more in this episode of Fault Lines. @NotTVJessJones @lestermunson @JohnCLipsey @AndrewBorene Like what we're doing here?  Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe.  And don't forget to follow @faultlines_pod and @masonnatsec on Twitter! We are also on YouTube; watch today's episode here: https://youtu.be/76qfpU7UHxA Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  5. Sep 16

    Fault Lines Episode 626: Space, Deterrence, and the New Frontier of U.S. Defense

    Today, Jamil, Les, John, and Matt dig into the Pentagon's confirmation that the United States has deployed weapons on orbit, marking a possible escalation in the militarization of space. The 1967 Outer Space Treaty prohibits weapons of mass destruction and military installations on celestial bodies, but places no ban on conventional weapons — leaving the current U.S. posture in a legal gray zone that no binding international agreement has yet addressed. Russia and China have both developed capabilities to threaten American satellites, and space has quietly become one of the most contested domains in modern great power competition. Is the U.S. moving fast enough to maintain its technological edge, or is the pace of investment falling short of the threat? What does meaningful deterrence actually look like in a domain where the rules of engagement are still being written? How dependent is American military and civilian infrastructure on space assets that adversaries are actively targeting? Check out the answers to these questions and more in this episode of Fault Lines. @lestermunson @JohnCLipsey @jamil_n_jaffer @WMattHayden Like what we're doing here?  Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe.  And don't forget to follow @faultlines_pod and @masonnatsec on Twitter! We are also on YouTube; watch today's episode here: https://youtu.be/GbUs3d6-SOE Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  6. Sep 14

    Fault Lines Episode 625: Pacing The Killer Robots — AI's Week of Reckoning

    Today, John, Jamil, Les, and Jess dig into a week defined by alarm bells from the people building artificial intelligence. Reports of model development mishaps over recent weeks, including the OpenAI-Hugging Face incident where a swarm of AI agents escaped their sandbox, was seemingly enough for a coordinated campaign around the latest resignation from an AI lab to spark a week-long media frenzy. CEO Dario Amodei responded by publishing a widely-read blog warning that AI is advancing dramatically faster than anticipated and calling for pacing and slowing down model development. He flagged recursive self-improvement as a threshold moment that could outrun human understanding, and proposed a three-step framework involving third-party lab oversight, industry-led safety standards, and global coordination to slow development. The week also saw political leaders debating everything from non-intervention, to guardrails on catastrophic risk, calls for comprehensive regulations, and even a full pause and a ban on superintelligence. Are leading AI executives genuinely sounding an alarm, getting ahead of a political stampede, or strategically using government to protect their investments? Can major AI labs coordinate voluntarily on safety standards without triggering antitrust concerns or cementing monopoly power? How does competition with China influence this debate and what does all this mean for open-weight models?  Check out the answers to these questions and more in this episode of Fault Lines. @NotTVJessJones @lestermunson @JohnCLipsey @jamil_n_jaffer Like what we're doing here?  Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe.  And don't forget to follow @faultlines_pod and @masonnatsec on Twitter! We are also on YouTube; watch today's episode here: https://youtu.be/x_K3C-98iss Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  7. Sep 11

    Fault Lines Episode 624: The Global War on Terror, 25 Years After 9/11

    Today, Les, Amy, Jess, and John mark the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks by taking stock of where America stands in the long struggle that followed. Congress passed the Authorization for Use of Military Force within days of the attacks, launching two decades of operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, and beyond — and the United States has not suffered a major attack on the homeland since. But that security has come at enormous cost in lives and treasure, and the national unity that defined the days after 9/11 has given way to deep partisan fracture, strategic fatigue, and a growing skepticism about America's role in the world. Has the global war on terror, measured against its original aims, been a success? What lessons should a younger generation — one with no memory of that morning — take from the last 25 years? How did the righteous resolve of 9/11 erode into the isolationism and pessimism that shapes our politics today? And what will it take to rebuild the confidence and sense of purpose that America needs to remain a force for order in the world? Check out the answers to these questions and more in this episode of Fault Lines. @NotTVJessJones @lestermunson @JohnCLipsey @amykmitchell Like what we're doing here?  Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe.  And don't forget to follow @faultlines_pod and @masonnatsec on Twitter! We are also on YouTube; watch today's episode here: https://youtu.be/fG31htTjPLg Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  8. Sep 9

    Fault Lines Episode 623: Graham's Gambit: Russia, Iran, and the Politics That Killed the Bill

    Today, Jess, Les, and John examine the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act, a sweeping sanctions bill that passed the Senate over the summer but has since stalled in the House. The legislation would expand pressure on Russia's shadow fleet and grant the president authority to impose tariffs on the top five importers of Russian fuel, while also extending longstanding sanctions on Iran. Despite bipartisan momentum at its peak, the bill collapsed when Democrats reversed course, unwilling to hand the Trump administration broader tariff powers — even if it meant abandoning a policy designed to protect Ukraine. Why did Democrats walk away from a bill that delivered nearly everything they had been demanding on Russia policy? Is the Trump administration actually willing to squeeze Russian energy markets, or is there simply no appetite to risk higher prices at home? What would a serious pressure campaign on Russia look like — from tightening the oil price cap to cracking down on the dark fleet? Check out the answers to these questions and more in this episode of Fault Lines. @NotTVJessJones @lestermunson @JohnCLipsey Like what we're doing here?  Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe.  And don't forget to follow @faultlines_pod and @masonnatsec on Twitter! We are also on YouTube; watch today's episode here: https://youtu.be/mYDaYVk9bQU Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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4.4
out of 5
43 Ratings

About

Fault Lines, the National Security Institute’s flagship podcast, gets you quickly up to speed, three-times-a-week, on the national security and foreign policy debates shaking up America. Our regular cast of foreign policy experts includes NSI Founder and Executive Director Jamil N. Jaffer, NSI Advisory Board Member Lester Munson, and NSI Senior Fellows Morgan Viña, and Jessica Jones.  Tune in to learn more about the issues dominating headlines and the news stories you may have missed. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Information

  • Creator
    National Security Institute
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2026
  • Episodes
    642
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © A National Security Institute Podcast
  • Show Website
    Fault Lines

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