The World Unpacked

podcasts@ceip.org

For verified host and producer emails, sign up to view.

How Europe Fights Russia Without the U.S.

July 10, 2026

NATO’s future remains in doubt as Donald Trump again threatens to pull U.S. troops from Europe. But the practical stakes of these debates aren’t always clear. What military capabilities does Europe stand to lose? How long would it take to replace them? And how might Russia exploit any gap?  Sophia Besch, a German expert on European defense policy who has worked inside NATO, joins The World Unpacked to explore U.S. pullout scenarios — up to and including Russian attacks on the Baltics. She and...

Iran Will Probably Still Get Nukes – Here’s How

June 26, 2026

The U.S. and Israel just fought a second war over Iran's nuclear program—and one of the world's leading nuclear experts says America lost. Iran's uranium stockpile sits fully intact in tunnels too deep to reach, and Tehran walked away with more leverage in nuclear talks. James Acton, a physicist and longtime analyst of Iran’s program, joins host Jon Bateman on The World Unpacked to give a detailed update on this crisis. Has the new supreme leader already decided to build a weapon? How quickly...

How a U.S.-China War Would Unfold

June 12, 2026

A U.S.-China war over Taiwan would be catastrophic for all sides and the world. Preventing such a war requires understanding how it might unfold—from start to finish—including worst-case scenarios.  How much warning would there be? Where might China strike first? Which countries join the fight? Can Taiwan defend its coasts? Would nuclear threats determine the outcome?  Charles Hooper is a retired U.S. general who served as one of the Pentagon’s top China strategists and spent years living in ...