Edward Fishman, senior fellow and director of the Greenberg Center for Geoeconomics at the Council on Foreign Relations, joins School of War to discuss his New York Times best-selling book, Chokepoints: American Power in the Age of Economic Warfare. How has the United States turned the global economy into a strategic weapon? What are the strengths and limits of sanctions? And how are China, Russia, and Iran adapting to a new era of economic warfare?

02:46 - Edward Fishman's background

04:26 - Understanding economic chokepoints

05:35 - The dollar as a strategic chokepoint

07:02 - Semiconductors as a strategic chokepoint

09:24 - The Iraq embargo and modern sanctions

11:05 - Airpower vs. economic warfare

12:14 - Are sanctions a "nuclear weapon"?

13:23 - America's sanctions strategy toward Iran

14:25 - Trump pulling out of the JCPOA

16:20 - The limits of economic warfare

18:00 - Iran, the Strait of Hormuz, and the MoU

20:44 - Shadow fleets and Iranian oil

22:54 - The evolution of Russia sanctions

27:59 - China and the economic arms race

29:53 - How nations mitigate economic chokepoints

34:20 - What makes a strategic chokepoint?

39:40 - Chokepoints beyond economics

41:05 - Can Iran institutionalize control over the Strait of Hormuz?

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David, a U.S. military veteran who has been fighting voluntarily alongside Ukrainian forces, joins School of War to discuss how four years on the front lines have transformed modern warfare. How has combat in Ukraine changed since Russia’s 2022 invasion? Why have first-person view drones become the defining weapon of the war? What misconceptions does the West still have about the Russian military? And what lessons must the United States absorb before its next major conflict?

02:49 - David’s military history

05:56 - What brought David to Ukraine

07:37 - Russia's failed invasion of Kyiv

10:24 - How Ukraine turned the tide in 2022

17:04 - How Ukraine adapted to Russia's invasion

19:06 - America's role in Ukraine's early success

23:59 - How the battlefield has evolved since 2022

28:15 - Experiencing Russian artillery 

37:22 - From artillery warfare to drone warfare

40:41 - Why FPV drones are terrifying

44:20 - The modern "gray zone" 

49:26 - Why Russia is still a military threat

01:00:49 - What Ukraine must do to survive

01:11:41 - Is the U.S. military learning the right lessons?

01:15:55 - The future of warfare and America's defense industry

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Richard Bell, historian, professor at the University of Maryland, and author of The American Revolution and the Fate of the World, joins School of War to discuss how the American Revolution became a global conflict that stretched from Boston to the Caribbean, Europe, India, and beyond. How did George Washington's strategy force Britain to fight a world war? Why was France's intervention decisive to American victory? And what does the revolution reveal about the nature of coalition warfare?

00:53 - Rick Bell's background

02:05 - The American Revolution was a global war

06:09 - What led to the Boston Tea Party

12:45 - Patriot motivations

14:38 - Who was Edmund Burke?

16:50 - Britain divided over the Revolution

20:47 - Why France backed the Patriots

23:45 - France and Spain vs. Britain

27:01 - The Caribbean: Britain's crown jewel

30:08 - The forgotten theater of the Revolution

35:49 - Washington's global coalition strategy

38:55 - Germany and the Hessian soldiers

41:50 - The Patriots' European officers

43:10 - The myth of guerrilla warfare

44:50 - Final thoughts

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Sal Mercogliano, professor of history at Campbell University and host of the What’s Going on with Shipping YouTube channel, joins the show once again to discuss Iran's renewed attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Why is the ceasefire already beginning to unravel? What is Iran trying to accomplish by asserting control over the strait? And what could the long-term consequences be for global trade, energy markets, and freedom of navigation?

02:11 - New arrangement in the Strait of Hormuz

05:19 - Humanitarian situation for sailors

06:53 - Jobs at sea and AI

08:05 - New rounds of violence

11:02 - Route options for ships

13:30 - Why did the ceasefire break down?

15:05 - Iran asserts control over the strait

16:10 - Why were these ships targeted?

19:08 - Strait of Hormuz as a strategic choke point

21:49 - What Iran learned from the Houthis

23:21 - Why energy prices haven't spiked

28:20 - Impact on developing nations

29:13 - The endgame in the Strait of Hormuz

33:22 - U.S. naval presence in the Gulf

36:26 - Iran's maritime protection racket

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Dr. John Mitani, professor emeritus in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Michigan and recipient of the Charles R. Darwin Lifetime Achievement Award, joins School of War to discuss the violent chimpanzee civil war he documented among the Ngogo chimpanzees in Uganda. What caused one of the world's largest chimpanzee communities to turn on itself? What does chimpanzee warfare reveal about the origins of human conflict? And what separates humans from our closest living relatives?

02:39 - How Dr. Mitani became an ape researcher

04:02 - Why chimpanzees?

05:13 - Humans' closest living relatives

08:38 - The Ngogo chimpanzees

09:31 - The chimpanzee civil war begins

13:35 - Living among wild chimpanzees

17:09 - Territorial patrols and warfare

22:34 - Why the chimpanzee community split

26:26 - How chimpanzees fight

29:14 - The strategy behind chimp warfare

31:24 - Why full stomachs lead to war

33:10 - Land, food, and reproduction

37:27 - Infanticide and the mystery of female survival

39:26 - When civil war becomes permanent

41:13 - What chimpanzees teach us about human nature

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Earlier this year, Aaron MacLean visited Ukraine, where he met with Georgian Legion commander Mamuka Mamulashvili. What happens when a boy goes to war at 14 years old? What does a lifetime of fighting Russians teach you about how they operate? And what lessons should the West be learning from war in Ukraine?

