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Paul Edgar, the associate director of the William P. Clements, Jr. Center for National Security, moderated a discussion with Amb. Kurt Volker, the U.S. ambassador to NATO from 2008-2009, and Gen. Tod Wolters, the former Supreme Allied Commander Europe, about the state of the Russo-Ukrainian war, the future of European security, and the impact of the conflict on global security. The conversation explored the evolution of President Putin's approach to relations with the West, the changes in Russian foreign policy, and what this may portend for regional security in the future.
Dr. Paul Edgar, the executive director of the William P. Clements, Jr. Center for National Security at the University of Texas-Austin, sat down with Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson to discuss energy and national security. The conversation focused on energy security, its relevance for U.S. national security, and how a more effective energy policy would allow for a more robust response to global crises.
On this episode, Misha talks with Ruslan Pukhov, a Russian defense analyst and the director of the Moscow-based Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies (CAST). Mr. Pukhov shares about the origins of CAST during the late 90s, the state of Russia's defense economy, and his views on the current war in Ukraine. He states that neither the Ukrainian public nor Ukrainian leadership and elites understand what "victory" means in terms of a realistic approach and that continued American support, strongly dependent upon the upcoming US presidential elections in his view, is critical to Ukraine's prospects in this war. EPISODE NOTES: 1. The journalist Mr. Pukhov mentions is Yuri Lyamin. The link to his blog the Imperial Navigator, where his latest pieces analyze Hamas propaganda following the recent eruption of hostilities between Iran-backed Hamas and Israel: https://imp-navigator.livejournal.com/. 2. Select articles from a variety of sources that include commentary from the demographer Alexey Raksha: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-10-20/rogue-demographer-says-russia-covid-deaths-may-be-europe-s-worst https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-10-18/putin-s-war-escalation-is-hastening-demographic-crash-for-russia https://fortune.com/2022/10/18/russia-population-historic-decline-emigration-war-plunging-birth-rate-form-perfect-storm/ https://www.economist.com/europe/2023/03/04/russias-population-nightmare-is-going-to-get-even-worse https://theweek.com/russia/1017914/russias-catastrophic-missing-men-problem https://www.straitstimes.com/world/europe/conflict-deepens-russias-demographic-crisis 3. For a list of pieces by Mr. Pukhov as written for The Moscow Times visit https://www.themoscowtimes.com/author/ruslan-pukhov PRODUCER'S NOTE: This episode was recorded on October 1, 2023 via Zoom. The views expressed in this episode belong to the speakers and do not reflect those of either the Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies or the William P. Clements, Jr. Center for National Security at The University of Texas at Austin. If you have questions, comments, or would like to be a guest on the show, please email slavxradio@utexas.edu and we will be in touch! CREDITS Associate Producer: Misha Simanovskyy (@MSimanovskyy) Associate Producer: Cullan Bendig (@cullanwithana) Associate Producer: Sergio Glajar Production Assistant: Faith VanVleet Production Assistant: Eliza Fisher Supervising Producer: Nicholas Pierce SlavX Editorial Director: Sam Parrish Recording, Editing, and Sound Design: Michelle Daniel Music Producer: Charlie Harper (@charlieharpermusic) www.charlieharpermusic.com (Main Theme by Charlie Harper and additional background music by Beat Mekanik, Broke For Free, KAZKA) Executive Producer & Creator: Michelle Daniel (@MSDaniel) www.msdaniel.com DISCLAIMER: Texas Podcast Network is brought to you by The University of Texas at Austin. Podcasts are produced by faculty members and staffers at UT Austin who work with University Communications to craft content that adheres to journalistic best practices. The University of Texas at Austin offers these podcasts at no charge. Podcasts appearing on the network and this webpage represent the views of the hosts, not of The University of Texas at Austin. https://files.fireside.fm/file/fireside-uploads/images/9/9a59b135-7876-4254-b600-3839b3aa3ab1/P1EKcswq.png Special Guest: Ruslan Pukhov.
