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357 afleveringen, van nieuw naar oud
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Ep 254: Frank Gavin on History and Statecraft
5 december 2025 · 54 min
Frank Gavin, Giovanni Agnelli Distinguished Professor and Director of the Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs at Johns Hopkins University SAIS and author of Thinking Historically: A Guide to Statecraft and Strategy, joins the show to discuss the promise and perils of using history to guide today’s statecraft. Lees meer
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02:20 Political Science vs. History
05:37 The Importance of Historical Thinking
08:13 Historical Interpretation
11:22 Counterfactuals
14:26 The Misuse of History in Policy Making
17:19 Thinking in Time
22:27 Errors When Thinking Historically
31:57 Putin’s View of History
40:01 Philosophical Understanding
47:05 Does History Have a Direction?
53:34 A Checklist for Historical Thinking
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Ep 253: Michael Pack on the Battle of Fallujah
2 december 2025 · 56 min
Michael Pack, President and CEO of Palladium Pictures LLC and director of The Last 600 Meters: The Battles of Najaf and Fallujah, joins the show to discuss his remarkable documentary of the Iraq war and the Marines and battles that it portrays. Lees meer
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01:59 The Journey of Creating 'The Last 600 Meters'
06:24 Censored
10:55 Combat and Valor
21:06 Political Decisions and Military Strategy
26:02 The Human Experience of War
36:29 The Hell House
40:24 Beyond the Battlefield
45:42 Full Metal Jacket
50:45 The Withdrawal from Afghanistan: A New Perspective
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Ep 252: Andrew Lambert on the British Empire’s Strategic Challenges and America’s Today
28 november 2025 · 1 uur 2 min
Andrew Lambert, Laughton Professor of Naval History in the Department of War Studies, King's College London and No More Napoleons: How Britain Managed Europe from Waterloo to World War One, joins the show to discuss how the British Empire maintained the balance in Europe between the fall of Napoleon to the summer of 1914. Lees meer
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02:59 Studying the Problem of War
06:20 British Perspectives of the European Coast
11:33 The French Likelihood of Invading Britain
21:40 The Scheldt River Estuary
30:33 Marlborough, Wellington, and Eisenhower
36:48 The 19th Century and the Rise of Steampower
47:35 Divided attention and British Mistakes of 1914
54:40 The Failure of British Strategic Off-Shore Balancing
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Ep 251: John Lee on Ukraine, Peace, and What China Wants
25 november 2025 · 48 min
John Lee, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, joins the show to discuss the Trump administration’s efforts to bring the war in Ukraine to an end, and what it all means facing China in the Pacific. Lees meer
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01:56 Strategic Implications of the War
03:24 The 28-Point Peace Plan
09:49 Challenges of Negotiating Peace
15:19 The Russia-China Connection
19:48 Nuclear Deterrence and Arms Control
29:30 Linking Ukraine and Taiwan
35:18 Ukraine War as a Chinese Proxy Conflict
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Ep 250: Jeremy Armstrong on Ancient Rome’s Myths and Warfare
21 november 2025 · 1 uur 6 min
Jeremy Armstrong, Professor of Classics & Ancient History at the University of Auckland and author of Children of Mars: The Origins of Rome's Empire, joins the show to discuss the early history of Rome, the role of family and clan in the structure of its military, the transition from monarchy to republic, and the nature of warfare during this formative period. Lees meer
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02:28 The Problems of Early History
06:05 Warfare in Early Rome: A Complex Picture
11:52 The Importance of Myths in Roman Identity
15:01 Aeneas and Romulus: Founding Figures of Rome
18:00 The Significance of Aeneas in Roman Culture
20:48 The Function of Rome
33:09 The Role of Land and Mobility in Early Rome
36:07 Understanding the Monarchy and Military Structure
42:32 Transition from Monarchy to Republic
53:26 The Impact of the Sack of Rome
1:01:27 Shifting Towards Imperial Ambitions
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Ep 249: Mick Ryan on the Ukrainian Way of War
18 november 2025 · 50 min
Major General Mick Ryan, Australian Army (retired), Senior Fellow for Military Studies the Lowy Institute and author of the Futura Doctrina substack, joins the show to discuss the current state of the Ukraine war. We cover tactical innovations, the challenges of operations and strategy, the structure of the Ukrainian military, the political landscape under Zelensky, and the industrial capabilities of both Ukraine and Russia. Lees meer
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00:00 State of Play
02:28 Tactical Innovations and Challenges in Ukraine
05:38 The Role of Drones
08:36 Russian Tactical Innovations and the Rubikon Units
11:45 Historical Parallels: Lessons from World War I
14:37 The Thousand Bites Approach: Russian Strategy Explained
17:46 Ukrainian Brigade Composition and Organizational Changes
23:19 Understanding the Ukrainian Military Structure
29:47 Challenges in Casualty Ratios and Manpower
