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The International Security Podcast

International Security

Leading scholars provide insight on urgent policy debates. Jeff Friedman of Dartmouth College interviews contributors to the premiere peer-reviewed journal of security studies. They offer sophisticated, authoritative analyses of contemporary, theoretical, and historical security issues from the role of China in the world and cyber in international security to the long history of ethnic cleansing in Europe. The podcast is produced at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. International Security is a quarterly journal edited at the Belfer Center and published by MIT Press.

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S2 · E11
July 16 · 27 min
11 - The Ideology Trap: China and the Limits of Cold War Analogies
What role do ideological differences play in great power relations? Many frame current U.S.-China ideological competition as analogous to the Cold War. But Eun A Jo and Jessica Chen Weiss argue that there was no single Cold War, and that contemporary China differs in important ways from the Soviet Union. They discuss how ideologies vary on two dimensions: universal vs. particularist content, and expansive vs limited scope of promotion.
S2 · E10
April 29 · 40 min
10 – Why Populists Love Dead Soldiers and Hate Live Officers
Right-wing populist leaders love soldiers (especially fallen ones) and the trappings of military life. But their love affair with the military rarely endures. Ron Krebs discusses how romanticizing and mythologizing the military solves a political problem for populists: how to mobilize people power without actually granting power to the people.
S2 · E9
February 2 · 40 min
9 – The Rules-Based International Order
How did the rules-based international order come to be, and is it worth preserving? Liberal internationalists, who want to preserve that order, make claims about how the rules-based order emerged and about the role played by key institutions. Marc Trachtenberg argues that historical evidence does not support these claims. He also suggests that there are viable alternatives to the liberal international order—alternatives based on certain traditional ideas about how foreign policy should be conduc
S2 · E8
Oct 10, 2025 · 35 min
8 – Airpower and the Sino-American Contest for Military Primacy in Asia
Nicholas Anderson and Daryl Press argue that the current U.S. approach for operating airpower to defend Taiwan risks catastrophic defeat. They have created a new, unclassified, and transparent model that explores multiple scenarios in a Taiwan conflict. They find that in such a conflict, the United States would likely lose hundreds of aircraft to Chinese strikes on airfields. They also suggest that the U.S. Air Force’s proposed solution to this possibility, the Agile Combat Employment doctrine,
S2 · E7
Jun 24, 2025 · 30 min
7 – The Realist Debate over How to Respond to China
Will China make a bid for regional hegemony in East Asia, and can it succeed? In the modern era, only the United States has achieved regional hegemony—all other attempts have met catastrophic failure. China should not pursue hegemony, and the United States should adopt a measured approach to China’s rise, facilitating balancing behavior by the United States’ Asian partners while working with China to create a more stable regional order.
S2 · E6
Mar 31, 2025 · 37 min
6 – Putin’s Preventive War
Episode Summary: Why did Vladimir Putin decide to invade Ukraine in 2022? Barry Posen argues that Putin’s decision is consistent with the logic of preventive war. Increasing U.S. and NATO military cooperation with Ukraine likely convinced Putin that he did not have much time to forestall Ukraine’s NATO membership, which would shift the balance of power against Russia.
S2 · E5
Feb 19, 2025 · 38 min
5 – Competing Visions of Restraint
At least since the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, some scholars and policymakers have called for retrenching the United States’ global military presence. Miranda Priebe and John Schuessler discuss realist, conservative, and progressive visions of restraint. They draw out the underlying beliefs that draw each group to a grand strategy of restraint and highlight the divisions between and within these groups.
S2 · E4
Nov 12, 2024 · 24 min
4 – Do Autocrats Need a Foreign Enemy?
Conventional thinking suggests that autocrats need foreign enemies to bolster their regimes’ popularity at home. Russia’s Vladimir Putin is often thought to reap domestic legitimacy from belligerence. But as Adam Lenton and Henry Hale discuss, Putin wins as much popular support when he presents himself as prudent and cooperative rather than as hostile and aggressive. This suggests that Russia’s full-scale 2022 invasion of Ukraine was not driven by domestic political necessity. Indeed, autocrats
S2 · E3
Oct 10, 2024 · 27 min
3 – Fatalism and War
Dominic Tierney discusses his recent article, “The Iron Dice: Fatalism and War.” National leaders often exhibit fatalism, or the belief that events are guided by forces beyond their control. Fatalism can help leaders avoid responsibility for costly outcomes and protect their self-image. Drawing on case studies from World War I and II, Tierney shows how fatalism can be an important cause of war, especially when combined with a perceived window of opportunity. Fatalism is more likely in regard to
S2 · E2
Jun 18, 2024 · 24 min
2 - Clerics, Monarchs, and the Ethnoreligious Cleansing of Western Europe
Şener Aktürk discusses his recent article, “Not So Innocent: Clerics, Monarchs, and the Ethnoreligious Cleansing of Western Europe.” Ethnic cleansing is often seen as a specifically modern phenomenon. But as Akturk explains, the medieval Catholic Church facilitated the ethnoreligious cleansing of Muslim and Jewish communities across Western Europe. Akturk describes the geopolitical conditions that made this possible and his findings’ implications for twentieth- and twenty-first-century ethnic cl
