America Abroad

As the Trump administration begins ironing out its strategy in the Middle East, America Abroad examines what may lie ahead regarding Israel, Syria, Iran, and the fight against ISIS.

President Trump's declarations on Asia have caused much uncertainty in the region. To better understand the hopes, fears, and concerns on both sides of the Pacific, America Abroad convened a bi-national town hall bringing together audiences and experts in both Honolulu and Tokyo.

In this hour of America Abroad, we look at the state of the US relationship with Russia. We explore Russia's use of cyberspace and propaganda, Vladimir Putin's domestic political strategy and how it shapes Russia's foreign policy, and Russia's relationship with NATO.

"I think the US has to do a lot of thinking about what type of assets it's willing to put forward not on an ad hoc basis but something that the entire global community can rely upon on a continuous basis in terms of disease response." (Rebecca Katz, Associate Professor in International Health, Georgetown University).

"Public Opinion about Israel in America is similar to what physicists say about the universe, it’s expanding and contracting at the same time." (Michael Oren, Israel's former ambassador to the US)

America Abroad collaborates with The Takeaway for an international town hall in front of live audiences in New York, Berlin and Cairo. A New York-based panel discusses topics including from international trade and the economy, the threat of terrorism and instability in the Middle East, and how the world sees the role of American leadership in international affairs.

“What was unreasonable at 8 o'clock in the morning on September 11 may have been quite reasonable by 2 o'clock in the afternoon given the changed circumstances in which the country found itself.” (Michael Hayden, former former director of the Central Intelligence Agency and the National Security Agency)

“This message of extremism is alien. It's alien to their culture, it's alien to their communities, it's alien for their future," said ambassador Phillip Carter, former deputy to the commander for civil military engagements, United States Africa Command).

You get this feeling of sweeping non-violent movements today, in part because the knowledge is sweeping of how to fight without violence, and the fact that there may be better results as a consequence of that." (Mary King, author of the Freedom Song: A Personal Story of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement)

The Dalai Lama’s 80th birthday has been a cause for celebration, but also consternation for Tibetans at home and in the diaspora. Now, as he grows older, doubt hovers in the air as to who will carry on the struggle when he's gone.

The fight between Apple and the FBI over whether an iPhone should be unlocked to better solve the San Bernardino shooting, underscores a larger international debate over the trade-offs between national security and individual privacy rights.

The latest attacks in the Middle East, Paris and San Bernardino have proven the fight against ISIS is not limited to a country or even a region — it's a fight against an ideology.

In this hour-long program, we look at how drones are revolutionizing the skies, and how this technology has so quickly moved from science fiction to ubiquitous reality.

The ongoing war in Syria has led to the worst refugee crisis since World War II. And now, many of those refugees are heading for Europe. 700,000 have made the treacherous journey across the Mediterranean so far and another 100,000 are expected before the year's end.

As conflict intensifies throughout the Middle East and around the world, it's more important than ever to foster greater understanding between religions. Europe's refugee crisis and globalization more generally has lead us to an increasingly pluralistic society in which we must learn to live with our deepest differences, or face severe consequences.

Soon, Congress will vote on one of the most important and hotly contested foreign policy agreements in decades. The Iran Nuclear Deal will have a major impact on America's national security and the future stability of the Middle East, and it will help define President Obama's legacy. In this hour-long documentary special, we look back at the last 10 years of US policy towards Iran, including an oral history with they key players. We also look ahead to how the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action will play out over the next 10 years, and we'll visit Tehran and Tel Aviv to hear how individuals in those countries perceive the deal.

The illicit wildlife trade is now worth up to $20 billion a year. That's double what it was just a few years ago — worth far more than the weapons trade and approaching the rate of human smuggling. This has attracted the attention of Al-Shabaab, Boko Haram, the Lord's Resistance Army and other terrorist groups, African militias, and Asian criminal syndicates — all looking to capitalize on this high-value, low-risk venture. And it flies in the face of US officials and law enforcement who, since 9/11, have been doing everything in their power to cut off revenue to the world's terrorists. In this hour-long program, we look at poaching — once a conservation issue, but now a full-blown threat to national security.

This fall, Burma is scheduled to hold an historic presidential election. But with ongoing persecution of ethnic minorities and many other human rights issues, many wonder if it is ready for true reform.