Jim Townsend

1 week ago | cnas.org | Hamzeh Hadad |Charles 'Chuckie' Horn |Jim Townsend |Andrea Kendall-Taylor

US President Donald Trump’s meeting with Syria’s transitional leader, Ahmed al-Shara, in Riyadh last week was accompanied by a landmark announcement: the United States will lift sanctions on Syria, paving the way for investment and reconstruction to help the country recover from 13 years of devastating civil war. This is a welcome development that will ease Syria’s re-entry into the global economy and bring much-needed relief for the millions of civilians reliant on humanitarian aid.

2 weeks ago | cnas.org | Jim Townsend |Andrea Kendall-Taylor |Samuel Bendett

A volatile global security environment requires the United States and its allies to develop new tactics and capabilities to deal with novel global threats. On June 3, policymakers, industry leaders, and others will discuss how to face this challenge at the 2025 CNAS National Security Conference: America’s Edge. In this edition of Sharper, CNAS experts deepen the conversation about maintaining America’s edge in warfighting, economic security, technology leadership, and more.

2 weeks ago | cnas.org | Jim Townsend |Samuel Bendett |Andrea Kendall-Taylor

A new article from Andrea Kendall-Taylor in The New York Times highlights the stakes of the war in Ukraine for the United States. Despite an apparent belief by the Trump administration that this war only matters to Europe, how it ends has implications for Americans. If the United States fails to stand up to Russia now, in Ukraine, it is likely to have to do so at a significantly higher cost in the future.

Feb 27, 2025 | cnas.org | Jim Townsend |Nicholas Lokker |Andrea Kendall-Taylor |Kate Johnston

The last few weeks have seen dramatic developments in the transatlantic relationship between the United States and its European allies. President Trump’s phone call with Vladimir Putin was quickly followed by senior administration officials calling into doubt the U.S.’s decades-long role as the security guarantor of Europe.

Feb 24, 2025 | cnas.org | Jim Townsend |Andrea Kendall-Taylor |Nicholas Lokker

President Trump is promising to end the now three-year long war in Ukraine. But with Ukraine and Europe sidelined in current negotiations – how far off really is peace? Nicholas Lokker, research associate for the Transatlantic Security Program at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), weighs in on the discussion. Listen to the full episode on wbur. Podcast February 25, 2025 Can Ukraine and Europe Win Alone?