Join Secretary of National Defense of the Philippines, Gilberto Teodoro, and Hoover Senior Fellow H.R. McMaster, as they discuss the history of US-Philippine relations, defense cooperation, and security in Southeast Asia. In light of the new US administration, Teodoro reflects on America’s long alliance with the Philippines and his expectations for the relationship over the coming years, how the Philippine government has evolved over the last several administrations in countering Chinese coercion, and the connection between Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific, Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and the impact of the war in the Middle East on the security of the Philippines. 

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Gilberto Teodoro is Secretary of National Defense of the Philippines. Teodoro has served as Secretary since 2023, after holding the position from 2007 to 2009. Teodoro was previously Congressman of the First District of Tarlac for three consecutive terms, starting in 1998. While in Congress, he authored 106 bills, served as Assistant Majority Leader, and was head of the Nationalist People’s Coalition House members. Teodoro holds a bachelor’s degree from De La Salle University, studied law at the University of the Philippines, and earned his Master of Laws at Harvard.

H.R. McMaster is the Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is also the Bernard and Susan Liautaud Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute and lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. He was the 25th assistant to the president for National Security Affairs. Upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1984, McMaster served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years before retiring as a Lieutenant General in June 2018.

Join Lithuania’s former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gabrielius Landsbergis immediately following his departure from government, and Hoover Senior Fellow H.R. McMaster, as they discuss the outcome of the 2024 Lithuanian parliamentary election and the opportunities and challenges facing the new coalition governing the country. Amid growing geopolitical tensions, Landsbergis reflects on Russia’s sustained campaign against Europe and the Free World, the global threat from China, North Korea and Iran, the importance of sustained support for Ukraine and whether Ukraine can prevail, Lithuania’s role in countering authoritarianism in Eastern Europe, and the future of U.S.-Lithuanian relations.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Gabrielius Landsbergis most recently served as Lithuania’s Minister of Foreign Affairs. Minister Landsbergis was elected Chairman of the Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats in 2015, a role he served in until October of 2024. In 2020, Landsbergis became the Minister of Foreign Affairs under the leadership of Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė (see Battlegrounds Episode #42). Landsbergis previously held roles at the Lithuanian Embassies in Belgium and Luxembourg, as well as at the Office of the Government. Landsbergis has been a member of the Seimas (Parliament) of Lithuania since 2016 and is actively involved in the European Council on Foreign Relations. He holds a Master’s degree in International Relations and Diplomacy and a Bachelor’s degree in History from Vilnius University.

H.R. McMaster is the Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is also the Bernard and Susan Liautaud Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute and lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. He was the 25th assistant to the president for National Security Affairs. Upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1984, McMaster served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years before retiring as a Lieutenant General in June 2018.

Join award-winning director, producer and screenwriter, Djo Munga, and Hoover Senior Fellow H.R. McMaster as they discuss Munga’s films depicting life in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Central African regional challenges, and opportunities for unleashing the potential of this resource rich country in service of its long-suffering population. Having received widespread acclaim for his work, Munga reflects on how the arts, including film, drama and literature can help us understand complex challenges facing the world from a political, economic and social perspective, how he uses film to understand the root causes of conflict in the DRC, why resilience is so important to the Congo, and what he hopes to portray through his future projects.

​ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Djo Tunda Wa Munga is an award-winning director, producer, and screenwriter. Munga was born in the DRC’s capital, Kinshasa. He pursued fine arts while attending boarding school in Belgium, and a cinema workshop inspired him to attend the National Film School of Belgium, INSAS. Munga then returned to the Congo and established the first film and television production company in the DRC, Suka! Productions, as well as its first film and television school. His debut film VIVA RIVA! received widespread acclaim. Munga has produced documentary and historical films for the World Bank, BBC, and numerous international development agencies.

