The Truth of the Matter

CSIS | Center for Strategic and International Studies

A weekly analysis of the complex policy issues driving the news.

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20 episodes
Updated Jul 10, 2025

Episodes20

Newest first

AI Competition and Security: A discussion with Kemba Walden and Devin Lynch
Kemba Walden, president of the Paladin Global Institute and former Acting National Cyber Director, and Devin Lynch, senior director of the Paladin Global Institute and former director in the Office of the National Cyber Director, join the podcast to discuss their new report, “The AI Tech Stack: A Primer for Tech and Cyber Policy.”
Jul 10, 2025 · 31 min
Keeping Our Beaches Clean with the Surfrider Foundation
Mara Dias, Water Quality Initiative senior manager at the Surfrider Foundation, joins the podcast to discuss how the Foundation's Blue Water Task Force helps monitor water quality at beaches across the country and the public health implications of reducing contamination.
Jul 3, 2025 · 16 min
NATO’s “Brain-Dead” Summit
CSIS’s Max Bergmann, director of the CSIS Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program, joins the podcast to discuss what really happened at the NATO summit and how defense spending will impact European economies going forward.
Jun 30, 2025 · 24 min
Did U.S. Strikes Prevent an Iranian Bomb—or Provoke One?
CSIS’s Heather Williams, director of the CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues, joins the podcast to discuss the uncertain status of Iran’s nuclear program following Operation Midnight Hammer and what we should be watching for next.
Jun 30, 2025 · 22 min
Is Ideology Blinding Iran to Reality?
Ambassador Dennis Ross, counselor and William Davidson Distinguished Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy and best known for serving in five U.S. presidential administrations, joins the podcast to discuss whether the war represents a turning point in Israel-Iran relations, if Israel exceeded its traditional defense posture, and how Iran should consider the state of play going forward.
Jun 26, 2025 · 28 min
Emergency Podcast: How Degraded is Iran’s Nuclear and Missile Program?
CSIS Missile Threat Program director Tom Karako joins the podcast to assess conflicting reports about the degradation of Iran’s nuclear and missile program and how soon Iran may be able to rebuild.
Jun 25, 2025 · 13 min
12-Day War: Now What?
CSIS’s Jon Alterman, a longtime Middle East scholar and geopolitical expert, joins the podcast to discuss potential outcomes from Israel and Iran’s 12 day war and shaky ceasefire.
Jun 24, 2025 · 25 min
Emergency Podcast: Iran Strikes Back
CSIS Middle East Program Director Mona Yacoubian joins the podcast to discuss Monday’s strike by Iran on Al Udeid Air Base, the largest American military installation in the Middle East and the broader strategic implications of the conflict.
Jun 23, 2025 · 15 min
Google's Gopi Kallayil on the AI Revolution
In this crossover episode, Mariana and Andrew are joined by Gopi Kallayil, Google’s Chief Business Strategist for AI. Gopi discusses how AI's evolution is reshaping industries and enhancing human cognition and creativity. They explore the balance between AI's promise and risks, emphasizing the need for new checks and balances.
Jun 20, 2025 · 47 min
How Might Iran Conflict End?
CSIS’s Norm Roule, a former senior U.S. intelligence officer for the Middle East joins the podcast to discuss how conflict with Iran might end, what regime change could look like, the wider implications for the United States and the region and more.
Jun 20, 2025 · 29 min
Israel’s Strategic Objectives and the Future of Warfare
CSIS’s Eliot A. Cohen, former dean of Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) and former councilor to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice joins the podcast to discuss Israel’s strategic objectives, potential regime change in Iran and what Israel’s military operation indicates for the future of warfare.
Jun 18, 2025 · 23 min
Israel-Iran: Is Time Running Out?
CSIS's Tom Karako, director of the Missile Defense Project and senior fellow in the Defense and Security Department, joins the podcast to discuss the Israel-Iran conflict—who's winning, who's losing, whether the United States will get involved, and what we should be looking for next.
Jun 17, 2025 · 18 min
Emergency Podcast: Israeli Strike on Iran
CSIS’ Seth Jones, Emily Harding and Ben Jensen join the podcast to discuss Israel’s strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, leadership and other targets.
Jun 13, 2025 · 30 min
Can We Share Spectrum?
Tom Karako, director of the CSIS Missile Defense Project, joins the podcast to discuss the intersection of spectrum policy and defense and whether spectrum can be effectively shared between commercial and defense needs.
Jun 9, 2025 · 13 min
What is the End Point of U.S.-China Competition?
Dr. Tom Christensen, Columbia University professor, former State Department official, and new CSIS Pritzker Chair, joins the podcast to discuss U.S. strategic competition with China and how we should reframe our thinking about it.
Jun 3, 2025 · 26 min
Russia’s Battlefield Woes
Seth G. Jones, director of the CSIS Defense and Security Department and Harold Brown Chair, joins the podcast to discuss the state of the war in Ukraine and a new CSIS report on Russia’s battlefield performance.
May 29, 2025 · 17 min
The Golden Dome and the New Missile Age
Tom Karako, director of the CSIS Missile Defense Project and senior fellow in the CSIS Defense and Security Department, joins the podcast to discuss the development of the Golden Dome and how missile defense has evolved over the last decade.
May 15, 2025 · 20 min
Trump’s Middle East Minerals Deal
Gracelin Baskaran, director of the CSIS Critical Minerals Security Program, joins the podcast to discuss potential minerals deals with the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar during President Trump’s trip to the Middle East.
May 15, 2025 · 16 min
Emergency Podcast: U.S.-China Tariff Pause
Scott Kennedy, senior adviser and director of the CSIS Trustee Chair in Chinese Business and Economics, and Philip Luck, director of the CSIS Economics Program and Scholl Chair in International Business, join the podcast to discuss the 90-day suspension in the trade war between the United States and China.
May 14, 2025 · 27 min
Analyzing Missile Attacks in Ukraine
CSIS’s Benjamin Jensen, director of the CSIS Futures Lab and senior fellow in the CSIS Defense and Security Department, joins the podcast to discuss the CSIS Russian Firepower Strike Tracker and how to quantify wartime tactics.
May 9, 2025 · 31 min

The Truth of the Matter

AI Competition and Security: A discussion with Kemba Walden and Devin Lynch

Keeping Our Beaches Clean with the Surfrider Foundation

NATO’s “Brain-Dead” Summit

Did U.S. Strikes Prevent an Iranian Bomb—or Provoke One?

Is Ideology Blinding Iran to Reality?

Emergency Podcast: How Degraded is Iran’s Nuclear and Missile Program?

12-Day War: Now What?

Emergency Podcast: Iran Strikes Back

Google's Gopi Kallayil on the AI Revolution

How Might Iran Conflict End?

Israel’s Strategic Objectives and the Future of Warfare

Israel-Iran: Is Time Running Out?

Emergency Podcast: Israeli Strike on Iran

Can We Share Spectrum?

What is the End Point of U.S.-China Competition?

Russia’s Battlefield Woes

The Golden Dome and the New Missile Age

Trump’s Middle East Minerals Deal

Emergency Podcast: U.S.-China Tariff Pause

Analyzing Missile Attacks in Ukraine