Full Program

Part 1

We begin with Russian President Putin’s op-ed in the New York Times “A Plea For Caution From Russia” and speak with Fiona Hill a specialist on Russia at the Brookings Institution and co-author of the new book “Mr. Putin: Operative in the Kremlin”. We discuss how Putin skillfully plays his weak hand while the U.S. clumsily plays its strong hand.

Part 2

Then we speak with an expert on chemical weapons at the Stimson Center Brian Findlay, to find out in the event that the U.S. - Russian deal to disarm Syria’s chemical arsenal goes through, how this vast arsenal can be corralled and destroyed in the midst of a civil war when 16 years after signing onto the international ban, the U.S. still has not gotten rid of all of the world’s second largest chemical weapons arsenal.

Part 3

Then finally we hear from the author of an article in The Atlantic “Stop Blaming Colonial Borders for the Middle East’s Problem” to get an alternative view on the roots of the current turmoil in Syria. Nick Danforth, the editor of the cartography blog, midafternoonmap.com joins us discuss how the pernicious policies of divide-and-rule that the British and French colonists used to sustain their power are more responsible for the post “Arab spring” chaos in the Middle East.

Full Program

Part 1

We begin with an analysis of the makeup of the Syrian armed opposition of which the Al Qaeda-affiliated Al Nusra Front comprises a small fraction. Richard Barrett, the Senior Director for Special Projects at the Qatar International Academy of Security Studies who established the United Nations Counter Terrorism Implementation Task Force, joins us to outline the composition of the ideologically diverse armed opposition in Syria.

Part 2

Then we hear from Syrian-born Ghada al Atrash a translator and columnist for Gulf News in the United Arab Emirates who has been following the cultural revolution in Syria that has accompanied the revolution against the Assads who have suppressed free expression in Syria for decades through fear and censorship. We discuss the poems and writing she has translated that have flourished in social media while violence and pain from the agonizing civil war has intensified as her beloved country is torn apart.

Part 3

Then finally we speak with a former presidential speechwriter and a former Special Assistant to the President for Public Liaison to get an analysis of the heavy lift the President has with his speech to a skeptical nation about his plans for a military strike against Syria. Paul Glastris, the editor-in-chief of the Washington Monthly and Mike Lux, the co-founder and CEO of Progressive Strategies join us to discuss what the president can do to change the minds of the majority of Americans and members of Congress while simultaneously addressing his war plans and the Russian peace offer.