Listen in on FDD Events featuring discussions on today’s most pressing national security and foreign policy challenges and opportunities with top policymakers and leading experts.Webpage: https://www.fdd.org/events/

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The United States leads the world in frontier artificial intelligence. However, cutting edge technology used by a limited number of people is a trophy, not a capability – and the contest with China will not be decided only at the frontier. History is unambiguous on this point: the nations that rise during technological revolutions are not always those that invent the breakthrough, but rather the ones that adopt it fastest across their institutions. For the U.S. military, that distinction is now the central question of its advantage.If the most sophisticated technology on earth reaches only a fraction of the force, how much advantage does it confer? How is the Pentagon moving from procuring AI to diffusing it across the force? What cultural and organizational changes does an “AI-first” military require? And how does the United States build and keep the technical talent inside government, turning tools into outcomes before its competitors close the gap?To discuss these questions and others, the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) hosts a conversation with FDD Visiting Military Analyst Major Megan “Napalm” Hainline, F-16 instructor pilot and AI leader; FDD Adjunct Senior Fellow Isaac “Ike” Harris, executive director of the Frontier Security Institute; and Leah Siskind, FDD AI research fellow. The discussion will be moderated by RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery, senior director of FDD’s Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/10/01/winning-the-adoption-war-diffusing-ai-across-the-us-military/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/10/01/winning-the-adoption-war-diffusing-ai-across-the-us-military/</a>

Winning the Adoption War: Diffusing AI Across the U.S. Military

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NATO’s power projection depends on the civilian digital systems and physical infrastructure that enable military movement across roads, railways, ports, and airfields. Yet since the end of the Cold War, Europe’s investment in defense-related infrastructure has not kept pace with the demands of a changing security environment.Russia’s war against Ukraine has made the stakes clear. In a conflict with NATO, Russia is likely to target the transportation, energy, and communications networks allied forces would rely on to deploy, reinforce, and sustain operations across the continent. At the same time, Chinese state-linked companies have acquired stakes in strategically important European critical infrastructure, including ports and energy grids, even as Chinese hackers have penetrated the same systems in the United States. Europe has begun investing in military mobility and streamlining cross-border movement, but major gaps remain between NATO’s battle plans and the infrastructure needed to execute them at speed and scale.To examine these challenges and the steps NATO and its allies should take, the Foundation for Defense of Democracies hosts a conversation with Tom Goffus, FDD adjunct fellow and former NATO assistant secretary general for operations and former U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defense for European and NATO policy; RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery, senior director, FDD’s Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation; and Jiwon Ma, senior policy analyst, FDD’s Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation. The conversation will be moderated by Daniella Cheslow, National Security Daily anchor at Politico, with opening remarks by Bradley Bowman, senior director, FDD’s Center on Military and Political Power.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/09/28/planes-trains-and-military-mobility-strengthening-nato-through-critical-infrastructure-security/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/09/28/planes-trains-and-military-mobility-strengthening-nato-through-critical-infrastructure-security/</a>

Planes, Trains, and Military Mobility: Strengthening NATO Through Critical Infrastructure Security

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The United States is confronting one of the most dangerous geostrategic environments since 1945. China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea are deepening cooperation across economic, cyber, technology, and military domains. That cooperation is making each adversary more formidable and increasing the odds the United States will confront simultaneous major wars. Many longstanding U.S. policies and assumptions are now dangerously outdated.How have China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea been cooperating? What are the consequences of that cooperation? And what grand strategy must Washington adopt to strengthen American security, bolster allies and partners, and weaken the Axis?The newly released book, <a href="https://www.fdd.org/analysis/axis-of-aggressors/" rel="nofollow">Axis of Aggressors: Countering the Cooperation of China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea</a>, answers these questions.Axis of Aggressors has been widely praised by foreign policy experts. Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the book provides “a clear understanding of this Axis of Aggressors, as well as the urgent steps our nation must take to deter our adversaries.” Matt Pottinger, former deputy national security advisor, calls the book “a gift to concerned citizens, strategists, and lawmakers,” noting that “[i]f Washington had heeded a book like this in the 1930s, we might have forestalled much of the bloodshed of the 1940s.”To discuss Axis of Aggressors and the growing threat posed by America’s authoritarian adversaries, FDD hosts a fireside chat with Sen. Todd Young (R-IN), a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, the Senate Committee on Finance, and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. The fireside chat will be followed by a panel featuring Bradley L. Bowman, Elaine K. Dezenski, and RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery, all senior leaders at FDD’s Centers on American Power and authors of Axis of Aggressors. The panel will be moderated by NBC News’ Dan De Luce with introductory remarks delivered by Ryan Brobst, deputy director of FDD’s Center on Military and Political Power.

