Rebecca Skoryanc, Author at WestExec Advisors

Dan Shapiro writes in NPR: “Trump’s Fundamentally Flawed ‘Vision’ For Mideast Peace”

"When President Trump issued his 'Vision for Peace, Prosperity, and a Brighter Future for Israel and the Palestinian People' at the White House on Tuesday, I was reminded that no one should be more humble about critiquing new Middle East peace initiatives than those who have taken part in previous ones. I am in the club of U.S. government officials who poured thousands of hours into that effort — and failed. "So I appreciate President Trump, Jared Kushner and their colleagues' [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-01-31T16:11:21-05:00January 30, 2020|Geopolitical Perspectives|

Michael Camilleri writes with Catharine Christie in Americas Quarterly: “How the ‘Art of the Deal’ Hurt Latin America’s Corruption Fight”

"One of the bolder claims in Donald Trump’s impeachment defense posits that the U.S. president withheld military aid to Ukraine out of genuine concern over corruption in the former Soviet republic, and not to extract an investigation into a political rival. The assertion might be more plausible were the White House not simultaneously contemplating revisions to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which Trump has long derided as placing American businesses at an unfair disadvantage. Still, some U.S senators appear willing to [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-02-24T15:19:28-05:00January 30, 2020|Geopolitical Perspectives|

Ely Ratner quoted in The Washington Post article, “100 Things the United States Must Do to Compete with China”

“'If we are going to get this right, the China challenge has to be the single or one of the top organizing principles of U.S. foreign policy,' said CNAS senior fellow Ely Ratner, one of the report’s principal authors. 'What we need now is an honest conversation that dealing with the China challenge is going to require more cost and more risk than we anticipated...'” Read the full article here: Full Article

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-01-31T16:04:05-05:00January 29, 2020|Economy & Trade|

Lisa Monaco quoted in The National Review article, “It’s Time to Reverse the Country’s Scientific Slide”

"According to a recent report by the bipartisan Aspen Cybersecurity Group, technological and scientific innovation isn’t just an economic issue; innovation has national-security and geopolitical implications. 'Will America lead the technology that secures Americans?' Lisa Monaco, co-chair of the Aspen group, asked Axios. 'Will American values be reflected in the technologies of the future?' "This is exactly the sort of question that America’s leaders should be asking..." Read the full article here: Full Article

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-01-31T16:05:26-05:00January 29, 2020|Cybersecurity & Defense|

Dennis Ross writes with David Makovsky in The Washington Post: “Trump’s Peace Plan Won’t Have A Chance Unless Israel Shows Restraint on Annexation”

"The Trump administration has now unveiled its Mideast peace plan. While we should expect plenty of debate about its terms, which represent a sharp departure from past U.S. peacemaking efforts, another development has essentially pushed the plan into the background. Israeli officials have announced that they plan to annex all West Bank settlements next week. If they do, this new phase of the process will be dead before it really starts. "The peace plan was supposed to take the interests of [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-01-31T16:08:05-05:00January 29, 2020|Geopolitical Perspectives|

Liz Rosenberg quoted in The New York Times article, “Bolton Book Puts New Focus on Trump’s Actions in Turkey and China Cases”

"Elizabeth Rosenberg, who served as a senior Treasury adviser working on sanctions issues during the Obama administration and who now studies sanctions policy at the Center for a New American Security, said Mr. Trump’s interventions were unusual and disruptive. “'This is not the norm in Washington,' she said. 'He is making up sanctions policy on his own, and influencing the course of policy in a way that undermines United States priorities and has shocked United States allies...'" Read the full article [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-01-31T16:10:04-05:00January 28, 2020|Economy & Trade|

Rachel Ellehuus quoted in The Economist article, “A Weaker Post-Brexit Britain Looks to America”

"Still, American diplomatic and military insiders tend to pooh-pooh the idea that the relationship is in crisis, or that France could supplant Britain. 'The uk is still our most capable partner militarily, and our most valuable partner politically,' says Rachel Ellehuus, who handled European and nato policy at the Pentagon until 2018..." Read the full article here: Full Article

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-01-31T16:06:35-05:00January 20, 2020|Geopolitical Perspectives|

Dan Shapiro quoted in Vox article, “11 US Troops Were Injured in Iran’s Attack. It Shows How Close We Came to War.”

"'It certainly seems that Iran’s intent was different than earlier estimates,' says Dan Shapiro, who served as the US ambassador to Israel from 2011 to 2017, 'and there was a serious possibility of deaths of US troops.' "It appears the two reasons everyone stayed alive was because of US intelligence and a warning from Iraq to Iran about the incoming missiles that enabled US and Iraqi forces to quickly take precautions, such as hunkering down in bunkers..." Read the full article [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-01-24T08:07:46-05:00January 17, 2020|Cybersecurity & Defense|

Miriam Vogel featured in Design Week article, “Siri, Alexa And Unconscious Bias: The Case for Designing Fairer AI Assistants”

“'I have yet to meet the person who is designing to intentionally discriminate,' Miriam Vogel tells Design Week. 'But sometimes it’s hard to admit that you’ve designed something that might have gaps and flaws in.' "Vogel is executive director of EqualAI, a US-based initiative that aims to prevent unconscious bias in artificial intelligence (AI) development. But when it comes to one of the most widespread uses of AI — voice-assistants — the machines themselves do discriminate..." Read the full article here: [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-01-24T08:12:34-05:00January 17, 2020|News|

Michèle Flournoy testifies before the House Armed Services Committee on DOD’s role in the competition with China

Chairman Smith and Ranking Member Thornberry, distinguished members of the House Armed Services Committee, it is truly an honor to testify before you today on the Department of Defense’s role in the United States’ strategic competition with China. U.S.-China Competition Broadly Strategic competition between the United States and China is multi-faceted, with economic, technological, political, ideological, and military dimensions. Any successful approach to this competition must take account of each of these dimensions and neglect none. Therefore, before I outline the [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-01-16T11:04:24-05:00January 15, 2020|Cybersecurity & Defense, Geopolitical Perspectives, Press Releases|

About Rebecca Skoryanc