"'The debt burden from these projects is very quickly going to become unsustainable for many, many, many countries,' said Danny Russel, the State Department’s top diplomat for East Asia affairs under President Obama. 'This is scary stuff...'" Read the full article here: Full Article
"'In a moment of crisis, when people are fearful, they are looking to authorities to reassure them, and they are willing to give leaders additional tools to manage chaos and limit risk,' said Daniel Shapiro, a fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv and a former U.S. ambassador to Israel. 'The danger is that these tools that exceed the limits of the normal democratic system may not be returned after the crisis is over. That’s the balance [...]
"'This was not a black swan event,' says former Obama Homeland Security Adviser Lisa Monaco, responding to President Trump's claim that the coronavirus pandemic was an unforeseen crisis. 'This is not a surprise. And we should have been better prepared...'" Watch the full interview here: Full Interview
"'Members of Congress have factories in their states and districts that produce these weapons. There are not a lot of members of Congress who can say "My state is going to be the pre-eminent producer for N95 masks,"' said Julie Smith, a former Obama administration official now with the German Marshall Fund..." Read the full article here: Full Article
"Michèle Flournoy, who spent three years as undersecretary of defense for policy at the start of the Obama administration, also said via a webcast hosted by the Hudson Institute that U.S. attempts at deterrence in the Middle East must evolve beyond force presence. She called for an American version of China’s Belt and Road Initiative — an economic growth strategy. "'We are defining national security too narrowly. Dealing with pandemics and safeguarding the health of the American population from a threat [...]
"'In a collapsed oil market there's every additional opportunity for sanctions hawks to layer it on,' said Elizabeth Rosenberg, director of the energy program at the Center for a New American Security and a former senior sanctions adviser at the Department of the Treasury. 'In fact, it's in the interest of US producers who are grasping for a lifeline...'" Read the full article here: Full Article
"Chinese leaders saw the 2008 financial crash as a historic shift in the global order, a telltale sign of decline in American power and influence. Now they see the U.S. response to the coronavirus in a similar light, and they have ramped up their propaganda in an attempt to seize the initiative, Ely Ratner of the Center for a New American Security think tank, said. "'Beijing is going for the knockout punch. There's no hiding what they're doing here,' said Ratner, [...]
"A bipartisan group of more than 100 former national security officials are urging President Trump immediately to use a Korean War-era defense mobilization law 'to the full extent' to support companies making supplies critical to combating the coronavirus outbreak. "In a letter Wednesday, the former officials said the Defense Production Act was designed precisely because the private sector "lacks the ability to process incoming requests, prioritize the most urgent needs and coordinate with other companies absent more concerted government involvement..." Read [...]
"'The U.S. and China are engaged now in a demonization contest,' said Daniel Russel, who served as the State Department’s top Asia adviser until early in Trump’s term. "'That inevitably hinders badly needed cooperation...'" Read the full article here: Full Article
"'Something that's really interesting is how much has not changed,' said Elizabeth Rosenberg, director of the energy program at the Center for a New American Security and a former senior sanctions adviser at the Department of the Treasury. 'In a collapsed oil market there's every additional opportunity for sanctions hawks to layer it on. In fact, it's in the interest of U.S. producers who are grasping for a lifeline...' "'I would like to think that the basis for sanctions is a [...]