Axis of Aggressors: Confronting America's Authoritarian Adversaries

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President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping are set to meet in Washington on September 24 to address technology, AI, rare earths, Taiwan, and major security crises — a summit that observers expect to manage the current U.S.-China stalemate rather than resolve it, as both sides use the present lull to position for future leverage. FDD&#39;s Craig Singleton, senior fellow and senior director of FDD&#39;s China Program, and RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery, senior fellow focusing on China&#39;s regional military expansion, will preview the summit on a media call, addressing Washington&#39;s and Beijing&#39;s competing goals, including how a possible delay in the next Taiwan arms package could be read as a temporary pause by Washington but as precedent by Beijing.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/09/16/previewing-the-trump-xi-summit-2/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/09/16/previewing-the-trump-xi-summit-2/</a>

Previewing the Trump-Xi Summit

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The global economy has entered a period of fundamental realignment. As the Trump administration deploys tariffs to reshape trading relationships and redefine economic alliances, policymakers worldwide are adapting to a new reality in which economic security and national security have become inseparable. At the forefront of this effort are America’s tools of positive economic power – the institutions that are already mobilizing U.S. public and private capital, financing critical infrastructure, and expanding trade relationships. Yet new capabilities are essential, including coordinated interagency economic packages designed to stabilize transitioning regimes in countries such as Venezuela, and potentially Iran and Cuba – with clear guardrails to ensure that U.S. economic engagement advances strategic objectives without compromising American values or long-term interests.How is positive economic power evolving in response to the current moment? How can the responsible agencies complement sanctions and export controls, and more seamlessly integrate their responses? And what tools and capacities does the United States need to deploy economic power effectively?To discuss the evolving architecture of American economic statecraft, please join FDD for a fireside chat with Ben Black, CEO of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), and Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-TN), chairman of the Senate Subcommittees on Financial Services and General Government; National Security and International Trade and Finance; and State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development. The conversation will be moderated by Elaine Dezenski, senior director and head of FDD’s Center on Economic and Financial Power, with introductory remarks by Daniel Swift, senior research analyst at FDD’s Center on Economic and Financial Power.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/09/15/us-economic-statecraft-in-a-realigned-world/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/09/15/us-economic-statecraft-in-a-realigned-world/</a>

U.S. Economic Statecraft in a Realigned World

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As the 2026 UN General Assembly convenes in New York, FDD experts will preview the administration&#39;s UN reform priorities and the major issues on this year&#39;s agenda. Richard Goldberg will discuss implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2803 establishing the Board of Peace, the Secretary-General selection process, and U.S. efforts to close agencies like UNRWA and consolidate overlapping UN bureaucracies. Ben Cohen will assess Zelenskyy&#39;s prospects for rallying support at UNGA and the UN&#39;s response to Iran&#39;s human rights crisis ahead of an October Fact-Finding Mission briefing. Richard Goldberg is an FDD Senior Advisor specializing in international organizations who previously served in senior roles at the White House National Energy Dominance Council, the Interior Department, and the White House NSC. Ben Cohen is an FDD Research Fellow focusing on international organizations, including the UN, and a former foreign correspondent who reported from conflict zones across Europe, Asia, and Africa.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/09/10/previewing-the-2026-un-general-assembly/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/09/10/previewing-the-2026-un-general-assembly/ </a>

