Geopolitical Perspectives - WestExec Advisors

Michèle Flournoy featured in AXIOS event: “News Shapers: Foreign Policy”

"Michèle Flournoy, Former Under Secretary of Defense for Policy in the Obama administration focused on the importance of coherent foreign policy strategy and discussed the risks posed by unfilled leadership positions in security and foreign policy. "On the dangers of a leadership vacuum: 'The people who would likely serve in a Republican administration have signed anti-Trump letters. The administration is going to have a hard time filling out its national security ranks in the next two years — I don’t know [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2019-08-22T12:37:30-04:00July 17, 2019|Geopolitical Perspectives, News|

Danny Russel on The Diplomat podcast: “Improving China’s Belt and Road and Japan-South Korea Tensions”

"Danny Russel, vice president for International Security and Diplomacy at the Asia Society Policy Institute and a former U.S. assistant secretary of state for East Asia and Pacific Affairs, joins The Diplomat‘s Ankit Panda (@nktpnd) to discuss China’s Belt and Road. Russel is the lead author on a recent Asia Society Policy Institute report on the Belt and Road. The podcast also covers what role the United States might play in helping Japan and South Korea resolve their ongoing dispute..." Listen [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2019-08-22T12:38:39-04:00July 16, 2019|Geopolitical Perspectives, News|

Danny Russel on The Diplomat podcast, “Improving China’s Belt and Road and Japan-South Korea Tensions”

"Danny Russel, vice president for International Security and Diplomacy at the Asia Society Policy Institute and a former U.S. assistant secretary of state for East Asia and Pacific Affairs, joins The Diplomat‘s Ankit Panda (@nktpnd) to discuss China’s Belt and Road. Russel is the lead author on a recent Asia Society Policy Institute report on the Belt and Road. The podcast also covers what role the United States might play in helping Japan and South Korea resolve their ongoing dispute..." Listen [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2019-12-02T07:58:55-05:00July 16, 2019|Geopolitical Perspectives|

Dan Shapiro and Yoel Guzansky write in Foreign Policy: “Gulf-Israel Ties Might Not Survive Trump’s Peace Plan”

"The U.S.-sponsored Peace to Prosperity workshop in Manama, Bahrain, last month—an effort spearheaded by U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and senior advisor, Jared Kushner, to sell the economic portion of a broader Middle East peace plan—had limited success in its stated purpose of advancing Palestinian economic development. But it showed more mixed results in another area: serving as a platform for Gulf Arab states and Israel to take meaningful steps forward in their still-emerging relationships. "The meeting had some positive moments [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2019-08-22T12:39:03-04:00July 12, 2019|Geopolitical Perspectives, News|

Bridge Colby cited in The Japan Times article, “U.S. Plan to Fight China and Russia is Too Good To Be True”

"Second, horizontal escalation suffers from a time problem. Coercion — particularly economic coercion — takes a while to work. But in the meantime, analysts such as former Trump administration Pentagon official Elbridge Colby have pointed out that the aggressor will be consolidating its gains and fortifying a position from which it cannot easily be dislodged. While the U.S. is waiting for coercion to have its effect, the situation on the ground — and at the negotiating table — will be steadily [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2019-08-22T12:39:15-04:00July 12, 2019|Cybersecurity & Defense, Geopolitical Perspectives, News|

Dan Shapiro cited in TIME article, “‘Only the Strong Survive.’ How Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu Is Testing the Limits of Power”

"To some, Netanyahu is his own worst enemy. The September contest will pit the Prime Minister’s self-declared role as Israel’s protector, 'indispensable Netanyahu,' against 'Bibi fatigue,' says Daniel Shapiro, a former U.S. ambassador to Israel. Driving the 'fatigue' are the three separate corruption investigations Netanyahu faces. One contends that he took gifts like cigars and bottles of sparkling wine from an Israeli Hollywood film producer and an Australian billionaire in exchange for political influence. The two other matters involve allegations that [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2019-08-22T12:39:26-04:00July 11, 2019|Geopolitical Perspectives, News|

Dennis Ross writes in The Atlantic: “There’s a Deal to Be Had Between the U.S. and Iran”

"Iran is now incrementally walking away from the limits imposed on it in the nuclear deal—the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA—exceeding the 300 kilograms of low enriched uranium it can have on hand and now enriching above the 3.67 percent allowed under the terms of the understanding. Don’t be surprised if it either starts to install its advanced centrifuges or begins to operate more than the 5,061 older centrifuges it is permitted for enrichment. Iran is not racing to [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2019-08-22T12:40:06-04:00July 10, 2019|Geopolitical Perspectives, News|

Julie Smith quoted in The Financial Times: “Germany’s search for a new diplomatic map”

“'It does feel at times like Germany is trying very hard to protect itself from acknowledging the huge transformational shifts that have taken place,' says Julianne Smith, a former foreign policy adviser to US vice-president Joe Biden and currently a fellow with the Robert Bosch Academy in Berlin. 'There is a lot of whistling past the graveyard in this city. People are constantly talking about the parameters of a world that no longer exists...'" Read the full article here: Full Article

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-04-07T17:03:18-04:00April 22, 2019|Geopolitical Perspectives|

Dan Shapiro in Haaretz: “What Will Trump Do First: Make Mideast Peace or Strike Iran?”

"President Donald Trump’s strong support for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in his reelection campaign underscored the close alliance between the two leaders. On numerous issues, they have similar outlooks, have coordinated closely, and have defined their nation’s security, as well as their political fortunes, as being very much intertwined. "While the coalition negotiations are still ahead, it is clear that Netanyahu will continue in office, making continued smooth coordination between the two governments likely. Even so, some challenging decisions still lie [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-04-07T17:04:06-04:00April 15, 2019|Geopolitical Perspectives|

Dennis Ross quoted in Reuters article: “In leaky White House, Trump team keeps Middle East peace plan secret”

"Dennis Ross, a longtime Middle East envoy and now a distinguished fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said the U.S. team still has 'a lot of work to do to make sure that Arab leaders aren’t surprised by what’s going to be presented, and they need to see it in writing, not verbally.' "But he said secrecy at this point is understandable. “'Holding something very close makes sense and it’s not taken as a negative by the parties, [...]

Rebecca Skoryanc2020-04-07T17:04:25-04:00April 10, 2019|Geopolitical Perspectives|