SSI Live Podcast

Is the Army ready for a ‘Great Power War’ against a peer competitor, in terms of military intelligence? If the Army had to double in size, what challenges would it face in terms of expanding its intelligence capability and capacity? What steps should the Army consider to overcome these hurdles? Over the last nine months, an interdisciplinary team of Army War College student researchers, under the direction of Dr. Tony Echevarria, have examined issues related to great power war and whether the Army is ready. One of those team members, COL Rose Keravuori, a distance education student based at CENTCOM headquarters, joined Dr. John R. Deni to discuss military intelligence and an expanded Army. Released 8 June 2017.

– Is the Army ready for a ‘Great Power War’ against a peer competitor, in terms of its force generation installations? If the Army had to double in size, what challenges would it face in terms of using its Mobilization Force Generation Installations (MFGIs) to leverage the reserve component? What steps should the Army consider to overcome these hurdles? Over the last nine months, an interdisciplinary team of Army War College student researchers, under the direction of Dr. Tony Echevarria, have examined issues related to great power war and whether the Army is ready. One of those team members, LTC Ana Navarro, joined Dr. John R. Deni to discuss MFGIs, the reserve component, and an expanded Army. Released 5 June 2017.

Is the Army ready for a ‘Great Power War’ against a peer competitor, in terms of expanding its Special Operations Forces? If the Army had to double in size, what challenges would it face in terms of increasing Special Operations Forces? What steps should the Army consider to overcome these hurdles? Over the last nine months, an interdisciplinary team of Army War College student researchers, under the direction of Dr. Tony Echevarria, have examined issues related to great power war and whether the Army is ready. One of those team members, COL Eric Schwedo, joined Dr. John R. Deni to discuss SOF and an expanded Army. Released 1 June 2017.

Is the Army ready for a ‘Great Power War’ against a peer competitor, in terms of maintaining and sustaining an expanded Army? If the Army had to double in size, what challenges would it encounter in maintaining and sustaining that large of a force? Over the last nine months, an interdisciplinary team of Army War College student researchers, under the direction of Dr. Tony Echevarria, have examined issues related to great power war and whether the Army is ready. One of those team members, COL H.R. Willingham, joined Dr. John R. Deni to discuss maintaining and sustaining an expanded Army. Released 26 May 2017.

On 24-25 May, NATO heads of state and government will meet in Brussels. This will be President Trump's first NATO summit, and although the meetings will lack the scope and number of initiatives and other deliverables many have come to expect from a formal alliance summit, there are some key, even contentious issues that will be addressed. In addition to whether and how the alliance contributes to the anti-ISIS coalition, burden-sharing is expected to be a major focus. Although not the worst in terms of burden-sharing, Germany has come under particularly criticism lately. However, German officials have often parried Washington's cajoling through several increasingly dubious arguments, as Dr. John R. Deni argues in this latest SSI Live podcast. Released 23 May 2017.

Last week's chemical attack by Bashar al Assad and the U.S. military response brought to the fore questions about the American approach to not simply Syria but the broader Middle East as well. Can the Trump administration pull together a multi-faceted strategic approach to complement tactical and operational successes? SSI Live host Dr. John R. Deni invited his colleague Dr. Chris Bolan to discuss the latter's just-published essay on this topic. Released 14 April 2017.

On 26-27 April 2017, the U.S. Army War College will host its annual Strategy Conference in Carlisle, PA. Professor Trey Braun, the conference director this year, discussed the conference theme – the Changing Character of War – as well as the panels and keynote speakers with SSI Live host John R. Deni. Prof. Braun also explained how those outside the War College can observe and participate. Released 24 March 2017.

Both India and China actively engage Latin American and Caribbean countries in a great variety of economic sectors, including military sales and high tech trade. Where is Indian and Chinese engagement similar in terms of countries engaged, sectors emphasized, and priorities pursued? Where are they different? And what are the broader implications of those similarities and differences with respect to future development in Latin America and the Caribbean and with respect to American interests in the region? SSI Live host Dr. John R. Deni invited his colleague Dr. Evan Ellis to discuss the latter's just-published monograph. Released 15 March 2017.

Should Israel and Egypt continue to receive the lion's share of U.S. foreign assistance? With a new administration in the White House and a continuing era of profound change unfolding in the Middle East, the time may be right to reconsider U.S. foreign assistance priorities in this important region and beyond. Dr. Chris Bolan joined SSI Live host Dr. John R. Deni to discuss his perspective on how and why the United States should revamp its assistance program in the Middle East. This podcast is based on Dr. Bolan's recently published essay on the same topic. Released 17 February 2017.

Over the last two weeks, there has been some debate in the United States regarding whether Brexit is a good thing from Washington's perspective, and whether other countries could or should follow it. This discussion boils down to whether the continued existence of the EU is in U.S. national interests. Should we be questioning this 70-year old consensus in U.S. foreign policy, and how does the EU support U.S. interests as well as its policies around the globe? The SSI's Prof. Jef Troxell joined Dr. John R. Deni to discuss these and related questions. Released 8 February 2017.