Kim Jong-un takes the slow train to Russia; a refresher on the value of high-level summitry; Russia’s need for military supplies and what this says about the effectiveness of sanctions; the signal sent by Ukraine’s counteroffensive; setting expectations for military operations; and Marcus is impressed by the train
Read MoreCheap Talk
Cheap Talk is an every-week-or-so international relations podcast with Jeff Kaplow and Marcus Holmes, professors of government at William & Mary.
Our Puny Human Brains
Cheap Talk’s Season 4 Premiere: The trilateral alliance visits Camp David; US reassurance and nuclear proliferation in Asia; AI and international crises; computers can be biased, three not-very-persuasive arguments against US support for Ukraine; and Marcus racks up the frequent flier miles
Read MoreThe Guts to Stand Up for the Truth
A special summer episode of Cheap Talk: Hypersonic missiles and missile defense in Ukraine; signaling and the defense of Bakhmut; Ukraine’s path to NATO membership; alien spacecraft on earth; Apple’s Vision Pro announcement; diplomacy in virtual reality; military applications of augmented reality; and Marcus sympathizes with alien whistleblowers
Read MorePersist In Our Dream State
Social identity theory and international relations; the behavior of rogue states; US nuclear assurance to South Korea; the risk from deepfakes and how to address them; the current state of sports diplomacy; and Marcus is a complicated individual
Read MoreTossing This Information to the Internet
The Discord intelligence leak; what we learned from the information; Egypt’s plan to sell weapons to Russia; China’s plan to sell weapons to Russia; US restraint and China’s involvement in the Ukraine conflict; how the leaker’s motives compare to other famous leaks; how the internet makes intelligence releases more damaging; assessing the intelligence impact of the leaks; the trade-off between intelligence sharing and the risk of leaks; and Marcus is a big lover of humans
Read MoreIt's a Slam Dunk! Do It!
Looking back on the Iraq war after 20 years (and 1 month); lingering uncertainty about the reasons for the US invasion; the role (or lack thereof) of groupthink in that decision; the intelligence community’s judgment that Iraq had WMD and was reconstituting its nuclear weapons program; why the intelligence community got it wrong; lessons learned for intelligence analysis; the long-term repercussions of the Iraq war; and Marcus puts his cards on the table
Read MoreAnother Unenforceable International Edict
Nikki Haley’s experience at the United Nations; what it means to be a US ambassador; Russia’s statement about nuclear weapons in Belarus; the ICC’s arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin; credibility in international institutions; the power of international law on the margins; and Marcus considers future podcast guests
Read MoreA Person With Feelings
The TikTok situation escalates; Russia pulls a reverse TikTok; the first image of the state; what is a state, anyway; AI tools are lying to us; Xi goes to Moscow; Russia harasses a US drone; and Marcus believes states are disembodied people with feelings and emotions
Read MoreIt Comes Down To Paranoia
Russia’s international status and reputation after the invasion of Ukraine; TikTok and Huawei as threats to US national security; the status of Iran’s nuclear weapons development; and Marcus has too many distractions in his life
Read MoreStumbled Into This Podcast Accidentally
Russia bails on the New START arms control treaty; Putin and prospect theory; the short and long term effects of the treaty suspension; why we have arms control treaties in the first place; overlapping international agreements; taking stock of Russia’s invasion one year in; European security transformed; the relevance of nuclear risk and nuclear deterrence today; and Marcus embraces conspiracy theories
Read MoreCould the Meeting Have Been an Email?
We’re on Apple Podcasts and Spotify; an excellent book is on sale; the Last of Us is not a zombie show; China threatens a balloon response; we are seeing more flying objects; risk reduction and diplomacy between the United States and China; President Biden visits Kyiv; and Marcus explains the role of aliens in political science theory
Read MoreFly Over Our Great Nation
Cheap Talk’s very special balloon-themed episode: China’s spy balloon; the effect on diplomacy when spying becomes public; the intelligence value of spy balloons; why the US failed to deploy its giant balloon net; the risk of balloon-related escalation; the trajectory of the US-China relationship; and Marcus explains his criteria for riding in flying objects
Recommended Valentine’s Day gifts for loved ones or enemies:
Signing Away the Bomb, by Jeffrey M. Kaplow
Face-to-Face Diplomacy, by Marcus Holmes
That’s Got To Leave a Mark
Cheap Talk’s triumphant return from its winter hiatus: Evaluating the lasting impact of the COVID pandemic (if any) on international affairs; preparedness for the next pandemic; COVID and domestic politics; the supply chain and decoupling from China; domestic protests in China; the nonissue of vaccine diplomacy; and Marcus misattributes an often misinterpreted quote
Read MoreFor Their Knowledge No Cost They Do Spare
Cheap Talk ends the semester with a mailbag episode: State dinners; celebrities and national interest; AI and international relations; sports diplomacy and the World Cup; President Biden’s willingness to meet with Vladimir Putin; and Marcus admits he doesn’t like soccer
Read MoreYou Gotta Spatchcock It
Garage door updates; the information and cyber war in Ukraine; academics in the press; the ethical implications of AI art; and Marcus discusses his turkey options
Read MoreA Giant Duffel Bag of Cash
Cheap Talk returns from a COVID-induced hiatus: online prediction markets; already-obsolete election takes; US support for Ukraine with a new Congress; domestic politics and international affairs; remembering Former Defense Secretary Ash Carter; Russia’s retreat from Kherson; South Korea recovers a North Korean missile; and Marcus was anticipating a red wave
Read MoreArmageddon, Not Just a Good Movie Anymore
The sixtieth anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis; lessons from the crisis; the dangers of reasoning from analogy; why Russia would use tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine; how NATO would respond if they did; gambling for resurrection; the US role in facilitating peace; and Marcus would prefer that countries refrain from using nuclear weapons
Read MoreIs Nothing Sacred?
Allegations of cheating in chess; how to go about cheating in chess (but you shouldn’t do it); a questionable analogy to face-to-face diplomacy; how Russia’s invasion of Ukraine affects international chess; looking into Putin’s soul; and Marcus shares his chess journey
Read MoreBoth Very Clear and Also Extremely Ambiguous
Escalation management; sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipeline; signals of Russian resolve; what the end of the war in Ukraine looks like; backing Putin into a corner; US strategic ambiguity toward Russia and China; Iran protests; and Marcus confesses he is not a military strategy guy
Read MoreVictim-Blaming Theory of International Relations
The long-awaited season premiere of Cheap Talk: The origins of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine; did Putin make a mistake; would Ukrainian nuclear weapons have prevented a war; who is deterring whom; and Marcus comes up with a final exam question
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