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PODCAST

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific?

Ray Powell & Jim Carouso

Chart the world"s new strategic crossroads. Join co-hosts Ray Powell, a 35-year U.S. Air Force veteran and Director of the celebrated SeaLight maritime transparency project, and Jim Carouso, a senior U.S. diplomat and strategic advisor, for your essential weekly briefing on the Indo-Pacific. Drawing on decades of on-the-ground military and diplomatic experience, they deliver unparalleled insights into the forces shaping the 21st century.From the U.S.-China strategic competition to the flashpoints of

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All Episodes

56:23

Why Should We Care About the India Trump Made? | with...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2026/01/09

The U.S.-India partnership has been a cornerstone of American Indo-Pacific strategy for two decades, but it’s now facing its most serious crisis. After bipartisan American efforts to bring India into closer partnership as a counterweight to China, President Trump has triggered the most dramatic deterioration in U.S.-India relations in a generation. What began with optimism in Delhi about Trump 2.0 has devolved into a breakdown of trust, escalating tariffs, and diplomatic miscalculation that

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60:25

EMERGENCY EPISODE: Why Should We Care if America Just...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2026/01/05

In Episode 122, hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso welcome Dr. Robert Burrell, retired US Marine Corps officer and irregular warfare specialist, and Colonel (Ret.) Michael Burgoyne, University of Arizona professor and former Army attaché in Mexico, to analyze the unprecedented US military operation in Venezuela that captured President Nicolás Maduro in January 2026. The experts explore the operation’s implications for the Indo-Pacific, US foreign policy, and the international rules-based order.The

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53:27

Why Should We Care About Taiwan’s Critical Energy...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2026/01/02

In Episode 121, hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso welcome Craig Singleton, Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and former US diplomat, to examine Taiwan’s critical energy vulnerability and China’s gray zone coercion strategies. Singleton, co-author of FDD’s recent report “Maritime Protection of Taiwan’s Energy Vulnerability,” reveals how Taiwan’s mere 10-day supply of liquefied natural gas (LNG) creates an Achilles heel Beijing could exploit without firing a shot - and why

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48:13

Why Should We Care About What Happened in the...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/12/31

In this special year-end edition, hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso reflect on a transformative 2025 in the Indo-Pacific, examining the dramatic shift from conventional diplomacy to hard power politics under the Trump 2.0 administration. The episode provides a comprehensive review of the podcast’s most impactful conversations, from national government leaders to topical experts, while analyzing the year’s major geopolitical developments.Trump 2.0 and the Hard Power PivotJim and Ray discuss how the

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53:50

Why Should We Care About the Health of the...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/12/26

In Ep. 119, hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso welcome Justin Bassi, Executive Director of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI), to assess the health of the US-Australia alliance as it approaches its 75th anniversary in 2026. Bassi, a former National Security Advisor to the Australian Prime Minister, argues that while the institutional foundation of the alliance remains robust, we are living in the “most dangerous times since the end of World War II” - a reality that demands confidence,

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55:18

Why Should We Care About America’s Unconventional New...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/12/19

In this essential episode, Ray Powell and Jim Carouso welcome two returning guests and leading strategic thinkers: retired Australian Army Major General Mick Ryan, author of “The War for Ukraine: Strategy and Adaptation Under Fire,” and Zack Cooper, senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and co-host of the Net Assessment Podcast. Together, they dissect the Trump administration’s newly released National Security Strategy and its implications for U.S. alliances, Indo-Pacific security, and

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44:11

Why Should We Care if Chinese Chemicals are Fueling a...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/12/12

In Ep. 117, Washington Post Southeast Asia Bureau Chief Rebecca Tan joins co-hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso to discuss her investigative reporting on the massive surge of methamphetamines flooding the Asia-Pacific. While the U.S. remains focused on the fentanyl crisis, Tan explains how the same network of Chinese chemical manufacturers is simultaneously fueling a "meth tsunami" that is overwhelming law enforcement from Thailand to Australia.The Global SyndicateRebecca details how Chinese chemical

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37:59

Why Should We Care How China’s Maritime Aggression...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/12/09

In Ep. 116, Senator Todd Young of Indiana sits down with co-hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso to discuss why what happens in the South China Sea, around Taiwan, and across the first island chain directly shapes America’s prosperity and national security. Senator Young, a former Marine Corps intelligence officer and one of the Senate’s leading voices on Indo-Pacific security, explains that he's championing the Ships for America Act and the HARPOON Act because he believes the U.S. cannot afford to turn

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52:59

Why Should We Care About China's Political Warfare...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/12/05

In this episode, hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso welcome Peter Mattis, President of the Jamestown Foundation and former CIA analyst, to dissect the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) "political warfare" against Taiwan. Mattis argues this is not merely diplomatic maneuvering, but "United Front work playing out on a global scale" - a comprehensive campaign to reshape the international order by recreating China’s domestic political controls abroad.War by Other MeansMattis grounds the political warfare

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61:29

Why Should We Care if China is Threatening Japan over...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/12/04

