National Security This Week

For his final episode, host Jon Olson talks with Tom Hanson, Diplomat-in-Residence at the Alworth School at the University of Minnesota - Duluth, about the state of global affairs at the end of 2023. Hanson was also the show's very first guest in January 2020. 

 Host Jon Olson talks with Dr. Jennifer Wistrand, Deputy Director of the Kennan Institute at the Wilson Center in Washington, DC, about Central Asia and the Caucasus region. 

 This week, host Jon Olson welcomes Dr. Constanze Stelzenmueller from the Brookings Institution. They discuss EU and NATO security policy, the trans-Atlantic partnerships, and Germany's evolving security policies. 

Host Jon Olson's guests are noted authors JJ Harrigan, David Bruns, and David McCloskey. They discuss the intersection of national security thriller novels and actual national security challenges and opportunities. JJ Harrigan is former state department Foreign Service Officer and was a political science professor, David Bruns served in submarines and is co-author with Jon Olson for their national security thrillers, and David McCloskey is a former CIA intelligence analyst and also served as a consultant. 

Host Jon Olson talks with Dr. Jeff Mankoff from the Institute for National Strategic Studies at the National Defense University in Washington, DC. They discuss Central Asia, with a focus on the role Kazakhstan plays in the region. 

 Host Jon Olson talks with Devry Boughner Vorwerk, CEO of DevryBV Sustainable Strategies about the nexus of food security and national security. 

This week's guest is Christopher Townsend, President of the Navy League of the United States. He and Host Jon Olson discuss the maritime services and American national security interests in the maritime arena. 

 Host Jon Olson talks with Yuki Tatsumi from the Stimson Center about Japan's defense policy and both challenges and opportunities for Japan in the Indo-Pacific region. 

 This week, host Jon Olson talks with Esfandyar Batmanghelidj and Temur Umarov about the strategic significance of the Central Asian Republics. 

This week live from the 13th Annual Cyber Security Summit in Bloomington, Minnesota, host Jon Olson talks with Dr. Sylvain Leblanc and Dr. Sean Costigan about cyber operations and national security. 

 Host Jon Olson talks with Elisabeth Braw of the American Enterprise Institute about Sweden's bid to join the NATO Alliance, among other topics with a world in turmoil. 

 Host Jon Olson and Carleton College Political Science Professor Greg Marfleet discuss the current situation in the Middle East. 

 Host Jon Olson talks with Dr. Marina Miron from King's College London about human augmentation and the potential impacts in the national security arena. 

This week, host Jon Olson's guest is Erin Sikorsky, Director of the Center for Climate and Security, and they discuss the nexus of climate change and American national security interests. 

Host Jon Olson talks with Dr. Vasileios Karagiannopoulos about cyber security, the role of cyber in the defense of Ukraine, and a phenomenon called “Hacktivism.” 

 Host Jon Olson and Professor Rajan Menon discuss the critical importance of the Global South, and the rise of a new “non-aligned movement” around the world. 

This week, host Jon Olson talks with Dr. Ryan Berg, who heads the Americas Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). They discuss an American Grand Strategy for Latin America and the Caribbean. 

 Host Jon Olson and Professor Anthony Lott from the Department of Political Science at the College of St. Olaf discuss current crisis areas around the world. 

Host Jon Olson talks with James Borton, Senior Fellow at the Foreign Policy Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) about environmental security in the South China Sea. 

Host Jon Olson and Mark Cozad from the RAND Corporation discuss two major studies RAND completed on the People's Liberation Army, and on China's foreign policy calculations inside the Great Power Competition framework.

 Host Jon Olson and Steve Andreasen from the Humphrey School at the University of Minnesota discuss the ongoing humanitarian crisis and civil war in Ethiopia. 

 Host Jon Olson talks with Professor Michael Kimmage from Catholic University about the Russian invasion of Ukraine and what to make of current Russian political leadership. 

Host Jon Olson talks with Star Tribune editorial writer and columnist John Rash about journalism and national security.

 Host Jon Olson talks with retired US Army General Joseph Votel, who commanded both US Special Operations Command and US Central Command. He now leads Business Executives for National Security (BENS). They discuss a variety of national security challenges and opportunities, including how BENS helps drive better national security decision-making and defense acquisition efforts. 

 Host Jon Olson talks with Esfandyar Batmanghelidj, founder of the economic think tank Bourse and Bazaar Foundation, about Iran and broader relations across the Middle East and Central Asia. 