37:37 Long-Range Strike Capabilities and Adaptation
40:29 Strategic Thinking in the Ukrainian Military
46:18 Industrial Base and Support Dynamics
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Ep 248: Marc Milner on D-Day and the US-UK Battle for Hegemony
14 november 2025 · 1 uur 3 min
Marc Milner, Emeritus Professor of History at the University of New Brunswick and author of Second Front: Anglo-American Rivalry and the Hidden Story of the Normandy Campaign, joins the show to discuss the turbulent passing of the torch of Western hegemony during WWII. Lees meer
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02:50 1917
10:52 American Battle Monuments Commission
14:31 FDR and the British Empire
21:36 American views on the Nazis
30:40 FDR at the Tehran Conference
35:42 Plans Before the Invasion of France
40:48 The British Empire and National Strategy
50:25 Churchill and the Russians in 1944
56:00 A Sophisticated Understanding of Imperial Politics
01:00:18 Revisionist Views of WWII
01:06:00 Communist and Fascist Extremism
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Ep 247: Nicholas Wright on the Brain Science of War
11 november 2025 · 53 min
Nicholas Wright, neuroscientist and author of Warhead: How the Brain Shapes War and War Shapes the Brain, joins the show to explore the implications of neuroscience for warmaking. Lees meer
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Times
01:20 Neurology
02:57 Intelligence Defined
07:06 Mapping the Brain
17:05 How Modeling Happens
27:15 Outthinking and Outlearning the Enemy
30:25 Prioritization and Survival
35:15 Fear and the Fall of France in 1940
44:48 Enhancing Military Training
49:47 AI and Its Impact on Human Cognition
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Ep 246: Veterans Day Special — Remembering Angus MacLean
10 november 2025 · 14 min
Host Aaron MacLean pays tribute to his father, World War Two and Vietnam Veteran Angus MacLean. This memorial originally ran in the publication Engelsberg Ideas. Lees meer
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Ep 245: Edward Luce on Zbigniew Brzezinski’s Twentieth Century
7 november 2025 · 52 min
Edward Luce, U.S. national editor and columnist at the Financial Times and author of Zbig: The Life of Zbigniew Brzezinski, America's Great Power Prophet,joins the show to discuss one of the most interesting characters of the Cold War, Jimmy Carter’s national security advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski. Lees meer
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00:00 The Life and Legacy of Zbigniew Brzezinski
02:55 Carter's Foreign Policy and Brzezinski's Influence
05:56 Contrasting Worldviews: Brzezinski vs. Kissinger
08:52 The Formative Years: War and Identity
11:35 The Cold War Landscape and Brzezinski's Rise
14:34 Order vs. Justice: Diverging Philosophies
17:55 Brzezinski's Strategic Vision for the Cold War
20:57 The Vietnam War and Its Impact on Brzezinski
23:47 Brzezinski's Approach to Foreign Policy
28:35 The Rise of Jimmy Carter and the Trilateral Commission
32:12 Carter's Foreign Policy Challenges: The Middle East and Iran
37:15 Human Rights and the Shift from Nixon to Carter
45:27 Reagan's Continuity and Change: A New Era in Foreign Policy
51:19 The Iranian Revolution and Brzezinski's Legacy
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Ep 244: Oren Cass on a Strategy of Reciprocity
4 november 2025 · 58 min
Oren Cass, founder and chief economist of American Compass and author of the article A Grand Strategy of Reciprocity for Foreign Affairs, joins the show to discuss how the United States should think about the current strategic moment. Lees meer
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Times
00:01 Introduction to Free Markets and Trade
00:43 Discussion on China and Global Strategy
02:15 Historical Context of American Grand Strategy
04:40 Assumptions about China
07:40 Strategic Competition and Spheres of Influence
10:00 Economic Decoupling and Its Challenges
13:30 Relationships with Other Countries
16:00 Concept of Reciprocity in Alliances
20:00 US-Mexico-Canada Relations and Global Implications
25:00 The Role of the Trump Administration
30:00 Future of Global Alliances
35:00 Economic and Security Strategies
40:00 Conclusion and Final Thought
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Ep 243: Alexander Mikaberidze on Russia’s Failed Battle with Turkey… in 1809
31 oktober 2025 · 52 min
Alexander Mikaberidze, Professor of History at LSU Shreveport and contributor to An Unavoidable Evil: Siege Warfare in the Age of Napoleon (From Reason to Revolution 1721-1815), joins the show to discuss the siege of Brăila and the lessons of the Russo-Ottoman War of 1806-1812. Lees meer
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Times
00:00 The Shifting Balance of Power in the Black Sea
02:00 Siege Warfare in the Age of Napoleon
04:09 Decisive Battles vs. Positional Warfare
08:30 The Evolution of Strategy: 18th to 19th Century
14:16 The Debate on Siege Tactics in the Russian Military
21:27 Kutuzov's Strategic Evolution
25:26 Geopolitical Context: Russia and the Ottoman Empire's Rivalry
31:31 The Siege of Brăila: A Military Catastrophe
38:39 The Cost of War: Casualties and Consequences
50:40 Lessons in Military Culture: Accountability and Adaptation
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Ep 243: Joshua S. Treviño—Is Trump After Regime Change in Venezuela?