Previewing the 2026 UN General Assembly

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For decades, American universities have served as engines of innovation, scientific discovery, and economic growth – institutions now targeted by the Chinese Communist Party’s efforts to acquire technology, talent, and research with potential military applications. Through its military-civil fusion strategy, Beijing systematically works to eliminate the distinction between civilian and military research, enabling breakthroughs developed in academic settings to support China’s defense modernization and strategic ambitions.Congress, federal agencies, and some university leaders have taken important steps in recent years to strengthen research security and improve transparency surrounding foreign funding, talent recruitment programs, and research partnerships. However, significant vulnerabilities remain.To discuss the evolving research security landscape, please join FDD for a conversation featuring House Select Committee on China Chairman John Moolenaar (R-MI) and Senator Jim Banks (R-IN). Moderated by FDD Senior Fellow Craig Singleton, the conversation will examine the challenges posed by the Chinese Communist Party’s efforts to leverage American universities for strategic gain and potential safeguards in this year’s National Defense Authorization Act.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/07/14/countering-the-ccps-exploitation-of-us-academic-research/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/07/14/countering-the-ccps-exploitation-of-us-academic-research/</a>

Countering the CCP's Exploitation of U.S. Academic Research

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As NATO leaders prepare to convene in Ankara on July 7-8, the alliance faces a set of questions that will shape its future stability and America&#39;s role within it. From the Trump administration&#39;s push to shift rather than share the defense burden to the level of Western support for Ukraine, the decisions made in Ankara will carry lasting consequences.FDD experts Bradley Bowman, Sinan Ciddi, and Cameron McMillan brief journalists ahead of the summit, drawing on their work tracking America&#39;s force posture in Europe, Turkey&#39;s foreign policy, and the broader contest between the free world and the Axis of Aggressors: Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/07/02/previewing-the-nato-summit-in-ankara/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/07/02/previewing-the-nato-summit-in-ankara/</a>

Previewing the NATO Summit in Ankara

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The Palestinian statehood narrative rests on a foundation that FDD’s Hussain Abdul-Hussain argues was constructed, not inherited. In The Arab Case for Israel, he traces Palestinian national identity to 1964 and inter-Arab rivalry, not ancient roots, and contends that the “lost state” narrative is a vision for a Middle East without Israel, not a recoverable past. U.S. pressure on Iran’s nuclear program, Israel’s campaign against Hezbollah, and the demonstrated dividends of the Abraham Accords have cracked open a moment of genuine regional realignment. Hussain’s argument isn’t academic — it’s a call for Arab leaders to seize that window and embrace normalization publicly, before it closes.Join FDD for a policy conversation on what Arab-Israeli peace actually requires, and whether the region is ready to get there. FDD research fellow and author Hussain Abdul-Hussain will be joined by Morgan Ortagus, former U.S. deputy Presidential Envoy to the Middle East, in a discussion moderated by David Schenker, Taube senior fellow and director of the Rubin Program on Arab Politics at the Washington Institute.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/06/11/the-arab-case-for-israel-history-mythology-and-pathways-to-peace/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/06/11/the-arab-case-for-israel-history-mythology-and-pathways-to-peace/</a>

The Arab Case for Israel: History, Mythology, and Pathways to Peace

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A new joint commission from FDD and CSIS has released findings and an implementation plan for standing up a dedicated U.S. Cyber Force, concluding that the existing service-based model for cyber force generation cannot meet the demands of an increasingly aggressive threat environment. The commission found that recruiting, training, and retention challenges across four separate services have left the Cyber Mission Force short on senior technical talent, while Chinese military and intelligence services are estimated to field roughly ten times as many offensive cyber operators. Featuring RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery, FDD Senior Fellow and Senior Director of the Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation; LTG (Ret.) Edward Cardon, former commander of Army Cyber Command; Joshua Stiefel, former House Armed Services Committee professional staff member; and Lauryn Williams, deputy director of CSIS&#39;s Strategic Technologies Program. The call was moderated by FDD Senior Director of Communications Joe Dougherty.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/06/01/findings-of-the-commission-on-cyber-force-generation/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/06/01/findings-of-the-commission-on-cyber-force-generation/ </a>

