The Evening: Nuclear Threat Eliminated, Trump Embraces NATO, Midnight Rider, and More

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Good Evening,

It's Wednesday, June 25th.

Nuclear Threat Eliminated?

President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio made their most detailed case yet on Wednesday at a NATO summit in the Netherlands for why they believe the American attack on Iran dealt a fatal blow to its nuclear ambitions, pushing back on the findings of a U.S. intelligence report and more cautious statements from international nuclear inspectors, as the NYT reports

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Nuclear Deal?

President Trump said he doesn’t think a nuclear deal with Iran is necessary after the U.S. strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites, though he added there would be talks with Tehran next week, as the WSJ reports

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Trump Embraces NATO Security Alliance

President Donald Trump issued a full-throated endorsement of NATO and its defense mission after a summit of alliance leaders Wednesday, in his most forceful backing of a group he once threatened to abandon, as The Washington Post reports

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Executive Education

Looking for the tools to navigate times of uncertainty and significant change with minimum disruption? The CSIS Global Strategy Lab

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combines virtual and in-person experiences to deliver the strategic insight, global perspective, and communication tools required to drive success in times of change. Register

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by August 29 to join a community of seasoned leaders from across the private sector, government, and nonprofits.

Audio Briefs

CSIS now offers audio versions of our latest analysis. Listen to the latest Critical Questions by CSIS's Clayton Seigle, "How War with Iran Could Disrupt Energy Exports at the Strait of Hormuz

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In That Number

5 percent

NATO leaders agreed on Wednesday to a goal of spending 5 percent of their gross domestic product on defense.

Source: NYT

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Critical Quote

"We destroyed the nuclear."

—President Donald Trump

iDeas Lab

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Operation Midnight Hammer may mark the ceiling that conventional force can achieve against Iran’s nuclear program without triggering fallout. For Israel, this means future operations will likely involve sites that are more fortified or environmentally risky, or both. Read the full report here.

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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: Haiyun Jiang-Pool/Getty Images.) NATO leaders join King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima of the Netherlands for a family photo as they participate in the 2025 NATO summit on June 24, 2025 in The Hague, Netherlands.

Recommended Reading

"Why the United States Acted Now Against Iran

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" by CSIS's Kari A. Bingen and Clayton Swope.

This Town Tomorrow

At 11:00 a.m.

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, the CSIS Defense and Security Department and the Association of the U.S. Army (AUSA) host a conversation on the role of landpower in the Indo-Pacific.

Later, at 3

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:00 p.m.

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, the CSIS Energy Security and Climate Change Program holds a conversation on the status of the Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office (LPO), with a focus on the role of the LPO with respect to national priorities including nuclear energy, energy for AI, and critical minerals.

And, at 5:00 p.m.

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, the Carnegie Endowment discusses how public sentiment influences how the Kremlin calibrates its external posture.

Video

Last week, CSIS experts with the Defense and Security Department used AI-enhanced analysis to explore what comes next in Iran. Watch the full video here.

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Podcasts

CSIS Missile Threat Program director Tom Karako joins the podcast to assess conflicting reports about the degradation of Iran’s nuclear and missile program and how soon Iran may be able to rebuild.

Listen on Spotify

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& Apple Podcasts

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Smiles

It seems like the Allman Brothers’ influence is everywhere in roots music. Sturgill Simpson may be my favorite example of this

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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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