On this episode, we had the opportunity to sit down with Dr. Paul Edgar, the interim executive director of the Clements Center for National Security at UT Austin. Paul spoke about how he went from the military to academia, the Russo-Ukrainian War, and his goals for the Clements Center as a leading educational institution for discourse around history, strategy, and statecraft. Thanks for listening! ABOUT THE GUEST Paul Edgar is the Associate Director of the William P. Clements, Jr. Center for National Security at the University of Texas-Austin. He holds a PhD in Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures from the University of Texas and studies the historical origins of diplomacy, war, and strategy in pre-classical antiquity. He is also a philologist of several ancient languages. As a graduate student, he was a fellow in the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation's Engaged Scholar Program and also with the Clements Center. Prior to beginning work on his PhD, Paul had been an Olmsted Foundation Scholar at Tel Aviv University where he studied for his master's degree, focusing on early Israelite and Jewish literature from the Iron Age through the Crusades. Previously, Paul earned his bachelor of science degree in chemistry from Saint Mary's University. His public writing has appeared in Foreign Policy, Task & Purpose, and Capital Commentary. He is currently finishing his first book, an international diplomatic history of the Late Bronze Age. Before entering academia, Paul served more than 22 years as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army, beginning as a platoon leader in Korea and then in the 75th Ranger Regiment. He commanded an airborne company in Vicenza, Italy, deploying in support of numerous contingency and training operations throughout Europe and North Africa. PRODUCER'S NOTE: This episode was recorded on September 26, 2023 at the William P. Clements, Jr. Center for National Security at UT Austin. If you have questions, comments, or would like to be a guest on the show, please email slavxradio@utexas.edu and we will be in touch! CREDITS Host/Associate Producer: Misha Simanovskyy (@MSimanovskyy) Associate Producer: Cullan Bendig (@cullanwithana) Associate Producer: Sergio Glajar Production Assistant: Faith VanVleet Production Assistant: Eliza Fisher Supervising Producer: Nicholas Pierce Recording, Editing, and Sound Design: Michelle Daniel Music Producer: Charlie Harper (@charlieharpermusic) www.charlieharpermusic.com (Main Theme by Charlie Harper and additional background music by Makaih Beat, Joey Hendrixx, Broke for Free, Nu Tiel Records, Shaolin Dub, Ketsa) Executive Producer & Creator: Michelle Daniel (@MSDaniel) www.msdaniel.com DISCLAIMER: Texas Podcast Network is brought to you by The University of Texas at Austin. Podcasts are produced by faculty members and staffers at UT Austin who work with University Communications to craft content that adheres to journalistic best practices. The University of Texas at Austin offers these podcasts at no charge. Podcasts appearing on the network and this webpage represent the views of the hosts, not of The University of Texas at Austin. https://files.fireside.fm/file/fireside-uploads/images/9/9a59b135-7876-4254-b600-3839b3aa3ab1/P1EKcswq.png Special Guest: Paul Edgar.
William Inboden is Executive Director and William Powers, Jr. Chair at the William P. Clements, Jr. Center for National Security at the University of Texas-Austin. He also serves as Associate Professor at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, Distinguished Scholar at the Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law, and Editor-in-Chief of the Texas National Security Review. Inboden’s other current roles include Associate with the National Intelligence Council, Member of the CIA’s Historical Review Panel, Member of the State Department’s Historical Advisory Council, and Non-Resident Fellow with the German Marshall Fund of the United States. Previously he served as Senior Director for Strategic Planning on the National Security Council at the White House, where he worked on a range of foreign policy issues including the National Security Strategy, strategic forecasting, democracy and governance, contingency planning, counter-radicalization, and multilateral institutions and initiatives. Inboden also worked at the Department of State as a Member of the Policy Planning Staff and a Special Advisor in the Office of International Religious Freedom, and has worked as a staff member in both the United States Senate and the House of Representatives.Inboden has also served as Senior Vice President of the London-based Legatum Institute, and as a Civitas Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a contributing editor to Foreign Policy magazine, and his commentary has appeared in numerous outlets including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Politico, Weekly Standard, NPR, CNN, BBC, and Sky News. He has lectured widely in academic and policy settings, testified before the U.S. House Armed Services Committee, and received numerous research and professional development fellowships. Inboden is the author of Religion and American Foreign Policy, 1945-1960: The Soul of Containment (Cambridge University Press), co-editor of The Last Card: Inside George W. Bush’s Decision to Surge in Iraq (Cornell University Press), and has published numerous articles and book chapters on national security, American foreign policy, and American history. Professor Inboden has received multiple teaching awards including recognition as a “Texas 10” by the Texas Exes Alumni Association, and his classes Presidential Decision-making in National Security and Ethics & International Relations have been selected in recent years as the "Best Class in the LBJ School" and “Class Most Likely to Challenge Your Assumptions.” His current research includes a book on the Reagan Administration’s national security strategy and policy, titled The Peacemaker: The Reagan Presidency from War to Peace. Inboden received his Ph.D. and M.A. degrees in history from Yale University, and his A.B. in history from Stanford University.
Paul Edgar is the Associate Director of the William P. Clements, Jr. Center for National Security at the University of Texas-Austin. He holds a PhD in Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures from the University of Texas at Austin. Before entering academia, Paul served more than 22 years as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army. […]
A conversation with William Inboden, William P. Clements, Jr. Center for History, Strategy, and Statecraft, University of Texas-Austin, on American foreign policies. The discussion was moderated by the Legatum Institute's Nathan Gamester.