How do Ukrainians assess the performance and prospects of President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, now five months in office, as he tackles the country’s two largest challenges: resolving the war with Russia and implementing economic and anti-corruption reforms? In two words: cautious optimism.
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Order from Chaos: Five months into Ukrainian President Zelenskiy’s term, there are reasons for optimism and caution
News / November 8, 2019
Editor's Note: The observations in this article are based on the author’s conversations with Ukrainians, both inside and outside of government, and others in Kyiv during an October 31-November 2, 2019 visit.
An Indian nuclear power plant suffered a cyberattack. Here’s what you need to know.
Commentary / November 4, 2019
Authorities don’t seem to understand the real threat from cyber-operations.
Brett McGurk Recounts the Fight Against ISIS and Considers the Future Of Northern Syria
News / November 1, 2019
Following the death of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and the decision by President Donald Trump to remove U.S. troops from northern Syria, there are many questions surrounding the future of the region, which is controlled in part by Al-Qaeda-affiliated extremists, former Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS Brett McGurk told Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies Director Michael McFaul on the World Class podcast.
It's Time To Get U.S. Nukes Out Of Turkey
Commentary / October 30, 2019
U.S.-Turkish relations have plunged to a new nadir. In the past month, a senior Republican senator has suggested suspending Turkey’s membership in the NATO alliance, while the secretary of state implied a readiness to use military force against America’s wayward ally.
In these circumstances, U.S. nuclear weapons have no business in Turkey. It is time to bring them home.
Former NATO Deputy Secretary General Named Payne Distinguished Lecturer
News / October 16, 2019
The Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI) at Stanford University is pleased to announce that Rose Gottemoeller has been appointed the next Frank E. and Arthur W. Payne Distinguished Lecturer. She will spend the next three years at Stanford working with FSI’s Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC) and will simultaneously be a Research Fellow at the Hoover Institution.
Joe Biden’s Former National Security Advisor Explains What Actually Happened Between the Former Vice President and Ukraine
News / October 15, 2019
When Colin Kahl came on board as Vice President Joe Biden’s National Security Advisor in 2014, the situation in Ukraine was one of a few “crisis issues” that Biden and his staff were tasked with ameliorating by former President Barack Obama, Kahl told Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI) Director Michael McFaul on the World Class podcast.
Former Ukrainian Ambassador Steven Pifer Breaks Down the Trump-Zelensky Phone Call
News / October 2, 2019
Although the first in-person meeting between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on September 25 at the United Nations General Assembly looked like a “normal first meeting,” the question of whether Trump was pushing Zelensky during a July 25 phone call to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden remains, former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Steven Pifer told Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies (FSI) Director Michael McFaul on the World Class podcast.
Policy Roundtable: The Future of South Asia
Commentary / October 1, 2019
Debak Das, CISAC’s MacArthur Nuclear Security Pre-doctoral Fellow, and his roundtable contributors examine the rising tensions between Pakistan and India and look at what the future might hold for the region. “Political relations in South Asia have hit rough weather,” writes Das. “So where does the nuclear relationship between India and Pakistan stand? Where do the key threats to peace in the region come from?”
CISAC Team Releases Satellite Imaging-Based Study of North Korean Uranium Mines
Q&A / September 20, 2019
North Korea currently has only one publicly known uranium mine—the Pyongsăn uranium mining and milling complex—that serves as a first step in the country’s pathway towards nuclear weapons.
The Death of the INF Treaty Has Given Birth to New Missile Possibilities
Commentary / September 18, 2019
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty came to an end in August. The United States and Russia no longer are barred from developing and deploying land-based, intermediate-range missiles, and the Pentagon apparently aims to deploy such missiles in Europe and Asia.
Heading for (Another) Ukraine-Russia Gas Fight?
Commentary / September 3, 2019
Twice in the past 14 years, a dispute between Ukraine and Russia has led Russia to cut off natural gas flows to Ukraine and Europe. The stage is being set for another cut-off in January. The European Union wants to ensure that gas continues to flow, so EU officials will attempt at a mid-September meeting to broker an agreement. But they face a difficult slog.
THE LOOMING CONFLICT
Advice for President Zelenskyy as he Prepares to Meet President Trump
Commentary / August 29, 2019
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy may meet President Donald Trump this weekend in Warsaw and is expected to travel to the United States later in the fall. This gives Mr. Zelenskyy the opportunity to reinforce Kyiv’s relationship with the United States. It also offers the opportunity to try to establish a connection to Mr. Trump, something that has proven elusive for most foreign leaders. Here are a few suggestions for Mr. Zelenskyy on dealing with the American president.
Fukushima Cesium-Enriched Microparticle (CSMP) Update (Interview with Rod Ewing)
Q&A / August 21, 2019
An interesting paper was recently published by a team headed by Dr. Satoshi Utsunomiya of Kyushu University on the subject of Fukushima-derived cesium-enriched microparticles (CsMPs).
Martin Hellman Urges More Ethical Behavior at Meeting of Nobel Laureates
News / July 17, 2019
Professor Emeritus of Electrical Engineering MARTIN HELLMAN recently served as the Heidelberg Lecturer at the 69th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting (#LINO19).
What it Takes for U.S. Foreign Policy to Succeed in the Middle East
Q&A / July 17, 2019
Brett McGurk, the former Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL, has had a busy summer. Between working on a new book contract, travelling to international security conferences on two continents and prepping for his upcoming class — “Presidential Decision-Making in Wartime” — which will be taught this fall at Stanford, the Payne Distinguished Lecturer at the Center for International Security and Cooperation sat down with the Freeman Spogli Institute to reflect on what he’s learned about Middle Eastern politics this summer.
CISAC Congratulates 2019 Honors Graduates
News / July 11, 2019
Congratulations to CISAC honors program Class of 2019! On June 14, students in the CISAC Interschool Honors Program in International Studies graduated in a conferral of honors ceremony on the front lawn of Encina Hall.
FSI Scholars Among Signatories Urging Effective U.S. Policy Toward China
Commentary / July 3, 2019
A group of more than 100 leading American Asia specialists, former U.S. officials and military officers, and foreign policy experts has signed an open letter calling on President Trump and Congress to develop a U.S. approach to China that is focused on creating enduring coalitions with other countries in support of economic and security objectives rather than on efforts to contain China’s engagement with the world.
Debate Moderators Don’t Know Much About National Security
Commentary / July 3, 2019
Viewers of the Democratic presidential debates learned quite a bit this week—from Joe Biden’s views of school busing to Marianne Williamson’s plan to defeat President Donald Trump with love. But I’d bet the next president will be consumed by an issue not a single person mentioned: cyber threats.