H.R. McMaster is the Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is also the Bernard and Susan Liautaud Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute and lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. He was the 25th assistant to the president for National Security Affairs. Upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1984, McMaster served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years before retiring as a Lieutenant General in June 2018.

Join Bethany Coates, founder and CEO of BreakLine, an education and employment company helping outstanding veterans, women, people of color, and people with disabilities accelerate into their next careers, and Hoover Senior Fellow H.R. McMaster, as they discuss BreakLine’s crucial role in preparing veterans for civilian careers and educating employers on the tremendous value veterans bring to American businesses and civil society. Former Assistant Dean at Stanford Graduate School of Business leading social impact education, Coates reflects on how veterans are often misrepresented in popular culture, the rewards of service, and values such as honor, duty, courage, loyalty and serving others that veterans bring to a workforce. Coates provides insight on what employers should know on hiring and retaining veterans and advice for servicemembers, veterans and military spouses as they approach a transition to civilian employment.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Bethany Coates is the founder and CEO of BreakLine, a social venture that helps outstanding veterans, women, people of color, and people with disabilities accelerate into their next careers. Ms. Coates was previously an Assistant Dean at Stanford Graduate School of Business leading social impact education. She also worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Co. Ms. Coates earned her BA from Princeton and her MBA from Stanford. She has served on the advisory boards of a number of nonprofits and social ventures. In 2018, Ms. Coates was honored to receive the Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service on behalf of the BreakLine team.

H.R. McMaster is the Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is also the Bernard and Susan Liautaud Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute and lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. He was the 25th assistant to the president for National Security Affairs. Upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1984, McMaster served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years before retiring as a Lieutenant General in June 2018.

Former Naval Flight Officer and Naval Physician Dr. Alta DeRoo and Vietnam War infrantryman Dr. Don Elverd from the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation join Hoover Senior Fellow H.R. McMaster to discuss substance use disorder, ways to prevent and treat addiction, and its implications for national security. As experts in treating substance use disorders and supporting service members through recovery, Drs. DeRoo and Elverd share insights on the addiction crisis affecting Americans, mental healthcare and addiction treatment for veterans, and how communities can support individuals undergoing substance use disorder treatment. They emphasize a focus on resilience, growth, and emerging stronger from overcoming a substance use disorder.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Dr. Alta DeRoo is medical director of the Betty Ford Center's three California facilities. She served 24 years in the US Navy as a Naval Flight Officer and Naval Physician and was among the first cohort of women to fly in combat. Dr. DeRoo is board-certified in OB-GYN and addiction medicine and is a leading expert on maternal and fetal health implications of substance use disorder treatment. She currently serves on the American Society of Addiction Medicine’s board.

Dr. Don Elverd served as an Army combat infantryman in the Vietnam War, where he received three purple hearts, a bronze star of valor, and the combat infantry badge. He then earned his doctorate in clinical psychology. Dr. Elverd is an expert on multicultural approaches to healing and speaks on healing and recovery from psychological trauma. Dr. Elverd’s clinical focus is supporting active duty and veteran service members. He has worked with the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation for thirty-three years.

H.R. McMaster is the Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is also the Bernard and Susan Liautaud Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute and lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. He was the 25th assistant to the president for National Security Affairs. Upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1984, McMaster served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years before retiring as a Lieutenant General in June 2018.

In this episode of Battlegrounds, H.R. McMaster and Leopoldo López discuss ongoing protests in Venezuela, the Maduro regime’s tactics of repression, and prospects for the restoration of the Venezuelan constitution and the end of Maduro’s despotic rule.