28 oktober 2025 · 42 min
Joshua S. Treviño, Chief Transformation Officer at the Texas Public Policy Foundation and senior advisor at the America First Policy Institute, joins the show to discuss the Trump administration’s military strikes on seaborne cartel traffic and its strategy in the Western Hemisphere. Lees meer
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Times
00:00 Understanding U.S. Military Strategy in Venezuela
02:26 The State-Cartel Synthesis: A New Paradigm
05:30 The Role of the U.S. Military in Drug Interdiction
08:39 Legal Framework and Controversies Surrounding Military Actions
11:46 The Broader Implications of Regime Change
14:26 Divisions on the Right: Perspectives on Foreign Policy
21:50 The Strategic Implications of Military Action Against Maduro
30:19 Assessing the Venezuelan Opposition's Readiness
33:53 Colombia's Evolving Relationship with the U.S.
37:00 The Complex Dynamics of U.S.-Mexico Relations
41:55 The Threat of Cartels and Their Impact on U.S. Society
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Ep 242: Michael Sobolik on On Donald Trump’s Trade War with China
24 oktober 2025 · 48 min
Michael Sobolik, senior fellow at Hudson Institute and author of Countering China’s Great Game: A Strategy for American Dominance, joins the show to discuss the current state of relations between the U.S. and China as Xi Jinping and Donald Trump are scheduled to meet in South Korea next week. Lees meer
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00:00 The Broader Competition: US-China Relations
02:51 Trump's Trade Strategy: A Historical Perspective
09:35 China's Strategic Objectives: Beyond Economics
14:16 Xi Jinping's Goals: The Summit Agenda
18:20 Export Controls: A New Era of Trade Tensions
22:36 The Stakes of No Deal: Economic and Strategic Implications
26:35 Decoupling from China: Challenges and Opportunities
33:05 Defining a Good Deal: Beyond Trade
37:22 TikTok: The Information Warfare Front
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Ep 241: Julian Jackson on Nazi-Occupied France and Pétain
21 oktober 2025 · 1 uur 9 min
Julian Jackson, Emeritus Professor of Modern French History at Queen Mary University of London and author of France on Trial: The Case of Marshal Pétain, joins the show to discuss the rise and fall of “the Lion of Verdun”; Philippe Pétain. Lees meer
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Times
01:06 Introduction
01:53 How Pétain became the “Hero of France” in WW1
11:32 France sues for peace with Germany in 1940
18:52 The legality of the armistice
27:49 Churchill’s take on the armistice
33:48 What Was Vichy France?
41:43 Vichy’s treatment of the Jews
53:05 Distancing France from extermination
58:13 Why does Pétain stay a servant to the Nazis
01:07:38 Vichy and Pétain on trial today
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Ep 240: Lance R. Blyth on Mountain Warfare
17 oktober 2025 · 57 min
Lance R. Blyth, command historian at the North American Aerospace Defense Command and author of Ski, Climb, Fight: The 10th Mountain Division and the Rise of Mountain Warfare, joins the show to discuss the history and tactics of fighting at altitude. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:31 Introduction
• 01:41 Marine
• 04:55 L.A. riots
• 07:22 From horses to skis
• 10:13 Antecedents
• 13:56 Advantage
• 15:40 The Germans
• 17:55 The Winter War
• 22:51 French surrender
• 25:58 Specialized divisions
• 31:37 Volunteers
• 33:49 Training
• 36:50 Delay and Italy
• 42:16 No doctrine
• 45:29 The Gothic Line
• 52:00 Success
• 55:35 Afghanistan
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Ep 239: Charles C. Mann on How the System Works
14 oktober 2025 · 58 min
Charles C. Mann, author of “How the System Works” in The New Atlantis, joins the show to discuss the complexity and vulnerability of the hidden processes that sustain human life on our planet. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:49 Introduction
• 02:31 Interconnected
• 05:43 Medical care
• 09:20 Feeding humanity
• 11:56 Three advances
• 20:42 Water
• 26:34 Energy
• 36:05 Keeping pace
• 38:35 Hurdles
• 41:12 Solutions
• 45:26 Public health
• 56:38 Concerns
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Ep 238: James Titterton on Medieval Deception
10 oktober 2025 · 44 min
James Titterton, historian and author of Deception in Medieval Warfare: Trickery and Cunning in the Central Middle Ages, joins the show to discuss strategies and stratagems in the age of castles and knights. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:29 Introduction
• 02:18 High Middle Ages
• 09:03 Oathbreakers
• 12:01 Sources
• 16:21 Doctrine
• 22:07 Bribery
• 31:23 Spies and feints
• 39:26 Plausibility
• 42:19 Professionals
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Ep 237: Toshi Yoshihara on China’s Subversive Strategies
7 oktober 2025 · 58 min
Toshi Yoshihara, Senior Fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments and author of Mao's Army Goes to Sea: The Island Campaigns and the Founding of China's Navy, joins the show to discuss how the PLA took Beijing in 1949 by subversion, and how they may yet seize Taiwan. Lees meer
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• 01:53 Introduction
• 03:24 Peaceful liberation
• 07:19 Planning and preparation
• 10:36 Isolation
• 17:30 A tradition of manipulation
• 23:51 True believers
• 28:23 Helpless
• 34:55 Political warfare
• 41:53 Surprise
• 47:32 Holy Grail
• 50:51 Fault lines
• 57:44 What to read?
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Ep 236: Joshua Rovner on Grand Strategy
3 oktober 2025 · 51 min
Joshua Rovner, Associate Professor in the School of International Service at American University and author of Strategy and Grand Strategy, joins the show to discuss the tension between pursuing military victory and securing a nation. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:28 Introduction
• 01:35 MIT
• 05:03 Grand strategy
• 10:45 Peloponnesian War
• 18:05 Spartan strategy
• 22:34 Pericles
• 27:18 A terrible irony
• 32:43 Disastrous victory
• 41:35 British power
• 46:13 Atomic strategy
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Ep 235: Tyler Grey on Serving in Delta Force and the Warrior’s Journey
30 september 2025 · 1 uur 18 min
Tyler Grey, Delta Force veteran and author of Forged in Chaos: A Warrior's Origin Story, joins the show to discuss his experiences as a member of the U.S. Army’s most elite combat unit, his journey as a warrior, and the continuing struggle to understand post-traumatic stress. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:30 Introduction
• 01:48 Bakersfield, CA
• 06:51 Predators and prey
• 10:48 Not a choice
• 17:11 Rangers
• 23:15 Elite infantry
• 28:37 9/11
• 33:43 Pakistan border
• 41:20 Sniper team
• 44:22 Luck and health
• 47:05 Master of the basics
• 51:36 Fallujah
• 54:29 Sadr City
• 01:06:16 Chaos of combat
• 01:10:01 Lost
• 01:14:26 “LTSD”
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Ep 234: A. Wess Mitchell on Diplomacy
26 september 2025 · 58 min
A. Wess Mitchell, former Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, historian, and author of Great Power Diplomacy: The Skill of Statecraft from Attila the Hun to Kissinger, joins the show to discuss just what diplomacy is. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:37 Introduction