 Host Jon Olson talks with Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force JoAnne Bass. As the senior enlisted leader in the US Air Force, she advises the Secretary of the US Air Force, and the Chief of Staff of the US Air Force on all matters related to the 600,000 Airmen who serve the United States. 

 Host Jon Olson's guest is retired US Army Colonel Chris Costa, Executive Director of the International Spy Museum in Washington, DC. They discuss the spy museum, his career in the field of Human Intelligence, and current events. 

 Host Jon Olson talks with Dr. Marina Miron from King's College London. They discuss the use of unmanned platforms for both domestic and international operations, and the implications of proliferation and expanded capabilities in this rapidly advancing technology area. 

 Host Jon Olson talks with Fidel Amakye Owusu live from Accra, Ghana and they discuss Salafi Jihadist terrorism in the Sahel. 

 This week, Jon Olson's guest is Professor Christopher Tounsel from the University of Washington and they discuss the ongoing crisis and civil war in Sudan. 

Host Jon Olson talks with Colonel Chad Jagmin, the Director of Wargaming at the US Army War College, and Mr. Edmund “Cliffy” Zukowski, the Director for the International Strategic Crisis Negotiation Exercise about the role - and the importance - of the United States War Colleges.

Host Jon Olson talks with Professor Brenda Shaffer of the United States Naval Postgraduate School about the US' turbulent relationship with Iran, and how that country's government relates to both the rest of the world and its own people. 

Host Jon Olson talks with Daniel Runde from the Center for Strategic and International Studies and we discuss American soft power and his new book, The American Imperative.

Host Jon Olson talks with Ambassador Karin Olofsdotter, the Swedish Ambassador to the United States, about the Swedish form of government, its culture, and the country's entry into NATO.

Host Jon Olson talks with retired US Navy Rear Admiral Tim Gallaudet, former Oceanographer of the Navy and former Acting Undersecretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere/NOAA Administrator about the role the world's oceans play in American national security interests.

Host Jon Olson's guests are Hamdullah Baycar and Nick Hayen, who recently visited the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as part of a research program with the Middle East Policy Institute. They discuss what they saw and heard on that trip, and broader regional security topics.

Host Jon Olson's guest this week is Commander Andrea Cameron from the US Naval War College. They discuss the nexus of climate change and national security, along with the work she's doing with America's NATO allies.

During this special edition of National Security This Week, host Jon Olson talks with former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, John Brennan.  They take a deep dive into the CIA and discuss crises around the world.  

Host Jon Olson and Washington Post reporter Dana Priest discuss the role the press plays in holding government accountable to the American people for national security policy and actions.

Host Jon Olson talks with Humphrey School of Public Affairs professor Steve Andreasen about the US National Security Council and numerous crises around the world. 

Host Jon Olson's guests this week are FBI intelligence analysts Chris Tatarka and Jon Watson from the FBI's Minneapolis Field Office.  They discuss the FBI's role as a member of the US Intelligence Community.

Host Jon Olson talks with former European Union Ambassador for the Arctic and current Senior Fellow at the Egmont Institute, Marie Anne Coninsx, about the safety, economic, demographic, environmental, and security dynamics of the Arctic region.

Host Jon Olson and Professor Ryan Gingeras from the US Naval Post-Graduate School  discuss the many facets of Turkey and Greece's fractured relationship, among other topics.

Host Jon Olson and St. Olaf College Professor Anthony Lott discuss current crises around the world.

Professor Jen Spindel and Dr. Raymond Kuo discuss the effectiveness of arms embargoes with Host Jon Olson. 

Host Jon Olson talks with Dr. Joan Johnson-Freese, a senior fellow with Women in International Security, about the role of women in conflict zones, and more broadly in peace and security

This week's guest with host Jon Olson is Jun Jie Phang from the Embassy of Singapore in Washington, DC. They discuss the politics, economy, and security challenges and opportunities for Singapore.

Host Jon Olson discusses Australia's national security concerns and partnerships with the United States with Dr. John Blaxland from Australian National University.

Host Jon Olson is in Washington, DC and talks with Professor Michael Kimmage from Catholic University about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Dr. David Gioe, Dr. Huw Dylan, and Elena Grossfeld (authors of "The Autocrat's Intelligence Paradox" join host Jon Olson to discuss Russian intelligence - and really Vladimir Putin's - failures in the invasion of Ukraine, as well as the future of the conflict.

Host Jon Olson discusses new intelligence collection, processing, and analytical capabilities, with Dr. Catherine Marsh, the Director of the US Intelligence Community's cutting edge organization the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity.