The Evening: Iran Must Halt Enrichment, Lost Dollar Value, Tangled Up in Blue, and More

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Good Evening,

It's Monday, April 15th.

Iran Must Halt Nuclear Enrichment

U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff appeared to backtrack on comments that Iran could be allowed to enrich uranium at a low level in a new nuclear deal with the Trump administration, saying Tuesday that Tehran would have to abandon its enrichment program, as the WSJ reports

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Lost Dollar Value

The dollar has lost almost 10 percent of its value since Inauguration Day, with about half of that decline coming this month after the president’s decision to lift taxes on imported goods to their highest level since 1909, as The Washington Post reports

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EU-U.S. Trade Talks

The U.S. has not told the EU what it wants to lift trade tariffs, the European Commission said, after a two-hour meeting between the two sides’ trade negotiators made little progress, as the FT reports

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Executive Education

From clean energy to national security, critical minerals are at the center of global competition. Building Critical Mineral Security for a Sustainable Future

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provides expert insights into supply chain resilience and sustainability. Join us in person or virtually—register by April 16

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Audio Briefs

CSIS now offers audio versions of our latest analysis. Listen to the latest Critical Questions by CSIS's Matthew P. Funaiole, "Unpacking the White House’s Executive Order on Restoring the U.S. Shipbuilding Industry

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In That Number

$300 billion

China had a trade surplus of almost $300 billion with the United States last year, with about 15 percent of its total exports heading into the United States.

Source: FT

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Critical Quote

“A deal with Iran will only be completed if it is a Trump deal. Iran must stop and eliminate its nuclear enrichment and weaponization program.”

—U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff

iDeas Lab

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A new Maxar satellite image, acquired on April 6, 2025, provides the closest look to date of perhaps the largest North Korean-manufactured warship

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, a new naval guided missile frigate at the Nampo Navy Shipyard’s “fitting out” dock.

The Andreas C. Dracopoulos iDeas Lab at CSIS enhances our research with the latest in cutting-edge web technologies, design, and multimedia.

Optics

(Photo credit: Minh Hoang/Pool/AFP/Getty Images.) Vietnam's President Luong Cuong and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands during a meeting at the Presidential Palace in Hanoi on April 15, 2025.

Recommended Reading

“The Hidden Risk of Rising U.S.-PRC Tensions: Export Control Symbiosis

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" by CSIS's Philip Luck.

This Town Tomorrow

At 10:00 a.m.

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, the CSIS Wadhwani AI Center examines the key initiatives shaping AI policy around the country, such as California Senate Bill 813, and the new administration's approach to AI governance.

Later, at 11:00 a.m.

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, the CSIS Korea Chair hosts the Impossible State podcast for a discussion on the tariff war, its potential impact on Korea, Japan, and other countries around the world, and more.

And, at 3:00 p.m.

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, the Brookings Institution discusses who holds the power of the purse in Washington today.

Video

Today, the CSIS Trustee Chair in Chinese Business and Economics hosted an online event featuring Emily Feng of NPR, the author of Let Only Red Flowers Bloom: Identity and Belonging in Xi Jinping's China. Watch the full video here.

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Podcasts

CSIS’s Gracelin Baskaran joins the podcast to discuss China’s halt of critical minerals to the United States. In addition to consumer products, the Pentagon and defense contractors are heavily reliant on magnets and rare earth minerals mined or processed in China. Baskaran discusses the impact of this decision and more.

Listen on Spotify

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& Apple Podcasts

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Smiles

Yesterday, I posted a stunningly beautiful Dylan cover of “Little Sadie” by the band Crooked Still. Just days ago, bluegrass/roots superstar Billy Strings launched into Dylan’s “Tangled Up in Blue

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” during an epic performance in Savannah, Georgia. There’s great music out there folks, and this is some of the best of it.

I invite you to email me at [email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

and follow me on Twitter @handrewschwartz

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The Evening is my daily guide to key insights CSIS brings to the events of the day. It is composed by Lauren Adler, Ava Rose, and the External Relations team.

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Connect w/ H. Andrew Schwartz



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