• 02:08 Bad reutation
• 04:37 Misconceptions
• 09:35 A part of grand strategy
• 13:11 Not trickery
• 18:05 Attila the Hun
• 24:17 Appeasement
• 35:00 Other options
• 39:33 The State Department
• 44:22 Molding diplomats
• 47:31 Ukraine
• 52:47 Major risks
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Ep 233: Mick Ryan on the Ukraine War’s Urgent Lessons
23 september 2025 · 42 min
Major General Mick Ryan, Australian Army (retired), Senior Fellow for Military Studies the Lowy Institute and author of the Futura Doctrina substack, joins the show to discuss his latest piece, Translating Ukraine Lessons for the Pacific Theatre. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:40 Introduction
• 02:18 Translation
• 04:03 Ground forces
• 08:40 Australian defense
• 11:25 Threats from the North
• 13:25 Chinese influence
• 16:46 The mask slips
• 19:51 What we don’t know
• 24:36 The Pacific
• 32:18 Information ops
• 37:31 Corrosive influences
• 40:15 Mass
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Ep 232: Ran Baratz on the Gaza War and Israel’s ‘Postmodern’ Military
19 september 2025 · 53 min
Ran Baratz, military historian and former senior Israeli official, and author of What's Wrong with the Postmodern Military?, joins the show to discuss operations in Gaza and problems with how the IDF officer corps thinks about war. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:37 Introduction
• 02:27 Gaza
• 06:23 Diplomatic obstacles
• 12:27 Worse than you think
• 15:28 Paradigm shift
• 30:23 Real wars
• 38:49 Art of the general
• 43:51 War as policy
• 50:00 Netanyahu
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Ep 231: Peter Rough on Russian Drone Incursions into NATO
16 september 2025 · 36 min
Peter Rough, senior fellow and director of the Center on Europe and Eurasia at the Hudson Institute, joins the show to discuss the recent Russian drone incursions in Poland and Romania and what they mean. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:08 Introduction
• 01:35 What actually happened?
• 05:30 Destructive decoys
• 07:27 European moods
• 11:23 Rightwing response
• 16:32 Strategic autonomy
• 23:52 Zapad
• 30:00 On/off switch
• 33:31 Where do we stand?
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Ep 230: Prit Buttar on the Great Soviet Offensive of 1944
12 september 2025 · 46 min
Prit Buttar, historian and author of Bagration 1944: The Great Soviet Offensive, joins the show to discuss the immense Russian campaign that broke the German Army on the Eastern Front. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:48 Introduction
• 02:50 A war unto itself
• 08:02 Flanders
• 15:20 Maskirovka
• 24:35 Soviet intelligence
• 28:27 Bolshevism
• 30:22 Lebensraum
• 31:40 Bagration
• 36:14 Cracking the line
• 39:00 Warsaw
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Ep 229: Nadège Rolland on China’s Borderlands
9 september 2025 · 48 min
Nadège Rolland, Distinguished Fellow, China Studies, at the National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR) and principal investigator for the Mapping China's Borderlands: Dashboard, joins the show to discuss the shifting visions China has of its frontiers. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:35 Introduction
• 02:34 What is “China?”
• 10:26 Sovereignty
• 19:30 Double translation
• 25:25 Capillaries
• 34:37 Imperial messaging
• 42:36 Prioritization
We also discuss Nadège’s 2020 report - China's Vision for a New World Order.
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Ep 228: Brad Bowman and Ryan Brobst on “Axis” Military Cooperation
7 september 2025 · 50 min
Brad Bowman and Ryan Brobst, senior and deputy directors of the Center on Military and Political Power at FDD, join the show to discuss the military relationships between America’s major antagonists. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:47 Introduction
• 02:40 Axis cooperation
• 08:02 Interoperability
• 11:19 Fighting all three
• 14:49 Potential
• 20:57 The arsenal
• 26:56 Progress
• 28:30 Budgeting
• 36:10 Will and capability
• 39:03 Harpoon Coastal Defense System
• 41:31 Per unit cost over speed
• 44:25 Buy-side issue
• 47:49 Production lessons
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Ep 227: Yaakov Katz on What Went Wrong on 10/7
2 september 2025 · 52 min
Yaakov Katz, senior fellow at The Jewish People Policy Institute and author of While Israel Slept: How Hamas Surprised the Most Powerful Military in the Middle East, joins the show to discuss Israel’s intelligence and military failures on the night of 6-7 October, 2023. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:35 Introduction
