AFPC Insights

In this episode of AFPC INSIGHTS, AFPC Director for External Relations Annie Swingen talks with Senior Fellow in Asian Security Dr. Larry Wortzel about China’s growing military hostility toward Taiwan, U.S. options to deter China and strengthen Taiwan's Security, its effect on the broader Asia-Pacific region and the PRC's new orbital missile capability. Listen and subscribe today!

On  this episode of AFPC INSIGHTS, AFPC Director for External Relations  Annie Swingen talks with AFPC Central Asia-Caucasus Institute (CACI)  Chairman Dr. S. Frederick Starr about the recent Taliban takeover of  Afghanistan, as well as what it means for the Afghan people and for  Afghanistan's neighbors, both practically and geopolitically.

On this episode of AFPC INSIGHTS, AFPC Director for External Relations Annie Swingen talks with Senior Vice President Ilan Berman regarding last week's indictment of four Iranian intelligence officials on conspiracy to kidnap U.S. journalist and human rights activist Masih Alinejad and the implications for U.S. policy.

Additional resources:

July 13, 2021 - Department of Justice press release, "Iranian Intelligence Officials Indicted on Kidnapping Conspiracy Charges: Iranian Intelligence Services Allegedly Plotted to Kidnap a U.S. Journalist and Human Rights Activist from New York City for Rendition to Iran".  https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/iranian-intelligence-officials-indicted-kidnapping-conspiracy-charges

AFPC Director for External Relations Annie Swingen talks with AFPC Senior Fellow in Latin American Affairs Christine Balling regarding the current political crisis in Colombia, elections in Peru, and external actors (e.g., China, Russia, and Iran) growing activity in the region.  

Additional reading:  

June 14, 2021 - A New Era For Iran’s Ambitions In The Western Hemisphere (Ilan I. Berman & Joseph Humire, The National Interest) https://www.afpc.org/publications/articles/a-new-era-for-irans-ambitions-in-the-western-hemisphere 

June 8, 2021 - It’s a mistake to assume Colombia protests same as protests in US (Christine Balling, The Hill) https://www.afpc.org/publications/articles/its-a-mistake-to-assume-colombia-protests-same-as-protests-in-us

AFPC Senior Vice President Ilan Berman chats with Amb. James Gilmore III, former Ambassador the OSCE (2019-2021) and Governor of Virginia (1998-2002) and Mr. Jon Lerner, former U.S. Deputy Envoy to the United Nations, about their recent trip to Ukraine on an AFPC-organized delegation. In Kyiv, they met with various senior Ukrainian government and military officials to discuss the state of corruption and institutional reforms, the economy and COVID-19. The delegation also traveled to the front near Mariupol to discuss the state of the Russian-Ukrainian border and see it first-hand.

Related reading:

Taiwan’s Fate May Be Decided In Ukraine (June 4, 2021 Herman Pirchner, Jr., Alexander B. Gray The Hill)

AFPC Senior Fellow in Middle East Studies Mora Namdar discusses Iran’s opposition and the Biden Administration's policy toward Iran on this episode of AFPC INSIGHTS. An attorney and foreign policy expert, Ms. Namdar previously served as the Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs and Vice President of the U.S. Agency for Global Media - USAGM). Before that, she served as a Senior Advisor at the U.S. Department of State, working on a variety of global issues. These responsibilities included, but were not limited to, working on Iran politics and policy, international messaging and broadcasting, and serving on the State Department’s Iran Action Group.

Additional resources:

The Human Rights Element of Iran Policy (Mora Namdar, The National Interest, March 22, 2021)

The Kingdom of Morocco is America’s oldest diplomatic partner, and a key U.S. strategic ally in North Africa. It is also a country that is now facing a changed, and challenging, regional environment while simultaneously attempting to navigate a new Administration in Washington. In this episode of AFPC INSIGHTS, Senior Vice President Ilan Berman discussed the current strategic challenges confronting the Kingdom, drawing on insights from his recent visit to the country.

Notes:

A Moment of Truth for Morocco - Newsweek (4/14/21) - https://www.newsweek.com/moment-truth-morocco-opinion-1583026

American Foreign Policy Council Senior Fellow in National Security  Affairs Alexander B. Gray discusses the strategic significance of the Pacific Islands.   

Related publications:    

Why a crisis in the Pacific islands matters for Washington and Beijing  (February 16, 2021, The Hill) https://thehill.com/opinion/international/538968-why-a-crisis-in-the-pacific-islands-matters-for-washington-and-beijing   

Trouble in Paradise: Why a Pacific Islands Squabble Matters for Washington (February 8, 2021, The National Interest) https://www.afpc.org/publications/articles/trouble-in-paradise-why-a-pacific-islands-squabble-matters-for-washington

Central Asia-Caucasus Institute Director Svante Cornell explains the current political turmoil in Georgia on this episode of AFPC INSIGHTS.

AFPC director for external relations Annie Swingen talks with senior fellow for defense studies Peter Garretson regarding space policy options and opportunities for the Biden Administration.

Related reading:

Scramble for the Skies: The Great Power Competition to Control the Resources of Outer Space (Lexington Books, 2020) - Co-authors: Namrata Goswami and Peter Garretson.

Biden’s space policy: One giant leap for climate change - Politico, 10/28/2020