Findings of the Commission on Cyber Force Generation

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The United States is in the early stages of a generational energy buildout driven by soaring AI demand and accelerating digitization of the grid itself. But even as hundreds of billions of dollars flow into batteries, power electronics, and the embedded software that will give America’s electrical infrastructure its digital nervous system, the United States remains dependent on China for the tools to build it. Beijing dominates much of this “electrotech stack,” and that dependence is not only creating supply vulnerabilities – it’s threatening to undermine the very security advantages a modernized grid is meant to deliver.The most pressing danger, however, may not be Chinese hardware but rather American policy paralysis: overcorrection that delays the technologies this buildout demands, or indecision that continues ceding strategic ground to Beijing. A new paper by FDD and Carnegie Mellon’s Institute for Strategy and Technology (CMIST), <a href="https://www.cmu.edu/cmist/tech-and-policy/electrotech-moneyball/index.html" rel="nofollow">Electrotech Moneyball: An Industrial Strategy for Ranking Risk and Opportunity in Energy &amp; AI Supply Chains</a>, responds to this moment with a clear framework for achieving the greatest strategic return.To discuss “Electrotech Moneyball,” FDD and CMIST will host an on-the-record discussion moderated by Harry Krejsa, director of studies at CMIST, featuring Phoebe Benich, non-resident fellow at CMIST; RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery, senior director of FDD’s Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation (CCTI); Jackie Siebens, vice president of public affairs at Helion Energy and non-resident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council; and Dr. Emma Stewart, non-resident fellow at CMIST and lead for Idaho National Laboratory’s Center for Securing Digital Energy Technology.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/05/28/the-electrotech-stack-at-risk-china-ai-and-americas-energy-supply-chains/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/05/28/the-electrotech-stack-at-risk-china-ai-and-americas-energy-supply-chains/</a>

The Electrotech Stack at Risk: China, AI, and America's Energy Supply Chains

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As NATO Foreign Ministers convene and ceasefire negotiations remain unresolved, the state of Ukraine&#39;s military — its resilience, its vulnerabilities, and its strategic horizon — demands sober assessment from those who have seen it firsthand. RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery just completed two weeks in Ukraine, meeting with senior intelligence and armed forces leaders in Kyiv and Kharkiv, conducting pro-bono training with Ukrainian military units, and participating in an influence operations conference. His observations arrive at a moment when U.S. policy decisions are actively reshaping the conditions under which Ukraine fights.

The Risks Ahead for Ukraine

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As President Trump prepares to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, the summit arrives not as a diplomatic breakthrough but as a carefully managed pause in an accelerating strategic competition. FDD Senior Fellow Craig Singleton framed the meeting as a continuation of last fall&#39;s tactical trade truce — &#34;stalemate with a stage&#34; — in which both sides are protecting the trade and tariff lane while continuing to apply pressure everywhere else. Expected deliverables remain narrow by design: agricultural purchases, Boeing orders, and a Board of Trade mechanism to separate lower-risk commerce from sensitive technology sectors.Elaine Dezenski, senior director of FDD&#39;s Center on Economic and Financial Power, identified China&#39;s dollar dependency as its structural Achilles heel and flagged the fentanyl front as largely unresolved, with roughly 97% of Chinese precursor chemical manufacturers now accepting cryptocurrency, shifting money flows beyond the reach of regulated financial institutions. On Iran, she noted Beijing&#39;s dual-track posture: publicly ordering Chinese firms to defy U.S. sanctions on Iranian refineries while quietly directing its largest banks to suspend new loans to those same entities.RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery, senior director of FDD&#39;s Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation, identified Taiwan as the summit&#39;s highest-risk variable, warning that any restraint on foreign military sales would be deeply damaging given a U.S. arms delivery backlog already exceeding $20 billion. He cautioned equally against any shift in declaratory policy toward opposing rather than merely not supporting Taiwan independence, which Beijing would immediately weaponize in a lawfare campaign against Taipei.Craig Singleton is a senior fellow and senior director of FDD&#39;s China Program. Elaine Dezenski is senior director and head of FDD&#39;s Center on Economic and Financial Power. RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery is a senior fellow and senior director of FDD&#39;s Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation. The call was moderated by Joe Dougherty, FDD&#39;s senior director of Communications.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/05/07/previewing-the-trump-xi-summit/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/05/07/previewing-the-trump-xi-summit/ </a>

