The Foreign Affairs Interview

Nicholas Burns, career diplomat and former U.S. ambassador to China and NATO, offers seasoned perspective on U.S.-China ties. He discusses what China wants from a summit with Trump. He covers Taiwan’s red lines, trade and tech truce possibilities, Beijing’s stance on Iran and Ukraine, and risks to alliances and military-to-military channels.

Fiona Hill, a scholar of Russia and former National Security Council official, guides the conversation. She discusses parallels between Putin and Trump. She explores Ukraine, Iran, and the widening global realignment. She considers NATO’s future, European defense, and how aging leaders chase legacy in high-stakes geopolitics.

Victor Cha, a Korea specialist and former U.S. official, explains why North Korea’s nuclear program has advanced and how Pyongyang exploited diplomatic failures. He discusses ICBM capabilities, Russian support, intelligence limits, and escalation risks. Cha argues for accepting denuclearization as a long-term aim while pursuing a practical “cold peace” to reduce crisis chances and reassure allies.

Jake Sullivan, former U.S. national security adviser known for his China, Iran, and tech expertise, discusses how AI and tech now shape geopolitical power. He examines China’s industrial strategy, chip export tradeoffs, and risks of military AI. He also covers Iran’s nuclear choices, Gulf dynamics, and the long war in Ukraine.

Kishore Mahbubani, veteran Singaporean diplomat and former UN ambassador, offers Asia-focused geopolitical perspective. Matias Spektor, São Paulo-based professor of politics, analyzes Latin America and the Global South. They discuss the Iran war’s global economic shock, rising Chinese influence, hedging by states, weakening U.S. authority, and how regions are rewiring trade and institutions.

Suzanne Maloney, Brookings vice president and former White House and State Department adviser, explains Iran’s resilience and who really runs its security apparatus. She breaks down how control of the Strait of Hormuz shifted leverage. She assesses whether the brief cease-fire favors Iran, the limits of a two-week negotiation, and the roles of China and regional actors.

William Burns, career diplomat and former CIA director who negotiated with Iran and served as ambassador to Russia. He discusses a new geopolitical era shaped by great-power rivalry and tech. He weighs approaches to American power, risks from eroding institutions and trust, the Iran war's dynamics, Russia–Ukraine negotiations, China’s ambitions on Taiwan, and AI’s role in intelligence.

Matthias Matthijs, a political scientist who studies European defense and transatlantic ties, and Nathalie Tocci, a foreign-policy expert on European geopolitics, debate Europe’s choices toward U.S. pressure. They discuss Europe’s refusal to join a Strait of Hormuz mission, the impact of Trump-era coercion, Greenland as a rallying point, Europe’s economic leverage, and whether the transatlantic bond is drifting toward separation.

Stephen Kotkin, historian and Kleinheinz Senior Fellow at Stanford’s Hoover Institution, offers a concise take on authoritarianism and regime durability. He breaks down repression, cash flows, elite loyalties, narratives, and international factors. He applies these lenses to Iran, compares cases like Venezuela and the Soviet Union, and discusses military, economic, and political levers to unbalance authoritarian rulers.

Sanam Vakil, Chatham House Gulf politics director, and Afshon Ostovar, Naval Postgraduate School Iran analyst, unpack Iran’s resilience and regional fallout. They discuss Iran’s succession dynamics and IRGC influence. They explore Gulf states’ vulnerabilities, shifting Gulf–U.S. ties, and risks of wider instability.