• 02:47 Foundational facts
• 09:45 Communication failure
• 17:39 Minority reports
• 25:40 Left alone
• 30:15 Accountability
• 39:37 Cultural costs
• 47:30 A deal
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Ep 226: Geoffrey Wawro on the Vietnam War
29 augustus 2025 · 59 min
Geoffrey Wawro, founding director of the Military History Center at the University of North Texas and author of The Vietnam War: A Military History, joins the show to discuss the causes of U.S. failure in Vietnam. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:21 Introduction
• 01:50 Schools of thought
• 07:45 Orthodoxy
• 13:24 A war of choice
• 17:49 Ambivalence
• 20:15 Korean nightmare
• 23:53 Lessons
• 28:38 Policy makers
• 32:34 Obvious flaws
• 37:10 Ground war
• 42:21 South Vietnam
• 51:30 Certain defeat
• 56:21 Local politics
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Ep 225: Geoff Ball on the Evacuation of Kabul
26 augustus 2025 · 1 uur 14 min
Major Geoff Ball, USMC, co-founder of the Connecting File, commanded Company G, 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines during the evacuation at Kabul International Airport in 2021, including the suicide bombing at Abbey Gate on 26 August. He shares the story of his company and their extraordinary service in Afghanistan. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:51 Introduction
• 02:03 The Marines
• 08:20 Quantico
• 13:07 29 Palms
• 16:32 On the job training
• 21:54 Ghost Company
• 26:44 The call
• 32:10 Isolation
• 38:30 Abbey Gate
• 46:16 Unity of effort
• 48:53 Who got through
• 51:40 The Taliban
• 52:54 26 August
• 56:52 Take command
• 59:47 No good choices
• 01:06:42 The Fallen
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Ep 224: Barry Strauss on Ancient Rome’s Wars with Israel
22 augustus 2025 · 47 min
Barry Strauss, Corliss Page Dean Fellow at the Hoover Institution and author of Jews vs. Rome: Two Centuries of Rebellion Against the World's Mightiest Empire, joins the show to discuss the long, fractious, often violent relationship between Ancient Rome and her Jewish subjects. Lees meer
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• 01:11 Introduction
• 01:37 Rome and Parthia
• 07:50 Judea
• 12:07 Roman control
• 17:58 Jewish warfighting
• 20:20 Herod
• 26:03 The Great Revolt
• 31:06 Enter Parthia
• 33:23 The Temple
• 35:01 70 years
• 40:24 Driven out
• 42:02 Parallels with today
• 44:33 Donald Kagan
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Ep 223: Mick Ryan on Ukraine Negotiations and Fighting
19 augustus 2025 · 33 min
Major General Mick Ryan, Australian Army (retired), Senior Fellow for Military Studies the Lowy Institute and author of the Futura Doctrina Substack, joins the show to break down the latest on Ukraine, from the battlefield to the White House. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:05 Introduction
• 02:06 The front
• 06:23 Fortress belt
• 08:38 ROI
• 10:55 Shifting feelings
• 14:41 A realistic settlement
• 20:53 After Alaska
• 23:15 Boots on the ground
• 25:45 Unpredictability
• 28:49 A different vibe
• 31:31 Stop the killing
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Ep 222: Peter Mansoor on MacArthur’s Return to the Philippines
15 augustus 2025 · 51 min
Colonel Peter Mansoor, U.S. Army (retired), General Raymond E. Mason Jr. Chair in Military History at The Ohio State University and authors of Redemption: MacArthur and the Campaign for the Philippines, joins the show to discuss the largest campaign of the Pacific War, the liberation of the Philippines. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:08 Introduction
• 01:30 Why West Point?
• 06:11 Petraeus
• 09:55 A huge scale
• 11:25 War Plan Orange
• 16:25 Inevitable
• 20:07 The guerrilla war
• 26:53 Mindanao & Luzon
• 31:33 Leyte Gulf
• 37:52 A do or die campaign
• 40:04 Manila
• 44:34 Command responsibility
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Ep 221: Joel Wuthnow and Phillip Saunders on China’s PLA
12 augustus 2025 · 55 min
Joel Wuthnow and Phillip Saunders, both of the U.S. National Defense University and authors of China's Quest for Military Supremacy, join the show to discuss the origins, organization, and strategic outlook of China’s military. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:22 Introduction
• 01:57 Origins
• 06:58 Crisis control
• 08:48 PLA structure
• 13:05 1960
• 20:17 Horizontal escalation
• 24:34 By land or sea
• 28:23 American resolve
• 30:54 Xi
• 36:41 A lack of experience
• 44:10 Military diplomacy
• 48:17 Reading list
• 50:43 Be unpredictable
