This week, the Trump administration released a new National Security Strategy, President Macron and President Xi met in Beijing, Israeli and Lebanese diplomats held direct talks for the first time since 1993, and leaders from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda signed a peace agreement in Washington.
Read more below.
Agenda Released | Aspen Security Forum: DC Edition
We are excited to release the 2025 Aspen Security Forum: DC Edition agenda!
We are delighted to feature an array of decision-makers and thought leaders from Washington, DC and around the world to discuss the most pressing national security and foreign policy challenges of our time. Limited passes are still available. Learn more about how to apply to attend here. For those who are not able to join us in person this year, we will be livestreaming all of our sessions so we encourage you to register here to receive the link next week.
Out Now: ASG Rising Leaders Publication
The Aspen Strategy Group is proud to release On the Rise: Perspectives on Foreign Policy, the capstone project of the Rising Leaders Program Class of 2025. Through the year-long program, participants exchange ideas on critical issues with key decisionmakers—and each other—under the aegis of the Aspen Strategy Group. This publication is the product of these vital conversations and presents the Rising Leaders’ perspectives on key challenges in U.S. foreign policy and national security.
Applications for the RLP Class of 2026 are open! Apply before 11:59 PM ET on Sunday, December 14.
This Week’s Content Highlights
Features from Aspen Strategy Group Members
Condoleezza Rice joined Jerome Powell, Michael Boskin, and Peter Robinson at the Hoover Institution: “Federal Reserve Chair, Former Secretary of State, and Others on the Legacy of George Shultz”
Anja Manuel interviewed by Haslinda Amin for Bloomberg: “Macron Seeks Xi’s Help on Ukraine; Putin in India”
Kay Bailey Hutchison interviewed for BBC News: “Putin: U.S. Negotiators in Moscow Next Week”
Chris Coons at a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing: “Chris Coons Urges That ‘We Cannot Squander’ U.S. AI Development Lead Over China”
Elizabeth Economy and Declan Herrera for the Hoover Institution’s Defining Ideas: “A Close Look at China’s Tech Playbook”
Peter Feaver interviewed Antony Blinken for Duke University’s Phillips Family International Lecture: “Former Secretary of State Antony Blinken Visits Duke to Talk Biden Administration’s Response to Foreign Conflicts”
Michael Froman interviewed by Becky Quick for CNBC: “CFR’s Michael Froman on U.S.-Russia Talks, Russia-Ukraine War and Caribbean Boat Strike Controversy”
Michael J. Green for The Asia Chessboard podcast: “The IP4 Partners: Where NATO Meets the Indo-Pacific”
Jane Harman interviewed by Joe Mathieu for Bloomberg’s Balance of Power podcast: “Admiral at Center of Venezuela Boat Strikes to Brief U.S. Senators”
David Ignatius for The Washington Post: “The Middle East’s Moment of Opportunity Is Slipping Away”
Susan Rice joined Michael McFaul and Margrethe Vestager at Stanford University: “Democracy in the World”
David Rubenstein interviewed by Michael Hershman for the Building Bridges podcast: “David Rubenstein on What Makes a Great President, Patriotism, and America”
Anne-Marie Slaughter for Project Syndicate: “Three Cheers for the London Consensus”
Jake Sullivan and Jon Finer for The Long Game podcast: “Crisis Calculus on Ukraine & Taiwan”
Post of the Week
Rising Leaders Program
Features from ASG Rising Leaders
Daniel Lippman (‘22) and Sophia Cai for POLITICO: “Inside the DOGE Succession Drama Elon Musk Left Behind”
Ian Platz (‘23) launched his new Substack, Governing Security
Helen Toner (‘21) interviewed by Jordan Schneider for the ChinaTalk podcast: “Helen Toner Takes the CSET Reins”
Things to Know
Content Relevant to Aspen Security Forum Discussions
Yinka Adegoke for Semafor: “Trump’s Uncertain Peace Deal for DRC and Rwanda”
Jonathan A. Czin and Allie Matthias for the Brookings Institution: “Assessing China’s Fourth Plenum: Policy Continuity, Personnel Turmoil”
Anupreeta Das and Valerie Hopkins for The New York Times: “Putin Basks in Praise From Modi on India Visit”
Colin Demarest for Axios: “U.S. Troops Get Attack Drones Similar to Iran’s Deadly Shahed”
Benoit Faucon and Nicholas Bariyo for The Wall Street Journal: “Sudan Offers Russia Its First Naval Base in Africa”
France24: “Macron Meets Xi in Beijing as He Urges China to Push for Ukraine Ceasefire”
Humza Jilani, Andres Schipani, Anastasia Stognei, and Edward White for the Financial Times: “Why the Taliban Is Coming in From the Cold”
Raja Krishnamoorthi for Foreign Affairs: “What Trump Gets Wrong About China: Only a Long-Term Strategy Can Counter the Threat From Beijing”
Le Monde: “Israel and Lebanon Engage in Direct Talks for the First Time in Decades”
The Lowy Institute: “2025 Asia Power Index”
Matthew Luxmoore and Robbie Gramer for The Wall Street Journal: “Marathon Russia-U.S. Meeting Yields No Ukraine Peace Deal”
Michael M. McDonald for Bloomberg: “Honduras to Start Close Count With Leading Candidates Tied”
Will Merrow for the Council on Foreign Relations: “Mapping the U.S. Military Buildup Near Venezuela”
Mitsuru Obe for Nikkei Asia: “Japan Seeks to Work With Saudi Arabia on Rare Earths Amid China Tensions”
Claus Soong and Niklas Hintermeyer for MERICS: “MERICS China Forecast 2026: High Expectations for Chinese Innovation, Low Expectations for Relations With U.S. and EU”
Frances Vinall and Victoria Bisset for The Washington Post: “Trump’s Security Strategy Criticizes Europe, Seeks ‘Stability’ With Russia”
Martin Ziegler and Jonathan Northcroft for The Times: “World Cup 2026 Group Draw-As It Happened”
From the Archives
Revisit our panel on cyber intelligence from the 2025 Aspen Security Forum.
Cyber Intelligence: An Enabler of Security and Resilience
Johan Gerber, Executive Vice President, Head of Security Solutions, Mastercard
Rob Joyce, Founder, Joyce Cyber; Former Special Assistant to the President and Cybersecurity Coordinator, U.S. National Security Council
Jenna Ben-Yehuda, Executive Vice President, Atlantic Council
Moderator: David Sanger, The New York Times
Book of the Week
The Thinking Machine: Jensen Huang, Nvidia, and the World’s Most Coveted Microchip
By Stephen Witt
“Nvidia is as valuable as Apple and Microsoft. It has shaped the world as we know it. But its story is little known. This is the definitive story of the greatest technology company of our times…. The Thinking Machine is the story of how Nvidia evolved to supplying hundred-million-dollar supercomputers. It is the story of a determined entrepreneur who defied Wall Street to push his radical vision for computing, becoming one of the wealthiest men alive. It is the story of a revolution in computer architecture, and the small group of renegade engineers who made it happen. And it’s the story of our awesome and terrifying AI future, which Huang has billed as the ‘next industrial revolution,’ as a new kind of microchip unlocks hyper-realistic avatars, autonomous robots, self-driving cars, and new movies, art, and books, generated on command. This is the story of the company that is inventing the future.”
Podcast of the Week
David Shedd and Andrew Badger joined Michael Allen for Beacon Global Strategies’ NatSec Matters podcast: “Venezuela, China, and America’s Secrets: David Shedd & Andrew Badger”
