Recent Publications

SSI Live 87 – China, Taiwan, and the Outlook for 2022
January 24, 2022 — Tensions between China and Taiwan increased dramatically through most of 2021, yet a somewhat calmer, steady state situation has prevailed in recent weeks. What explains this? What role does the 2022 Party Congress in China play, and how might President Xi Jinping approach 2022 and beyond? SSI’s Dr. Roger Cliff joins SSI Live host Dr. John R. Deni... MORE

SSI Live 86 – Negotiating with Russia Over Ukraine
January 10, 2022 — Negotiations between Russia and the United States, NATO, and the OSCE regarding the situation in/around Ukraine begin this week. How should the West approach those negotiations? SSI Live host Dr. John R. Deni argues the West should strike a hard bargain, even if it risks war in Ukraine.Keywords: Russia, Ukraine, NATO, United States,... MORE

SSI Live 85 – Latin America’s Shift Left
January 7, 2022 — Recent elections in Honduras and Chile appear to indicate that left-leaning parties are on the rise across Latin America. Is this the case, and if so, what are the strategic implications for U.S. security? Dr. Evan Ellis, SSI’s Latin America expert, joined SSI Live host Dr. John R. Deni to discuss Latin America’s shift to the left.Keywords: Latin... MORE

SSI Live 84 – Can the West get Counterinsurgency Right?
September 8, 2021 — The fall of Afghanistan raises serious questions about whether the United States and the West more broadly are able to successfully implement what military practitioners call Foreign Internal Defense, or supporting a friendly foreign government under attack from an internal insurgency. What explains success or failure in these cases? SSI Live host... MORE

SSI Live 83 – Explaining Afghanistan’s Downfall
September 7, 2021 — How did Afghanistan fall to the Taliban after 20 years of effort by the United States and its allies? SSI Live host Dr. John R. Deni invited his SSI colleagues Dr. Chris Mason to address the end of America’s longest war and to help shed light on the key reasons for why Afghanistan fell. Dr. Mason drew on his long experience working in and studying... MORE

SSI Live 82 – Striking the Balance: US Army Force Posture in Europe, 2028
September 21, 2020 — Within the context of Europe, the US Army must develop a force posture that best navigates the tensions between deterring or defeating armed conflict at an acceptable cost, successfully competing below armed conflict, and maintaining global responsiveness and institutional flexibility through the global operating model and dynamic force employment... MORE

SSI Live 81 – Addressing Hypercompetition in the Indo-Pacific Theater
July 24, 2020 — Given the multifaceted great power competition underway in the Indo-Pacific theater, how can the United States military best position itself? What role can and should the Army play in facilitating a joint approach? After a two-year hiatus, SSI Live returns as Dr. John R. Deni discusses a major newly released SSI study on USINDOPACOM theater design... MORE

SSI Live 79 – Avoiding the Trap in U.S.-China Relations
June 7, 2018 — Getting the Indo-Asia-Pacific and relations with China right is the key to a peaceful and prosperous 21st Century. The challenge for the U.S. administration, and for policy experts writ large, is to build an effective strategy for a whole-of-government approach that will achieve a free and open Indo-Asia-Pacific while avoiding the Thucydides Trap... MORE

SSI Live 78 – The New National Defense Strategy
January 26, 2018 — The Helsinki summit meeting between Presidents Trump and Putin may be the first step in a rapprochement between the United States and Russia. If so, what are the strategic and policy implications in Europe, with specific regard to the security of U.S. allies in Eastern Europe, with regard to the conflict in Syria, vis-à-vis U.S. partners in the... MORE

SSI Live 77 – Multi-Domain Battle and the Pacific Theater
January 8, 2018 — In gross or raw potential, the United States remains the world’s leading global military power. At present though, American power is either dormant in or ill-adapted to many if not most of the world’s most important competitive spaces. American military position and influence are most immediately under duress in the U.S. Pacific Command (PACOM)... MORE

SSI Live 76 – Decertification of the Iranian Nuclear Deal
October 17, 2017 — On 13 October, President Trump announced his intention not to certify Iran’s compliance with the JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action) and threatening to leave the nuclear deal altogether if it was not amended in various ways. Why did the President announce this? Meanwhile, there are reports that some of his senior advisors opposed this move —... MORE

SSI Live 75 – Rotational Deployments vs. Forward Stationing – Deni
September 15, 2017 — Continuing security challenges in Eastern Europe, as well as saber-rattling on the Korean Peninsula, have raised questions once again about the capabilities, posture, and positioning of U.S. overseas forces. In this podcast, SSI Live host Dr. John R. Deni examines the reasons why the Army has become an increasing U.S.-based force, assesses the... MORE