Join former mayor of Caracas and Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo López and Hoover Senior Fellow H.R. McMaster as they examine Venezuela’s authoritarian socialist regime and prospects for the restoration of the Venezuelan constitution. Reflecting on the country’s stolen presidential election in July 2024, López shares his insights on the Maduro regime’s mechanisms of internal control, how the axis of authoritarians are using Venezuela against the US and the rest of the free world, the next steps for the Venezuelan opposition movement, and what can be done within Venezuela and internationally to help support the Venezuelan people and end Maduro’s despotic rule.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Leopoldo López is a Venezuelan political leader, pro-democracy activist and Sakharov prize laureate. He is the founder and national coordinator of the Voluntad Popular political party and the former mayor of the municipality of Chacao in Caracas. In 2014 López was unjustly detained by the Maduro regime and sentenced to 14 years of imprisonment. He spent four years in a military prison, a year and a half in house arrest and another year and a half in the Spanish embassy in Caracas under political asylum. In October 2020, López escaped from Venezuela through Colombia to join his family in Spain. López holds a Bachelor's degree cum laude in sociology and economics from Kenyon College, and a Master´s degree in public policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He was awarded a honoris causa doctorate in Law from Kenyon College in 2007.

H.R. McMaster is the Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is also the Bernard and Susan Liautaud Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute and lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. He was the 25th assistant to the president for National Security Affairs. Upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1984, McMaster served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years before retiring as a Lieutenant General in June 2018.

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In this episode of Battlegrounds, H.R. McMaster and Adela Raz discuss the humanitarian catastrophe and systemic human rights abuses under Taliban rule, the lessons and consequences of the collapse of the Afghanistan Republic, and the future of Afghanistan and its diaspora.

Join former Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the United States, Adela Raz, and Hoover Senior Fellow H.R. McMaster as they reflect on the geostrategic consequences of the 2021 collapse of Afghanistan. Ambassador Raz shares her insights on the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, the humanitarian catastrophe and systemic human rights abuses currently facing the country, the Taliban’s repressive control over women, and her hope for the future of Afghanistan and its diaspora.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Adela Raz served as the Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to the United States from July 2021 to February 2022. Ambassador Raz was first woman to hold the post of Deputy Chief of Staff for an Afghan president's administrative office. She served in this post both in President Hamid Karzai's Administration and in President Ashraf Ghani’s. She was the Deputy Minister for Economic Cooperation at Afghanistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2016 to 2018. From 2018 to July of 2021, Raz served as Afghanistan’s first female Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, where she was the Vice President of the 75th session of the General Assembly. Since 2022, Raz has served as the director of the Afghanistan Policy Lab at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. Ambassador Raz has a Master's degree in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University.

H.R. McMaster is the Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is also the Bernard and Susan Liautaud Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute and lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. He was the 25th assistant to the president for National Security Affairs. Upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1984, McMaster served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years before retiring as a Lieutenant General in June 2018.

In this episode of Battlegrounds, H.R. McMaster and Lobsang Sangay discuss China’s repression of the Tibetan people, Tibet’s efforts to advocate for freedom and rule of law, and prospects for the future in Tibet and in East Asia, on Wednesday July 31, 2024.

Join former prime minister in exile of the Central Tibetan Administration Lobsang Sangay and Hoover senior fellow H.R. McMaster as they discuss China’s repression of the Tibetan people, Tibet’s efforts to advocate for freedom and rule of law, and prospects for the future in Tibet and in East Asia. Prime Minister Sangay shares his insights on how the Chinese Community Party subjugates the Tibetan people, how to foster unity and strengthen a movement in exile, his assessment of the Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-China Dispute Act, recently signed by President Biden, and what Americans can do to advocate for the rights of the Tibetan people.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Lobsang Sangay served as the sikyong, or prime minister in exile, of the Central Tibetan Administration from 2011 to 2021. Prior to taking this role, Sangay was an academic at Harvard Law School, where he organized multiple conferences between Tibetan, Western, and Chinese scholars, including the Dalai Lama. He was selected as one of the Asia Society’s Asia 21 Fellows in 2007. Sangay holds doctor of juridical science and master of laws degrees from Harvard Law School and a bachelor of laws degree from the University of Delhi. He served as a senior visiting fellow at Harvard Law School’s East Asian Legal Studies Program in Fall 2023.

