logo
episode-header-image
Nov 19
14m 8s

Episode 529: Saudi Arabia Returns to the...

National Security Institute
About this episode

Today, Morgan, Jamil, Matt, and Jess unpack Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s high-profile visit to Washington, his first since the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, and a landmark $1 trillion investment announcement alongside a U.S. agreement to sell the Kingdom F-35 fighter jets. The visit, including a business summit at the Kennedy Center, underscores Saudi Arabia’s growing economic and strategic importance to the United States.


As President Trump deepens ties with Riyadh and pushes for Saudi normalization with Israel through the Abraham Accords, is this a pragmatic step toward regional stability — or a transactional bet with long-term risks? Can trade and tech cooperation truly build a new Middle Eastern “NATO,” or is Washington gambling on partnerships that could prove fragile?


@morganlroach

@jamil_n_jaffer

@nottvjessjones

@WMattHayden


Like what we're doing here? 


Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe. 


And don't forget to follow @faultlines_pod and @masonnatsec on Twitter!


We are also on YouTube, and watch today's episode here: https://youtu.be/ez6-oyaTOds 


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Nov 21
Episode 530: The Ukraine Peace Plan — Ceasefire or Capitulation?
<p>Today, Jess, Jamil, Les, and Morgan break down the Trump Administration’s new&nbsp; 28-point peace plan for Ukraine — a proposal that would cap Ukraine’s military size, cede territory to Russia, redirect frozen Russian assets toward reconstruction, and ban future NATO membersh ... Show More
12m 32s
Nov 17
Episode 528: A House of Dynamite — How Real Is Netflix’s New Nuclear Thriller?
<p>Today, Les, Jamil, Morgan, and Jess break from the usual policy deep-dives for a special episode: a review of <em>A House of Dynamite</em>, the new 90-minute Netflix thriller that imagines a nuclear missile headed straight for the United States. The film unfolds through three ... Show More
13m 43s
Nov 17
Episode 528: A House of Dynamite — How Real Is Netflix’s New Nuclear Thriller?
<p>Today, Les, Jamil, Morgan, and Jess break from the usual policy deep-dives for a special episode: a review of <em>A House of Dynamite</em>, the new 90-minute Netflix thriller that imagines a nuclear missile headed straight for the United States. The film unfolds through three ... Show More
13m 43s
Recommended Episodes
Sep 2023
Lawfare Archive: An NSI Conversation on U.S.-China Policy
<p>From May 25, 2019: Our friends from the National Security Institute at George Mason University stopped by earlier this week to discuss U.S.-China relations. Lester Munson, Jodi Herman, Jamil Jaffer, and Dana Stroul, former Senate Foreign Relations Committee staffers who collab ... Show More
50m 32s
Jun 2021
Is the Secret Objective of US Foreign Policy to be Just Tough Enough Not to Have to Do Anything?
There are many rumblings of a new Cold War brewing between the US and China. But the governments in Washington and Beijing both seem to be most focused on domestic political issues and maintaining power. Which might suggest that much of the ratcheting up of toughness between them ... Show More
40m 18s
Aug 2023
The Fault Lines in U.S. Foreign Policy
<p>There’s a near consensus today that U.S. foreign policy has entered a new era. But how to define and navigate this new era is much less clear. </p> <p>Richard Fontaine, the CEO of the Center for a New American Security, has held senior positions across the U.S. government—in t ... Show More
39m 19s
Apr 2023
117. Trump's indictment, Dover delays, and Sanna Marin loses
How will Donald Trump's arraignment unfold? What is happening at the border between the United Kingdom and France? What was the significance of King Charles' visit to Germany? Rory and Alastair discuss these topics, plus we say goodbye to the world's youngest Prime Minister, Sann ... Show More
54m 3s
Dec 2023
Biden and Xi mend ties
<p>A recent visit to the US by China’s president Xi Jinping has raised hopes of a bilateral rapprochement. But how stable is this more positive relationship and can a conflict over Taiwan be averted? Gideon discusses these questions with Washington-based China experts Evan Medeir ... Show More
30m 16s
Sep 2021
China’s digital dictatorship
<p><strong>Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com</strong></p><p><a href="https://www.ft.com/content/efcae358-e439-4135-9600-55b23dcd7dc8" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.ft.com/content/efcae358-e439-4135-9600-55b23dcd7dc8</a></p><br><p>Australia’s nucl ... Show More
10m 57s
Aug 2022
U.S.-China tensions rise over Taiwan
As China continues its military drills around Taiwan, Oriana Skylar Mastro, Fellow at Stanford's Freeman Spogli Institute and a Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, explains why this is not just a show of force by China, but an actual combat rehearsal. Then, Richar ... Show More
40m 18s
Jul 2023
EMERGENCY POD: Qin Gone!
Until yesterday, Qin Gang 秦刚 was serving as China’s Minister of Foreign Affairs. But on Monday, July 24, the National People’s Congress Standing Committee announced an emergency meeting for the next day, July 25, during which Qin was “removed” 免职 (albeit not “dismissed” 撤职) from ... Show More
32m 59s
Sep 2021
Two Federal Reserve officials step down amid ethics questions
<p><strong>Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com</strong></p><p><a href="https://www.ft.com/content/1505ec37-b798-4016-8f80-d959bd6eac9c" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://www.ft.com/content/1505ec37-b798-4016-8f80-d959bd6eac9c</a></p><br><p>Two senior Feder ... Show More
10m 8s