Full-Scale War on Coronavirus

President Biden, pledging a “full-scale wartime effort” to combat the coronavirus pandemic, signed a string of executive orders and presidential directives today aimed at combating the worst public health crisis in a century, including new requirements for masks on interstate planes, trains and buses, and for international travelers to quarantine after arriving in the United States, as the NYT reports.

Extension of New START

President Biden is seeking a five-year extension with Russia on the only remaining treaty limiting the world’s two largest nuclear arsenals just days before it expires, as the Washington Post reports.

First Big Suicide attack in Baghdad for 3 Years

Two men blew themselves up in a crowded Baghdad market on today, killing at least 32 people in Iraq’s first big suicide bombing for three years, authorities said, describing it as a possible sign of the reactivation of Islamic State, as Reuters reports.

Executive Education

CSIS is now accepting applications for the Fall 2020 Belt and Road Executive Course. Drawing insights from leading experts and the CSIS Reconnecting Asia Project, this course reveals how China's $1 trillion foreign policy effort is impacting commercial and strategic realities on the ground.

Global Forecast 2021

Global Forecast is an annual collection of essays by CSIS experts focused on the critical issues facing the United States and the world in the year ahead. The latest papers examine President Biden's international economic policy and U.S.-China engagement on climate change.

Coronavirus Crisis Update

The Coronavirus Crisis Update podcast brings you the latest updates and analysis from CSIS experts and the leaders directing the global response. Past guests include NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci, White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain, IHME Director Dr. Chris Murray, Covid-19 Advisory Group members Dr. Luciana Borio and Dr. Celine Gounder, chef Jose Andres, and more. Listen on Apple Podcasts & Spotify.

Video Shorts

Check out CSIS’s new series of video shorts: “Data Unpacked,” Testify,” “What's Happening,” “Preview,” and “High Resolution.” And don’t forget to subscribe to the CSIS YouTube Channel!

In That Number

5

President Biden is proposing that the New START treaty be extended for five years, a step that would maintain the basic arms control framework that has constrained the American and Russian long-range nuclear arsenals.

Source: WSJ

Critical Quote

“What we’re inheriting is so much worse than we could have imagined.”

— Jeff Zients, White House Covid-19 response coordinator

iDeas Lab

China is on a path to become a high-tech superpower. But that’s not what has happened in commercial aircraft, where China is far from closing the gap with the United States and Europe. CSIS’s Scott Kennedy explains why China’s aerospace sector has struggled for decades, and what it means for the United States.

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: Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images.) President Joe Biden prepares to sign a series of executive orders.

This Town Tomorrow

Tomorrow, at 9:00 a.m, the CSIS Europe Program holds a discussion on the shared transatlantic challenges of countering and deterring foreign interference into democratic institutions.

And, at 9:30 a.m., the CSIS Korea Chair hosts Sydney Seiler, the national intelligence officer for North Korea, for a conversation about recent developments on the peninsula.

Later, at 11:00 a.m, the George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs holds a webinar exploring different visions of data governance and strategies to address individual and collective harms.

Video

CSIS today hosted a discussion with a panel of leading experts from the Trustee Chair in China Business and Economics regarding U.S. policy toward China. They discussed the legacy of the Trump administration's approach, the relative trajectory of the Chinese and U.S. economies, the impact of domestic politics in both countries, and the Biden administration’s various policy options. Watch the full video here.

Podcasts

On the most recent episode of 35 West, CSIS's Moises Rendon sits down with CSIS Senior Adviser William Brownfield, former U.S. ambassador to Venezuela, Chile, and Colombia, to discuss the Covid-19 pandemic, Chile's constitutional referendum, and the Biden administration's priorities for the region.

Listen on Spotify, Google Play, & Apple Podcasts

Smiles

“I know we can make it.
I know darn well we can work it out.
Oh yes we can, I know we can can
Yes we can can, why can't we?
If we wanna get together we can work it out.”

One of the greatest smiles in my life right now is Tipitina’s TV, the new streaming venture by New Orleans’ most famous music club. Like all live music venues these days, Tipitina’s is dark due to Covid. But that hasn’t stopped the place from broadcasting the organic funk it is known for. You can subscribe or watch Tips TV a la carte from show to show. Here’s a sample for you of Tips TV, Ivan Neville and Galactic covering Allen Toussaint’s classic “Yes, We Can Can,” a song the Pointer Sisters made a hit. Yes We Can!

I invite you to email me at [email protected] and follow me on Twitter @handrewschwartz

The Evening is my daily guide to key insights CSIS brings to the events of the day. It is composed with the External Relations team: Emma Colbran, Caleb Diamond, and Kendal Gee.