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The conflict in Iran reveals urgent lessons about AI as a weapon of war and statecraft. Led by one of Washington&#39;s top experts on Iranian strategy, military doctrine, and the IRGC, this panel provides an assessment of how the Iranian regime has used autonomous systems and machine learning to expand its reach; how AI tools have supercharged propaganda campaigns and cyber-enabled information warfare; and in the financial realm, how emerging technologies have enabled large-scale fraud and illicit funding of Tehran&#39;s proxies. What does the Iranian regime&#39;s battlefield experimentation reveal? And how can the policy, technical, and intelligence communities respond?To explore these questions and more, join Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior director of FDD&#39;s Iran Program; Max Lesser, senior analyst on emerging threats at FDD’s Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation (CCTI); and Max Meizlish, research fellow at FDD&#39;s the Center on Economic and Financial Power (CEFP), at the Special Competitive Studies Project&#39;s AI+ Expo.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/05/06/ai-on-the-front-line-lessons-from-the-iran-conflict/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/05/06/ai-on-the-front-line-lessons-from-the-iran-conflict/</a>

AI on the Front Line: Lessons from the Iran Conflict

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Join Elaine Dezenski, CEFP senior director and head; Josh Birenbaum, CEFP deputy director; and Thomas Hill, as they break down a forthcoming CEFP memo, ‘A Gameplan for American Economic Security.’ This comprehensive and actionable economic security framework articulates how the United States can strengthen alliances, reinforce market transparency and accountability, and defend against growing economic coercion from adversarial states exploiting market vulnerabilities. The memo offers policymakers and the private sector new ways of addressing emerging economic and national security threats and opportunities. The conversation will begin with introductory remarks by Juan C. Zarate, CEFP chairman, and is moderated by the Washington Post&#39;s Warren P. Strobel.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/05/04/a-gameplan-for-american-economic-security-supercharging-u-s-statecraft-from-an-economic-pentagon-to-the-near-global-economy/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/05/04/a-gameplan-for-american-economic-security-supercharging-u-s-statecraft-from-an-economic-pentagon-to-the-near-global-economy/</a>

A Gameplan for American Economic Security

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The UAE&#39;s decision to exit OPEC is not a procedural footnote — it is a structural rupture in the cartel that has shaped global energy markets and constrained American foreign policy for decades. The UAE was OPEC&#39;s third-largest producer, and its departure arrives on the heels of prior defections and years of Saudi unilateralism that have steadily hollowed out the cartel&#39;s ability to coordinate production and move prices. What remains of OPEC is a diminished institution whose most vulnerable member, Iran, will depend heavily on elevated oil prices to fund post-conflict reconstruction. But the cartel that once enforced that pricing floor is fracturing — and the UAE’s exit accelerates that fracture. That is not a coincidence. It is a strategic opportunity.The UAE&#39;s exit is inseparable from the broader regional realignment triggered by Iran&#39;s retaliatory attacks against its neighbors and decision to close the Strait of Hormuz. Those actions drove the UAE toward closer alignment with the United States and away from any institutional arrangement that seats it alongside its chief antagonist. Leaving OPEC allows Abu Dhabi to pump freely, erodes the pricing floor Tehran requires, and adds economic pressure to nuclear negotiations at a moment when Iran&#39;s financial position is already precarious. For the UAE, this was not a difficult calculation.The implications extend well beyond the Gulf. OPEC&#39;s core function has always been coordinating production cuts to artificially prop up the price of oil — a mechanism that has imposed real costs on American consumers and handed leverage to adversarial petrostate regimes for generations. That function requires internal cohesion OPEC no longer has. The question now is not whether the cartel can recover its influence, but whether the United States is prepared to openly welcome its decline and shape what comes next.To walk journalists through the geopolitical, economic, and energy security dimensions of the UAE&#39;s exit, FDD hosts three experts: Richard Goldberg, senior advisor and head of FDD&#39;s Energy and National Security Program, who previously served on the White House National Energy Dominance Council and the NSC&#39;s Iran directorate; Elaine K. Dezenski, senior director and head of FDD&#39;s Center on Economic and Financial Power, an expert on economic statecraft, illicit finance, and supply chain resilience; and Bernard Haykel, senior fellow and Princeton professor of Near Eastern Studies. The discussion is moderated by Joe Dougherty, FDD&#39;s senior director of Communications.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/04/29/the-ramifications-of-the-uae-leaving-opec/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/04/29/the-ramifications-of-the-uae-leaving-opec/</a>