S2 · E1
Mar 20, 2024 · 21 min
1 - A ‘Nuclear Umbrella’ for Ukraine?
In this episode, Matthew Evangelista discusses his recent International Security article, “A ‘Nuclear Umbrella’ for Ukraine? Precedents and Possibilities for Postwar European Security.” How can Ukraine and Europe deter further Russian aggression after the Russo-Ukrainian war ends? The conventional wisdom holds that Ukraine should join NATO to shelter under the U.S. nuclear umbrella. Evangelista challenges this assertion, arguing that nuclear deterrence was never tested during the Cold War. He pr
S1 · E16
Jun 22, 2021 · 36 min
16-Concealing and Revealing Clandestine Military Capabilities
In this episode, we explore when and why states reveal their clandestine military capabilities. Specifically, we discuss the role of the private sector in helping to develop and conceal such capabilities. Under what conditions do states benefit from revealing their clandestine military capabilities? What role does the defense industry play in helping to maintain states’ military secrets? Compared to the Cold War period, is it becoming more or less difficult to safeguard military secrets? Listen
S1 · E17
Jun 22, 2021 · 32 min
17-The Little-Known History of Radiological Weapons
In this episode, we examine the rise and demise of radiological weapons programs in the United States and the Soviet Union in the 1940s and 1950s. In particular, we discuss how this underexplored history informs the pursuit of radiological weapons by state actors today. What are radiological weapons and how are they different from nuclear weapons? What factors led to the rise and decline of radiological weapons programs in the United States and the Soviet Union? Are radiological weapons a thing
S1 · E15
May 6, 2021 · 35 min
15-Technology, Diplomacy, and the North Korean Nuclear Crisis
In this episode, we explore the politics of technology and the North Korean nuclear crisis. In particular, we focus on how lessons from the 1994 Agreed Framework between the United States and North Korea can be applied to nonproliferation diplomacy today. Why did the 1994 Agreed Framework fail, and what impact did this failure have on U.S.-North Korea relations? What have we learned from these challenges in proliferation crisis diplomacy? Can lessons from the Agreed Framework be applied to U.S.
S1 · E14
Mar 16, 2021 · 37 min
14-Iraq, Weapons of Mass Destruction, and the Cheater’s Dilemma
In this episode, we discuss the lead-up to the Iraq War and how states respond to international pressure regarding weapons of mass destruction (WMD) programs. In particular, we explore the dilemma faced by Iraq from 1991 to 2003 concerning how much to disclose about its past WMD capabilities. What does it mean to have a “cheater’s dilemma”? How does new evidence of this dilemma challenge the conventional wisdom on Iraq’s behavior at the time? Can we apply the concept of a cheater’s dilemma to c
S1 · E13
Dec 10, 2020 · 41 min
13-What Allies Want: A Look at East Asia
In this episode, we explore the politics of alliance relationship management and reputational concerns during international crises. In particular, we focus on the United States, Taiwan, and other partnerships in East Asia. What does it mean to have a reputation for being a “good ally”? Do states always want their partners to be “loyal”? What types of statements and behaviors reassure nervous allies? Where is America’s reputation most on the line in East Asia? Listen to find out!
S1 · E12
Oct 9, 2020 · 42 min
12-Liberal Values, Material Interests, and the Inconsistencies of U.S. Democracy Promotion
In this episode, we explore the tension between liberal values and material interests in U.S. foreign policy, as well as examine the inconsistencies of Western-led democracy promotion. Does the United States truly prioritize democracy promotion in its foreign policy? How does the United States’ definition of democracy influence its democracy promotion efforts abroad? Does the West’s failure to intervene in the current protests in Belarus represent a departure from Wilsonian ideals? Listen to t
S1 · E11
Aug 20, 2020 · 43 min
11-Rethinking the Norms and Practices of U.S. Civil-Military Relations
In this episode, we address the current state of civil-military relations in the United States, explore the paradoxes of having an “apolitical” military as envisioned by Samuel Huntington, and contemplate the future of civil-military relations. Are civil-military relations really in crisis in the United States today? If existing norms are not working, what should the norms and practices of civil-military relations be? What role should retired military officers play in government and public life
S1 · E10
Jul 24, 2020 · 43 min
10-Great Power Politics in the Middle East and Arab-Israeli Conflict—Détente to 2020
In this episode, we examine the history of great power politics in the Middle East and the Arab-Israeli conflict, with a focus on the period of détente between Washington and Moscow during the Cold War. We then assess major power relations in the region today and possible future trends. Why did great power détente fail in the Middle East, and what impact did this failure have on the Arab-Israeli conflict and Israeli-Palestinian peace process? Can lessons from the Cold War period of détente be
S1 · E9
Jun 18, 2020 · 40 min
09-U.S. Electoral Constraints, Military Strategy, and the Iraq War
In this episode, we examine the U.S. electoral calendar’s impact on military strategy during the Iraq War. How did U.S. electoral considerations impact military decisions at the presidential level, such as the 2007 surge and the 2011 withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq? In what ways did these considerations interact with local conditions on the ground and Iraqi domestic politics? Will the current U.S. electoral cycle influence foreign policy decision-making regarding Iraq and the Middle East m

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