In this special live pod, Ray and Jim were joined by two distinguished guests: Former Japanese Ambassador to Australia Shingo Yamagami and Bonnie Glaser, Director of the Indo-Pacific Program at the German Marshall Fund of the U.S. Together, they unpack China's escalating diplomatic offensive against Japan following PM Sanae Takaichi's recent statements about Taiwan.What Sparked the CrisisEp. 114 centers on Takaichi's remarks in the Japanese Diet, where she responded to a hypothetical question about

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46:47

Why Should We Care if Indonesia's "Jakarta Model" for...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/11/28

In this episode, hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso welcome Dr. Alvin Camba, a sociologist who studies Southeast Asian political economies, China relations, and critical mineral supply chains. Camba, author of the New America article "The Jakarta Model is No Blueprint," critiques Indonesia's export ban on raw nickel and incentives for domestic refining, which have driven economic growth and positioned the country as a key EV battery supplier but have also resulted in severe human and environmental

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46:55

Why Should We Care if a Tribunal Just Sentenced...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/11/21

In this episode, host Ray Powell sits down with Dr. Lailufar Yasmin, a renowned political scientist at the University of Dhaka, to unpack Bangladesh's dramatic recent political crisis and explore why what happens in this densely populated South Asian nation matters to the broader Indo-Pacific regional stability.Recorded just one day after Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal sentenced former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to death in absentia for crimes against humanity--this conversation

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49:23

Why Should We Care if China is Waging a War for Our...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/11/14

In this insightful podcast episode, senior U.S. defense analyst Andrew Jensen joins hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso to break down cognitive warfare—the Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) key tactic for shaping perceptions, decisions, and narratives to achieve strategic goals without traditional military conflict. Leveraging his deep knowledge of Sino-Russian relations and information operations, Jensen explores how cognitive warfare targets human thought processes before, during, and after battles

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52:51

Why Should We Care About China’s Law of the Sea? |...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/11/07

Episode 110 features Isaac Kardon, Senior Fellow for China Studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and author of "China’s Law of the Sea: The New Rules of Maritime Order." Kardon joins hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso to discuss how China uses domestic law, coast guard operations, and strategic ambiguity to reshape international maritime norms - especially in the South and East China Seas and the Yellow Sea.China’s Approach to Maritime Law: Kardon explains that China’s

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47:20

Why Should We Care if China Doesn’t Really Want to...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/10/31

In this episode, China scholar David C. Kang joins Ray Powell and Jim Carouso to discuss his recent Foreign Affairs article, “What China Doesn’t Want”, which argues that Beijing's geostrategic ambitions are much more limited than Washington's foreign policy establishment believes. Kang challenges the prevailing consensus that China seeks regional hegemony and global primacy, arguing instead that China's aims are narrower, more domestic, and more status quo than commonly assumed.A contrarian

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47:34

Why Should We Care About How Japan’s First Female...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/10/24

In Ep. 108, Ray Powell and Jim Carouso interview CNN Tokyo correspondent Hanako Montgomery about the historic election of Sanae Takaichi as Japan's first female prime minister, exploring her background, conservative policies, and the geopolitical challenges she faces amid rising regional tensions and domestic economic woes. The discussion highlights Takaichi's rise: how she broke through Japan's traditional patriarchal barriers, and how she will navigate its complex domestic politics and the rapidly

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42:08

Why Should We Care About the West Philippine Sea Film...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/10/21

In this episode, acclaimed Filipino filmmaker Baby Ruth Villarama joins Ray Powell and Jim Carouso to discuss her documentary, "Food Delivery: Fresh from the West Philippine Sea"—a film Beijing tried repeatedly to block inside the Philippines and internationally. Villarama shares her perspective on the struggle of Filipino fisherfolk and defenders facing intimidation on the region’s contested waters, and how their experience holds urgent lessons for food security, truth, and sovereignty across the

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51:04

Why Should We Care if China Wants to Lead the Global...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/10/17

Veteran journalist Eric Olander, editor-in-chief of the China Global South Project, joins hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso to unpack how China’s economic rise is remaking alliances and perceptions throughout the Global South, and assesses the real stakes for prosperity and stability as competition intensifies.China is setting new international standards: As U.S. influence recedes, China’s growing economic power is shifting global norms in technology, governance, and more.Global South nations seek

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54:10

Why Should We Care What it’s Really Like Living in...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/10/10

North Korean defector and human rights advocate Timothy Cho joins hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso for a deeply personal account of his life in and escape from North Korea. He recounts his childhood poverty, four imprisonments, harrowing escape, and ultimate rescue that finally brought him to freedom. His story reveals North Korea's total information control, systemic persecution, and brutal detention conditions, while also highlighting the power of compassion, civil society, and diplomacy to

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52:59

Why Should We Care if America Pulls Back While China...

Why Should We Care About the Indo-Pacific? ·

2025/10/03

In this compelling episode, hosts Ray Powell and Jim Carouso interview Shannon Brandao – attorney, Mandarin speaker, and founder of the China Boss Substack – to explore China's expanding influence even as America appears to turn inward. Broadcasting from Europe, Brandao delivers her unique insights on Chinese Communist Party strategy, economic challenges, and geopolitical ambitions.Brandao emphasizes that perception easily becomes reality, in that when America appears to withdraw, China seizes

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129 results

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