The Ramifications of the UAE Leaving OPEC

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U.S. and Israeli strikes under Operation Epic Fury have inflicted severe economic damage on the Iranian regime — damage that now shapes the landscape of ongoing ceasefire negotiations. FDD&#39;s Center on Economic and Financial Power has produced the first systematic, model-based estimate of Iran&#39;s economic losses, projecting that Tehran has lost roughly $144 billion, or approximately 40 percent of its pre-war GDP, in under two months. The losses are not evenly distributed: some sectors have been hit harder than others, and critically, much of what has been destroyed — including Iran&#39;s F-14 fleet, its nuclear scientific personnel, and its advanced centrifuge supply chains — cannot be replaced under continued sanctions. These are not recoverable line items; they represent permanent degradation of Iran&#39;s strategic and industrial capacity.The economic picture was already dire before the war began. Iran&#39;s economy was in deep recession, its population bearing the cost of decades of mismanagement and sanctions pressure. The question now is how much more the clerical regime can absorb — and whether conventional assumptions about Iran&#39;s leverage, including its ability to threaten the Strait of Hormuz, hold up under scrutiny. FDD&#39;s analysis suggests that leverage may be more of a weakness than a weapon.To walk journalists through their economic model and discuss the implications for nuclear negotiations, FDD hosts three experts from its Center on Economic and Financial Power: Elaine Dezenski, Senior Director and head of CEFP, Miad Maleki, Senior Fellow specializing in economic sanctions, and Daniel Swift, CEFP Senior Research Analyst. The discussion is moderated by Joe Dougherty, FDD&#39;s Senior Director of Communications.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/04/23/irans-economic-damage-from-operation-epic-fury/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2026/04/23/irans-economic-damage-from-operation-epic-fury/</a>

Iran's economic damage from Operation Epic Fury

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Israel&#39;s military escalation against Hezbollah — an Iran-backed terrorist organization based in Lebanon that recently reignited conflict with Israel in solidarity with Iran — has created a rare opening for Lebanese sovereignty. The Lebanese government under Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has taken unprecedented steps, formally stripping Hezbollah of its long-standing &#34;right of resistance&#34; designation and voting to disband its military wing — the first Lebanese government in 30 years to do so. However, these decisions remain unenforceable: the Lebanese Armed Forces have declined to confront Hezbollah directly, the Iranian ambassador declared persona non grata remains in Beirut, and Hezbollah has responded with open defiance.Iran is now attempting to bundle a Lebanon ceasefire into its own nuclear negotiations — a move rejected by both Israel and, notably, the Lebanese government itself, which is insisting on direct bilateral talks with Israel rather than being negotiated over by Tehran. This represents a generational opportunity: Israeli military operations have severely degraded Hezbollah, while U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran have exposed the Islamic Republic&#39;s vulnerabilities and rattled its regional proxy network. The central question now is whether Lebanon can translate its political declarations into action — and whether the U.S. can help it do so — before a ceasefire allows Hezbollah to regroup and rearm, as it has done repeatedly since 2006.To discuss these developments with journalists, FDD hosts three of its scholars: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/team/jonathan-schanzer/" rel="nofollow">Jonathan Schanzer</a>, executive director and Middle East scholar, <a href="https://www.fdd.org/team/david-daoud/" rel="nofollow">David Daoud</a>, senior fellow focused on Lebanon and Hezbollah, and <a href="https://www.fdd.org/team/hussain-abdul-hussain/" rel="nofollow">Hussain Abdul-Hussain</a>, research fellow on Israel and Gulf Arab states. The discussion is moderated by <a href="https://www.fdd.org/team/joe-dougherty/" rel="nofollow">Joe Dougherty</a>, FDD’s senior director of Communications.

