The Weekly Leaf
This week, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin met virtually with Minister of National Defense of the People’s Republic of China Admiral Dong Jun for the first time, Israel was attacked by Iran, and Chancellor of Germany Olaf Scholz met with President of China Xi Jinping.
Read more below.
Aspen Strategy Group Announcement
The Weekly Leaf will be on a brief hiatus next week while the ASG team is abroad for a Track II Dialogue.
This Week's Content Highlights
Features from Aspen Strategy Group Members
Anja Manuel for the Financial Times: “The U.S. and Europe Need a Strategy for the Geopolitical Contest Over AI”
Anja Manuel interviewed by Christian Fraser for BBC News: The Context
Christian Brose quoted by Megan Eckstein for DefenseNews: “Anduril Pairs With Korean Shipbuilder to Design New Unmanned Platforms”
Mark T. Esper interviewed by Christiane Amanpour for CNN: “‘This Could Get Very Big, Very Quickly’: Former U.S. Defense Secretary on Israel and Iran”
Michael Froman interviewed Christine Lagarde for the Council on Foreign Relations and the Peterson Institute for International Economics
Stephen Hadley interviewed by Jessica Chen Weiss for the Cornell Levinson Program in China and Asia-Pacific Studies: “U.S. National Security Policymaking and the Future of U.S.-China Relations”
Jane Harman interviewed by José Díaz-Balart for MSNBC: "'Hard' for U.S. Not to Get Engaged if Iran and Israel Tensions Escalate"
David Ignatius for The Washington Post: “A Quandary in Israel: How to Retaliate–But Not Escalate?”
Meghan O’Sullivan interviewed by Andrew Ross Sorkin for CNBC: “Iran Is Willing to Take the Risk That a Larger War Will Develop”
Penny Pritzker and moderator Doris Robinson for the Washington Foreign Press Center’s briefing on Strengthening Partnerships: Update on Ukraine’s Economic Recovery
David Rubenstein and Penny Pritzker co-chaired the Semafor World Economy Summit and spoke on the Global Finance session: "Fireside Chat: Risks and Opportunities"
David Sanger interviewed by Mary Louise Kelly for NPR: “Technology and Disinformation Places U.S. In Multiple Cold Wars, Author Argues”
Robert B. Zoellick interviewed by David Westin for Bloomberg: “Politics Is Running Economic and Trade Policies”
Tweet of the Week
Rising Leaders Program Highlights
Features from ASG Rising Leaders
Mary K. Brooks (‘22), David Sanger, and moderator John Milewski for Wilson Center NOW: “China’s Rise and Russia’s Invasion: Challenges U.S. Faces in New Cold Wars”
Erik Jacobs (‘21) for Japan Forward: “PM Kishida's State Visit Promises More U.S.-Japan Tech Collaboration”
Things to Know
Content Relevant to Aspen Security Forum Discussions
María Eugenia Brizuela de Ávila and Shahrbanou Tadjbakhsh for the Aspen Ministers Forum: “In Rebuilding a Nation, Bring the People to the Table”
Stephanie Busari, Eve Brennan, Sarah Dean, and Jennifer Hansler for CNN: “Sudan on Brink of Collapse and Starvation as Country Marks One Year of Civil War”
Sadanand Dhume for The Wall Street Journal: "The Taliban Have Restored Barbarism to Afghanistan"
Stephen Kotkin for Foreign Affairs: “The Five Futures of Russia”
Daryna Mayer and Mithil Aggarawl for NBC: “Ukraine Sees Allies Help Protect Israel From Iran Attack and Asks: What About Us?”
Illia Novikov for the AP: “Russian Missiles Slam Into a Ukraine City and Kill 17 People as the War Approaches a Critical Stage”
James Palmer for Foreign Policy: “Beijing Walks a Fine Line in the Middle East”
Andreas Rinke for Reuters: “Germany’s Scholz Lobbies Xi to Improve Market Access, Pressure Russia”
Demetri Sevastopulo and Kathrin Hille for the Financial Times: “U.S. and China Defence Ministers in First Significant Contact Since 2022”
Sui-Lee Wee for The New York Times: “Aung San Suu Kyi Moved to Unknown Location From Prison by Myanmar Junta”
From the Archives
Revisit our conversation with Ambassador Xie Feng on opportunities for cooperation and the future of U.S.-China relations from the 2023 Aspen Security Forum.
Xie Feng, Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to the United States
Moderator: Steve Clemons, Founding Editor at Large, Semafor
Featured Event
On May 2, 2024, Ascend at the Aspen Institute will host, “In Conversation with Anne Mosle and Dele Olojede” at the Aspen Institute’s DC office. This will be the second public conversation in the new series with global leaders and thinkers hosted by Aspen Institute Vice President Anne Mosle. Dele Olojede is a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist for his coverage of the Rwandan genocide and an Aspen Global Leadership Network fellow. As former foreign editor of Newsday, Dele had a front row seat to South Africa’s transition from Apartheid when Nelson Mandela was elected president. 2024 marks 30 years since South Africa ended Apartheid and Rwanda’s violent genocide. Dele and Anne will explore leadership lessons about how societies make fateful choices as a result of their common experience, and the inevitable price, some unpredictable, that must be paid for such choices.
Book of the Week
by Dmitri Alperovitch with Garrett M. Graff
“The leading national security expert who predicted Putin’s intention to invade Ukraine argues that China’s Xi Jinping is preparing to conquer Taiwan in the coming years—with dire stakes for America and the world if he is not deterred.
We are fully in the midst of Cold War II, this time with China. Taiwan is a new West Berlin, a perilous strategic flashpoint where localized events could trigger a devastating war between nuclear powers.
But this outcome is far from inevitable. Laying out the grand strategy for the United States and allies to avoid this fate, the highly respected security analyst Dmitri Alperovitch reveals key actions that could enable America to win the race for the twenty-first century. This sharp, timely book is the essential blueprint for preventing a catastrophe.”
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As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, the Aspen Institute is nonpartisan and does not endorse, support, or oppose political candidates or parties. Further, the views and opinions of our guests and speakers do not necessarily reflect those of the Aspen Institute.