AEI's Rundown:Venezuela’s Maduro Designated a Foreign Terrorist; Ukraine Negotiations in Geneva

 

The Rundown News and analysis from AEI's Foreign and Defense Policy team.

Scholar Insight

US and Ukrainian officials met in Geneva to continue negotiations over the leaked Trump administration 28-point peace plan to end Russia’s war in Ukraine. AEI’s Dalibor Rohac notes:

“The administration’s approach continues to raise questions. Is the 28-point plan, with its echoes of Russian propaganda, the official position of the US government? If so, why does it contain demands that risk jeopardizing long-standing US security interests in Europe, including NATO’s open-door

policy and Ukraine’s capacity to deter future Russian aggression? And what pressure, if any, is the US applying on Russia not only to come to the negotiating table but also to engage in good faith—unlike in the past? Unless such questions are satisfactorily addressed, it is increasingly hard to avoid the conclusion that the Trump team has decided to take our adversaries’ side in the present conflict."   Even if the Ukrainians agree to a framework, will the Russians attempt to slow roll negotiations? Will Congress pass additional sanctions to pressure the Russians to come to the table?   Follow us on X @AEIfdp to keep up with our latest work. Have a great week, AEI's Foreign and Defense Policy team

This Week on

Hal Brands @HalBrands

Taiwan has reached its tipping point. Beijing is ramping up pressure, while trade and defense disputes challenge Taiwan’s relationship with US. Next few months will either put that relationship on a firmer footing—or cast it into crisis.

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Special Feature

Project Affording Defense Mackenzie Eaglen | American Enterprise Institute   The US faces a pivotal moment in shaping its defense priorities. Mackenzie Eaglen explains in Affording Defense that decades of mismatched strategy and resources have left America’s military unable to fully meet responsibilities and adequately deter threats. The strategic-resource mismatch—the gap between what is expected of the military and the funding it receives—has undermined the US military’s strategic and conventional deterrence across the critical theaters of Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Affording Defense aims to dispel the pervasive myth that America cannot afford the defense its strategy demands and develop a body of policy work focused on resourcing a multi-theater military that can meet its global requirements.

READ THE CHAPTERS HERE

US Foreign Policy

In the News Developments to keep your eye on.

The US designated Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro as a member of a foreign terrorist organization against the backdrop of a growing US force buildup in the Caribbean.

Op-Ed Israel Must Be Self-Sufficient, for Its Own Sake Danielle Pletka and Daniel J. Samet | National Review   Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently denied reports that Israel seeks a new 20-year commitment of US military aid. Danielle Pletka and Daniel J. Samet note that although the US has consistently provided military aid to Israel ever since 1967, it has increasingly become a political cudgel. While it was once an uncontroversial object of bipartisan consensus, US military assistance now provides a convenient pretext to a growing chunk of the critics of Israel on the left and far right. The elimination of subsidies would not preclude arms sales to Jerusalem; Congress would remain the driving force behind annual appropriations for Israel. As the Democratic Party moves inexorably toward anti-Zionism and the right is buffeted by the antisemitism of fringe influencers, Israel should opt for self-sufficiency.

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Op-Ed The Stakes of the UN Elections Brett D. Schaefer | The National Interest   Several important elections for UN bodies are on the horizon, the most prominent being that of secretary-general. Brett D. Schaefer notes that although the US holds significant sway over the elections with its veto-power Security Council position, most currently announced or rumored candidates are unlikely to be robust US allies. To achieve outcomes that favor US interests, the US must be attentive and weigh in behind preferred candidates. In the context of the administration’s broader international organizations review, the US is likely to remain engaged out of practicality or necessity. But if the administration chooses engagement, it must make its preferences clear: Reform, relevance, restraint, and abjuration of antisemitism are critical criteria.

CONTINUE READING HERE

Defense

In the News Developments to keep your eye on.

The US sent Army Secretary Dan Driscoll to Kyiv as part of its diplomatic push to achieve a peace plan in Ukraine.

Report Why Europe Needs Its Defense Industry—and How the United States Can Help Dalibor Rohac | American Enterprise Institute   The US has communicated that European allies should take on a greater burden of conventional deterrence in Europe. Dalibor Rohac argues that if Europe is to succeed, it must dramatically scale its defense industry and reduce its dependence on the US. A sustainable European defense buildup thus involves reducing purchases of US military systems. Washington should support European initiatives that expand Europe’s defense industrial capacity, and European nations must deepen integration and mobilize EU savings to invest in new capacities. Short of debt mutualization, a dedicated multilateral financial institution could inject resources into the European defense industry and accelerate defense financial market integration. These reforms would align with the grain of the European project while addressing the enormity of the security challenge facing Europe in 2025.

READ THE FULL REPORT HERE

Op-Ed The Time to Move ICBMs from the Air Force to the Army is Now Todd Harrison | Breaking Defense   For decades, the Air Force has managed America’s ICBM force. Todd Harrison argues that Congress and the administration should move this mission to the Army. With the Air Force fleet at its nadir, it cannot restore US airpower while also managing a missile force. The missileer career field has no natural synergy with the rest of the Air Force, and the service must maintain utility helicopters and infrastructure to sustain the ICBM mission. The nuclear deterrence mission is too important to be secondary, and the Air Force lacks the bandwidth to simultaneously modernize its fleet and ICBMs. Reassigning ICBMs to the Army would give each service one leg of the nuclear triad, relieve an unsustainable burden, and reinforce the Army’s emphasis on long-range fires.

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