H.R. McMaster is the Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is also the Bernard and Susan Liautaud Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute and lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. He was the 25th assistant to the president for National Security Affairs. Upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1984, McMaster served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years before retiring as a Lieutenant General in June 2018.

Join Israel Defense Forces (IDF) brigadier general Meir Finkel and Hoover senior fellow H.R. McMaster as they examine the current state of the Israel-Gaza war and the geopolitics of the broader Middle East. In this episode of Battlegrounds, Dr. Finkel shares his insights on the Israeli campaign to destroy Hamas in Gaza, examining the objectives of Hamas and how the IDF is responding to prevent civilian casualties during a humanitarian crisis. They also discuss the Israel-Iran proxy conflict and how the wars in the Middle East might evolve in the coming months and years.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Brigadier General (res.) Meir Finkel of the Israel Defense Forces, or IDF, is a soldier-scholar who holds three PhDs. Finkel is the head of research of the Dado Center for Interdisciplinary Military Studies, a think tank designed to further the success of the IDF and its military and political strategies. Finkel served for 20 years in the IDF Armored Corps, including as the commander of the 847th Armored Brigade during the Second Lebanon War. He also headed the IDF’s Ground Forces Doctrine and Concept Development Department for seven years.

H.R. McMaster is the Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is also the Bernard and Susan Liautaud Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute and lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. He was the 25th assistant to the president for National Security Affairs. Upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1984, McMaster served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years before retiring as a Lieutenant General in June 2018.

For more information, visit: https://www.hoover.org/battlegrounds_perspectives

Pick up a copy of "Battlegrounds: The Fight To Defend The Free World," by H.R. McMaster here - https://www.hoover.org/research/battlegrounds-fight-defend-free-world 

The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Hoover Institution or Stanford University.

© 2024 by the Board of Trustees of Leland Stanford Junior University.

In this episode of Battlegrounds, H.R. McMaster and Ahmet Üzümcü discuss the vital role of Turkey in advancing peace and prosperity in a time of economic distress; strained relations between Ankara and Washington over Turkey’s acquisition of Russian air defense systems; disagreements over US support for Syrian Kurdish forces in the fight against ISIS in Syria; and concerns about Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s authoritarian tendencies and his support for the terrorist organization Hamas, on Wednesday June 26, 2024.

Join former director-general of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons Ahmet Üzümcü, and Hoover senior fellow H.R. McMaster in a deep dive into the current state of US-Turkey (Türkiye) and NATO-Turkey relations. In this episode of Battlegrounds, Ambassador Üzümcü, who has previously served as Turkey’s permanent representative to the United Nations and NATO, Turkish ambassador to Israel, and deputy undersecretary of state for bilateral political affairs, shares his expert insights on the evolving dynamics between Ankara and Washington, Turkey’s controversial acquisition of Russian air defense systems, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s authoritarian policies and support for Hamas, and the broader implications of all these aspects for NATO and stability in the Middle East.

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

Ahmet Üzümcü served as director-general of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) from 2010 to 2018. Ambassador Üzümcü accepted the Nobel Peace Prize in 2013 on behalf of the OPCW for the organization’s extensive work toward eliminating chemical weapons. Prior to serving this role he was Turkey’s (Türkiye’s) permanent representative to the United Nations, its permanent representative to NATO, Turkish ambassador to Israel, and deputy undersecretary of state for bilateral political affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Ambassador Üzümcü holds a bachelor’s degree in international relations from Ankara University. He currently serves as a senior network member for the European Leadership Network and as a senior advisor for the Council on Strategic Risks.

H.R. McMaster is the Fouad and Michelle Ajami Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University. He is also the Bernard and Susan Liautaud Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute and lecturer at Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business. He was the 25th assistant to the president for National Security Affairs. Upon graduation from the United States Military Academy in 1984, McMaster served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years before retiring as a Lieutenant General in June 2018.

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