CNA Talks: A National Security Podcast

We examine efforts to prevent the spread of resporitory viruses in America’s jails and prisons and what practices were identified from this experience.   

Guest Biographies

NhuNgoc Pham is a research scientist with CNA’s Center for Public Health Preparedness and Resilience.

Jim Alexander is a senior advisor with CNA’s Center for Justice Research and Innovation.

Darren...

We examine what happened in South Korea’s snap election and its implications for South Korea’s relations with the US, Japan, China, Russia, and North Korea.

Guest Biographies

Dr. Thomas Bickford is a principal research scientist in the CNA Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Program. His research has focused on Chinese maritime strategy, Chinese national security policy, and China’s relations with ...

We cover the recent conflict between India and Pakistan, why they were able to desescalate so quickly, and what this tells us about nuclear deterrence and escalation. 

Guest Biographies

Stephanie Stapleton is a Research Scientist with CNA’s Strategy and Policy Analysis Program. She is an expert in nuclear policy and strategic deterrence, with a focus on strategic competition within the emergi...

Two CNA field analysts discuss their work assisting operations to ensure freedom of navigation in the Red Sea. 

Guest Biographies

Dr. Keith Zirkle is a research scientist in CNA’s Fleet Operations and Assessments Program. He is CNA’s field representative at Naval Forces Central Command. 

Kevin O'Connell is a research analyst in CNA’s Fleet Operations and Assessments Program. He ...

This episode examines what DeepSeek’s AI model tells us about China’s AI ecosystem, military applications for this technology, and other developments in China’s high-tech sector. 

Guest Biographies 

April Herlevi is a senior research scientist in CNA’s China and Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Division. 

Christopher Cairns is a research scientist in CNA’s China and Indo-Pacific Secu...

Dmitry Gorenburg, winner of this year’s Trustees Award, joins the show to discuss his 20-year career at CNA and how the study of Russia has changed during that time.   

Guest Biography 

Dmitry Gorenburg is a Senior Research Scientist in CNA’s Russia Studies Program. He is an expert on security issues in the former Soviet Union, the Russian military, Russian foreign policy, and ethnic politics...

This episode examines how uncrewed systems have been used in the Ukraine war and how the US can use this information to develop countermeasures. 

Guest Biographies

Samuel Bendett is an advisor with CNA’s Russia Studies Program. His research focuses on Russian defense and technology developments; uncrewed, robotic, and autonomous military systems; artificial intelligence; and Russian military c...

This episode explores the political, military, and economic dimensions of the relationship between Russia and Iran. 

Guest Biographies

Dr. Elizabeth Wishnick is an expert on China-Russian relations, Chinese foreign policy, and Arctic strategy. At CNA, Wishnick contributes her dual regional expertise on China and Russia, including professional proficiency in both languages, to research and anal...

Our partners from the FAA’s Center for Excellence’s ASSUREd Safe join the show to discuss integrating uncrewed aerial systems into the national airspace. 

Guest Biographies

BJ McClenton is the Associate Director of ASSUREd Safe, brings over 20 years of first responder and emergency service experience as a firefighter and emergency medical technician. Prior to joining ASSUREd Safe, he spent 15 ...

This episode covers South Korean President Yoon’s December 3 declaration of martial law, his impeachment, and what this means for US/ROK security cooperation. 

Guest Biographies

Dr. Thomas Bickford is a principal research scientist in the CNA Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Program. His research has focused on Chinese maritime strategy, Chinese national security policy, and China’s relations wit...

This episode covers technological innovation in the People’s Republic of China, including developments in AI, subsea sensors, and the commercial space industry. 

Guest Biographies 

April Herlevi is a senior research scientist in CNA’s China and Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Division. 

Christopher Cairns is a research scientist in CNA’s China and Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Divis...

Experts from across CNA join the show to discuss their research on challenges the industrial base faces in meeting U.S. government demands. 

Guest Biographies 

Dr. Charles A. Cartier is a research scientist in CNA’s Gaming and Integration Program. He was a lead analyst and co-designer of the CAMOLAND wargame on Clothing and Textiles for the Defense Logistics Agency. 

Dawn Thomas ...

This episode covers the fall of the Assad regime and what it means for Syria, Russia, Iran, and Turkey. 

Guest Biographies

Michael Connell is a specialist in Russia and the Middle East in CNA’s Russia Studies Program. His primary area of expertise is the armed forces of Iran and Russia, and he has published extensively on these topics both inside and outside of CNA.

Jeffrey Edmond...

This episode covers how Taiwan applies lessons from the Ukraine War to prepare for a potential invasion from the People’s Republic of China. 

Guest Biographies

April A. Herlevi is a Senior Research Scientist in CNA’s China Studies program. She is an expert on the People’s Republic of China (PRC) foreign and security policy, economic statecraft for technology acquisition, and the increasing rol...

The Chief of Staff to the Secretary of the Navy asked CNA for recommendations on how the Navy can better position itself for such competition, that is, below the threshold of armed conflict.

In this episode, three experts from across CNA join the show to discuss their specific recommendations and what the future fleet needs to look like to implement them. 

Guest Biographies

David M. Finkelstein is vice president and director of CN...

This episode covers RShiny, a CNA-funded dashboard government leaders can use to examine the Navy Shipbuilding Plan.

Guest Biographies

Rachel Hartley is a research analyst for CNA’s Force Optimization and Readiness Generation program. She specializes in performance-to-plan Human Resources and addressing recruiting crises.  

Further Reading

CNA’s Innovation Incubator

In this episode, Ralph Espach and Stephanie Stapleton join the show to discuss their assessment of AUKUS’s implementation.  

Guest Biographies

Ralph Espach is an expert in U.S.-Latin American relations, U.S. security assistance and cooperation in Latin America, and the assessment, monitoring, and evaluation of U.S. strategies and programs. His work focuses on U.S. security relations across the...

Timothy Ditter joins the show to discuss his report on China’s military presence in Africa, including its first overseas military base in Djibouti.  

Guest Biographies

Timothy Ditter is a senior research scientist in CNA’s China Studies Program. His work covers PLA amphibious warfare, China’s military modernization and expansion, China’s growing nuclear weapons program, and China’s nascent glo...

This episode examines the views of three stakeholder communities within Moscow’s interconnected nuclear ecosystem and how they view Russia’s nuclear doctrine. 

*A previous version of this episode incorrectly stated that Russia's Security Council changed its nuclear doctrine during a September 25 meeting. The correct telling is that Russian President Vladimir Putin soft-launched proposed changes to the doct...