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Ep 220: Marc LiVecche on Hiroshima and Morality
5 augustus 2025 · 42 min
Marc LiVecche, McDonald Distinguished Scholar of Ethics, War, and Public Life at Providence and author of The Good Kill: Just War and Moral Injury, joins the show to discuss Just War Theory and whether the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki fit in that framework. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:23 Introduction
• 01:30 Misspent youth
• 07:51 Moral injury
• 13:27 Conflicting views
• 19:15 Richard Frank
• 28:53 Right not moral
• 39:12 Not the same
• 40:36 Gifts from heaven
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Ep 219: Stephen Platt on Mao's China and the Original Marine Raider
1 augustus 2025 · 56 min
Stephen Platt, professor of Chinese history at UMass Amherst and author of The Raider: The Untold Story of a Renegade Marine and the Birth of U.S. Special Forces in World War II, joins the show to discuss the incredible life of Evans Carlson. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:48 Introduction
• 02:50 American quirk
• 08:14 China
• 10:18 Soviet policy
• 14:01 Nicaragua
• 16:29 Edgar Snow
• 21:11 FDR
• 24:42 8th Route Army
• 31:52 Embargo
• 38:30 Raiders
• 42:40 Makin Island
• 46:30 Force multiplier
• 52:44 1946
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Ep 218: Lawerence Freedman on Endless Wars
29 juli 2025 · 41 min
Lawerence Freedman, Emeritus Professor of War Studies at King’s College London and author of ‘The Age of Forever Wars’ in Foreign Affairs Magazine, joins the show to discuss why protracted warfare seems to be a mark of the era. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:32 Introduction
• 02:01 Aligning strategy
• 04:37 Mass
• 07:14 Iraq and Afghanistan
• 11:14 Al Qaeda
• 14:25 Survive
• 17:50 Results matter
• 22:04 Trade-offs
• 27:23 Avoiding mistakes
• 32:13 Why does Putin continue?
• 38:29 Concessions
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Ep 217: Steven Rabalais on Ike’s Mentor
25 juli 2025 · 1 uur 6 min
Steven Rabalais, litigator and author of General Fox Conner: Pershing's Chief of Operations and Eisenhower's Mentor, joins the show to discuss the extraordinary influence of now-forgotten General Fox Connor on the outcome of WWI and Eisenhower’s career. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:51 Introduction
• 03:10 Growing up with history
• 05:47 A southern story
• 07:44 West Point struggles
• 12:07 A reader
• 14:50 Coastal artillery
• 20:46 Rocks and airplanes
• 23:51 Mechanism of victory
• 27:54 WWI logistics
• 32:47 Summer 1918
• 46:03 Eisenhower
• 51:24 Panama
• 01:01:58 Foreshadowing
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Ep 216: Will Somerindyke on Making Munitions in America
22 juli 2025 · 42 min
Will Somerindyke, Chairman of Regulus Global and CEO of UNION, joins the show to discuss rebuilding the U.S. defense industrial base. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:36 Introduction
• 02:35 A navy family
• 05:51 Regulus
• 08:05 American made
• 10:45 155
• 14:44 Integration
• 16:53 Supply chains
• 23:20 Demand
• 28:27 Flexibility
• 31:40 Forging vs casting
• 33:45 UNION
• 37:27 Customers
• 40:07 Mindset
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Ep 215: Ryan McDermott on Invading Iraq in 2003
18 juli 2025 · 38 min
Ryan McDermott, Army veteran of the 2003 invasion of Iraq and author of Downriver: Memoir of a Warrior Poet, joins the show to talk about his combat experiences. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:13 Introduction
• 01:55 Seeking purpose
• 04:11 West Point
• 06:48 9/11
• 08:41 3rd Infantry Division
• 10:12 Platoon tactics
• 14:51 “Crossing tonight”
• 18:08 Preparing for combat
• 23:40 Tired
• 29:37 Baghdad
• 35:51 Thunder Runs
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Ep 214: Bryan Clark on the Coming Sensor War with China
15 juli 2025 · 58 min
Bryan Clark, senior fellow and director of the Center for Defense Concepts and Technology at Hudson Institute, joins the show to talk about how a war with China could play out. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:51 Introduction
• 02:00 Submariner
• 10:10 Environmental conditions
• 12:40 State of play
• 20:04 Complacency
• 23:36 Hellscape
• 32:14 Cultural differences
• 37:20 Party control
• 43:40 Degraded environment
• 48:02 Practice now
• 51:45 Deterrence
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Ep 213: Paul Lay on Cromwell and the English Civil War
8 juli 2025 · 58 min