02:18 - Growing up in Soviet Georgia

03:53 - Russia's invasion of Abkhazia

07:59 - Capture and torture by Russian forces

10:24 - The First and Second Chechen Wars

13:49 - Killing a Russian soldier for the first time

17:32 - Force vs. diplomacy

18:14 - Georgia's wars with Russia

20:19 - The 2008 Russo-Georgian War

23:47 - Georgian support for Ukraine

24:39 - Mixed martial arts

29:53 - Founding the Georgian Legion

33:33 - The defense of Hostomel Airport

43:32 - How drones have transformed warfare

50:45 - Russian disinformation

52:27 - Why Ukraine will ultimately win

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Rye Barcott, co-founder and CEO of With Honor, veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps, and author of Courage Can Save Us, joins School of War to discuss the meaning of courage, the enduring value of service, and the challenge of bridging America’s growing political divides. What separates courage from bravery? Can military service help heal a polarized America? And what does principled leadership look like in an age of distrust?

01:28 - Murph challenge

03:08 - Rye's father and Vietnam

05:08 - Defining courage

07:57 - First to Fight

13:49 - Joining the Marines

14:22 - September 11th

17:42 - Bosnia, Africa, and Fallujah

19:16 - Marine commanders

23:52 - Life in Fallujah

26:05 - The With Honor mission

28:29 - America's polarization problem

30:05 - Veterans in politics

33:12 - The civil-military divide

37:23 - Courage in politics

41:57 - Congressman Jared Golden

44:19 - Senator Todd Young

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Mark Dubowitz, CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, returns to School of War to discuss the newly released memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran. What does the deal actually say? What are its biggest strategic implications? And is it comparable to the JCPOA—or something worse?

01:19 - Paragraph 1: Lebanon and Hezbollah

09:45 - Paragraphs 2–3: Sovereignty and the 60-day clock

11:24 - Paragraph 4: Lifting the blockade

16:37 - Paragraph 5: The Strait of Hormuz

23:48 - Paragraph 6: A $300 billion reconstruction fund

33:49 - Paragraph 7: Ending all sanctions

35:43 - Paragraph 8: Nuclear weapons and enrichment

39:12 - Paragraph 9: Maintaining the status quo

40:44 - Paragraph 10: Oil waivers and sanctions relief

43:48 - Paragraph 11: Releasing frozen funds

46:56 - Paragraph 12: Monitoring compliance

47:52 - Paragraph 13: Negotiating the final deal

50:59 - Paragraph 14: A UN Security Council resolution

51:13 - Squandering battlefield leverage

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Eliot Cohen, Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies; professor emeritus at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, author of The Strategist: How to Think About War and Politics; and co-host of the Shield of the Republic podcast, joins School of War to discuss the recent agreement between the United States and Iran. Did the United States and Israel accomplish their objectives against Iran? What does the conflict reveal about the U.S. military's readiness for future wars? And did Trump negotiate from a position of strength, or squander one?

01:22 - Eliot Cohen on the war with Iran

03:34 - Judging Trump by outcomes

05:08 - A war 47 years in the making

06:45 - What we don't know about the air campaign

08:08 - Negotiating from strength?

09:10 - Trump's negotiating style

12:05 - Questions about America's conduct of the war

14:31 - The Strait of Hormuz becomes the objective

15:41 - Why the war ended when it did

17:25 - Trump and the nature of war

19:01 - Has Iran succeeded?

23:21 - The decline of the Iranian empire

28:09 - Why Trump got a bad deal

31:36 - Auditing the U.S. military

39:39 - Has warfare been transformed?

42:10 - What should America do next?

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Arthur Herman, senior research fellow at the Civitas Institute at the University of Texas at Austin and author of Founder’s Fire: From 1776 to the Age of Trump, joins School of War to discuss how America’s Founding Fathers helped create a culture of innovation in technology, industry, and warfare. Who are the most important founders of the past and present? What lessons can they teach us about today’s revolution in warfare? And what makes American ingenuity so unique?

02:45 - Defining founders

10:56 - Technology at America's founding

 13:49  - Alex Karp and the founder mindset

14:45 - The creation of Springfield Arsenal

15:40 - Thomas Jefferson and American weapons

19:10 - Today's revolution in warfare

20:53 - AI on the battlefield

21:49 - Why a strong economy matters

24:40 - China's defense industry

26:32  - American industrial policy

29:11 - Lessons from Ukraine

31:29 - Declining competition in weapons manufacturing

33:38 - The burden of weapons regulations

37:50 - Elon Musk's founder mentality

41:52 - The future of American ingenuity

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Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior director of Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ (FDD) Iran Program and a senior fellow specializing in Iranian security and political issues, returns to School of War to discuss the latest round of fighting between Israel and Iran. Why did this latest wave of Iranian missile attacks feel different? Why does a weakened Iran seem emboldened? Where is the regime most vulnerable? And will politics in Washington prevent the U.S. from doing what is necessary to stop it?

02:30 - Israel in Southern Lebanon

04:37 - Iran's Missile Barrage Against Israel

06:20 - FPV Drone Warfare in Lebanon

08:30 - A New Iranian Strategy?

12:16 - Cover for Terror Proxies

14:14 - The Danger of a Weakened Iran

17:44 - The Nazi Germany Comparison

21:00 - The Wehrmacht's Last Stand

22:07 - Iran's Reaction to Pressure

25:09 - Targets in Iran and Israel

30:15 - Where Is Iran Most Vulnerable?

31:47 - The Iran-Iraq War Analogy

32:44 - Exploiting Divisions in Iran

35:09 - Political Obstacles to Maximum Pressure

38:17 - Trump's Record on Iran Policy

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