Hezbollah at War: What Comes Next for Lebanon and the Region

https://s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/pod-public-media-files/2026/3/12/18/9b299028-1afd-4544-ad69-6e4a988bc980_events_pod_3-12-26_erdogan.mp3

As the war involving Iran reshapes the strategic landscape of the Middle East, Turkey finds itself navigating one of the most complex geopolitical dilemmas in its modern history. Sharing a long border with Iran and balancing its role as a NATO member with its regional ambitions, Ankara is attempting to manage the fallout of a conflict that could dramatically alter the balance of power across the region. Turkish leaders have condemned U.S. and Israeli military strikes on Iran while simultaneously warning Tehran against expanding the conflict, reflecting a delicate strategy of hedging between competing interests.For Ankara, the stakes extend well beyond diplomacy. The prospect of regime collapse in Iran raises fears of refugee flows, border instability, and the emergence of new security threats along Turkey’s eastern frontier. At the same time, the conflict presents opportunities for Turkey to expand its regional influence and position itself as a mediator between global and regional powers. Meanwhile, recent incidents demonstrate how quickly the war could draw Turkey directly into the crisis.What does Ankara want from this conflict? Is Turkey seeking to prevent the collapse of the Iranian regime, contain regional chaos, or exploit the turmoil to advance its own geopolitical ambitions? And how should the United States and its allies interpret Turkey’s actions at this critical moment?For a timely discussion on Turkey’s priorities, anxieties, and strategic calculations as the war in Iran unfolds, FDD hosts Henri J. Barkey, adjunct senior fellow for Middle East studies at the Council on Foreign Relations; and Steven A. Cook, senior fellow for Middle East studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. The discussion will be moderated by Sinan Ciddi, director of FDD’s Turkey Program.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/02/26/beyond-erdogan-turkeys-political-future-under-new-leadership/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/02/26/beyond-erdogan-turkeys-political-future-under-new-leadership/</a>

Between Ally and Adversary: Turkey’s Strategic Calculus in the Iran War

https://s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/pod-public-media-files/2026/3/4/20/8536d640-c4b5-4c65-9dc7-ad86bdd8bd81_events_pod_03-04_ai-foreign_influence.mp3

Authoritarian regimes are gaining influence over how Americans understand the world through the AI tools trusted to be neutral arbiters of information. By optimizing authoritarian propaganda for AI consumption, adversarial governments are shaping the narratives in AI tools relied on by millions for research, education, and everyday information. This event will explore how propaganda outlets are strategically filling legacy media’s void by positioning content to be cited by large language models, analyze Russia&#39;s campaigns to influence AI training data and embed Kremlin-aligned narratives into chatbot responses, and discuss the repercussions for the growing deployment of Chinese-built AI models in the United States.To discuss these emerging vulnerabilities and the options available to policymakers, technologists, and the media ecosystem, FDD hosts Joseph Bodnar, senior research manager at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, and Jamil Jaffer, founder and executive director of George Mason University’s National Security Institute. The discussion is moderated by Leah Siskind, FDD director of impact &amp; AI research fellow.For more, check out: <a href="https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/03/04/surveying-foreign-influence-in-ai-tools/" rel="nofollow">https://www.fdd.org/events/2026/03/04/surveying-foreign-influence-in-ai-tools/</a>

Surveying Foreign Influence in AI Tools

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