Paul Lay, Senior Editor of Engelsberg Ideas and author of Providence Lost: The Rise and Fall of Cromwell's Protectorate,joins the show to talk about the turbulent age of the English Civil War, Cromwell, and the Protectorate. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:45 Introduction
• 02:00 17th century
• 03:51 The Thirty Years War
• 12:40 Anti-Catholicism
• 15:24 Underlying causes
• 21:46 Cromwell
• 30:34 Thatcher
• 33:04 The Rump Parliament
• 37:07 Western Design
• 54:44 Reverberations
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Ep 212: Arnold Punaro on Fighting in Vietnam and Washington
4 juli 2025 · 1 uur 1 min
Arnold Punaro, retired USMC Major General and author of If Confirmed: An Insider's View of the National Security Confirmation Process, joins the show to talk about his infantry service in Vietnam and his experiences serving in Washington DC. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:35 Introduction
• 05:40 5 weeks
• 10:51 Officer training
• 13:18 3/7
• 16:37 Jungle fighting
• 23:25 Wounded
• 31:32 Payback
• 36:35 Bad situation
• 40:10 Getting home
• 45:46 The Senate
• 49:28 Getting the facts
• 54:00 Service
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Ep 211: Daniel Samet on the Origins of the U.S.-Israel Relationship
1 juli 2025 · 54 min
Daniel Samet, the George P. Shultz Fellow at the Ronald Reagan Institute and author of U.S. Defense Policy toward Israel: A Cold War History, joins the show to breakdown the origins of the important, if at times contentious, U.S.-Israel relationship. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:30 Introduction
• 02:28 1948
• 05:44 Arabist strategy
• 08:13 11 minutes
• 10:37 Looking for friends
• 15:40 Soviet-Arab relations
• 19:25 Republicans
• 25:16 Kennedy
• 29:29 Strong friends
• 32:02 Nuclear program
• 37:33 6 Day War
• 43:19 Mistake?
• 47:41 Kissinger
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Ep 210: Scott Boorman on Sun Tzu
27 juni 2025 · 39 min
Scott Boorman, Professor of Sociology at Yale University and author of Three Faces of Sun Tzu, joins the show to discuss the world and ideas of Sun Tzu. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:48 Introduction
• 02:10 “Know your enemy”
• 05:18 The Protracted Game
• 09:59 Text and application
• 16:05 Warring states
• 21:14 Chinese thinking
• 24:58 Net assessment
• 29:05 Cunning
• 32:02 Omissions
• 37:05 Memorization
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Ep 209: Jonathan Schanzer on the Israel-Iran Ceasefire
25 juni 2025 · 36 min
Jonathan Schanzer, executive director at FDD, joins the show to break down his time on the ground in Israel at the beginning of the war and what may come with the Israel-Iran ceasefire in place. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:27 Introduction
• 02:10 Extraction
• 05:50 Different
• 09:25 In the shelter
• 12:03 Damage taken
• 16:18 Stress
• 17:45 Getting out
• 24:57 Road ahead
• 30:40 Iranian risks
• 32:10 Hamas
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Ep 208: Mike Doran on America’s Strikes in Iran
22 juni 2025 · 45 min
Mike Doran, senior fellow and director of the Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East at the Hudson Institute, joins the show to break down America’s strikes against Iran’s nuclear facilities and what might come next. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:00 Reactions
• 08:00 Deception
• 12:00 More to come
• 17:00 Self-deception
• 24:00 Next few days
• 31:00 Escalation
• 34:00 Not over
• 41:00 Trump is serious
• 44:00 Restraintists
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Ep 207: Mark Dubowitz on the Israel-Iran War and American Intervention
20 juni 2025 · 43 min
Mark Dubowitz, CEO of FDD, joins the show to bring us up to speed on the Israel-Iran conflict, and the possibility of America’s intervention. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:00 Achievements
• 05:00 Retaliation
• 09:00 Hard math
• 16:00 Intervention
• 24:00 Outcomes
• 30:00 Ground operations
• 32:00 Another Iraq?
• 38:00 Resolve and stability
• 42:00 “Iraq Syndrome”
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Ep 206: Cleo Paskal on China’s Central Pacific Strategy
17 juni 2025 · 50 min
Cleo Paskal, non-resident senior fellow at FDD and author of Crossroads of Competition, joins the show to discuss China’s campaign for influence and control at the scene of America’s bloody island-hopping campaign in WW2. Lees meer
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Times
• 01:35 Introduction
• 04:03 Pacific desert
• 07:45 Control
• 13:48 Post 1945
• 22:43 Significance
• 24:31 Yap
• 29:43 Divisions
• 32:18 Diplomatic maintenance
• 35:54 Designs
• 41:30 Strategic concerns
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