Press | 2023

Take a look at the Clements Center’s summer programming and what we have in store for the fall!

Applications are open now through Friday, November 3, 2023 at 11:00 pm Central for the “London Maymester: The U.S., U.K., and World Order.” London Maymester: The U.S., U.K., and World Order In partnership with the world-renowned War Studies Department at King’s College London, the Maymester in London provides exemplary students the opportunity to learn firsthand about…

ISP-Sponsored Surveys During the Biden Presidency Affirm Continued Strong Public Support for the Intelligence Community But Also Signal Growing Partisanship The Chicago Council on Global Affairs recently published the results of two annual polls sponsored by UT-Austin’s Clements-Strauss Intelligence Studies Project. The surveys conducted in 2021 and 2022 confirm that most Americans believe US intelligence…

As part of Tablet’s ongoing series on the U.S.-Israel ‘special relationship’, Daniel J. Samet and Raphael Benlevi explain “The Pro-America Case for Ending Aid”. “Rather than being a zero-sum equation, it is in the best interests of both the U.S. and Israel to phase out aid gradually.”

The highly selective program brought twenty-two advanced doctoral students from premier universities in the U.S. and abroad, including Johns Hopkins, Harvard, Georgetown, King’s College London, Cambridge, North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia Tech, Boston and Chicago, for a week of learning, discussion and networking. Seminar participants discussed the relationship between history and policy with distinguished policymakers and academics, including…

“Since he came to power in 2012, the Chinese leader Xi Jinping has been laser-focused on ensuring the security of his regime.”

Sam Rosenberg, Jahara Matisek and William Reno make a case for more informal assistance to Ukraine from the United States and its allies: “Over the past year, such informal assistance has come to play a crucial role in many aspects of the Ukrainian war effort and counteroffensive.”

The Intelligence Studies Project of the University of Texas at Austin is pleased to announce the winner and two semifinalists in the ninth-annual competition recognizing outstanding student research and writing on topics related to intelligence and national security.   The recipient of the “Inman Award” is A.J. Dilts, a 2023 graduate of Harvard University in History and Government. His…

This June, the Clements Center led nine undergraduates from UT-Austin on a tour of Israel and the Palestinian Territories in order to study the modern political history of Israelis and Palestinian Arabs from the late 19th century through the present. Students learned firsthand from scholars, policymakers, and even a few who lived through the politically…

“Diplomacy is much more than exchanging words. It is rather a complex choreography of many elements of national power, aimed to influence multiple audiences.” Read Will Inboden’s thoughts on Secretary of State Tony Blinken’s visit to Beijing earlier this week on World.

For our annual London Maymester “The U.S., U.K., and World Order” program, twenty undergraduate students from UT-Austin traveled to the United Kingdom, France and Belgium to study the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom with the world-renowned War Studies Department at King’s College London. Throughout the month, students attended lectures including…

The Clements-Strauss Intelligence Studies Project hosted the fourth running of the Texas Intelligence Academy (TIA) from May 16 to 25, 2023 in the National Capital Area. The TIA 2023 cohort comprised 15 undergraduate students from UT-Austin, UT-El Paso, and UT-San Antonio. Students participated in classroom lectures and exercises with current and former senior intelligence professionals…

Departure Statement from the Clements Center’s founding Executive Director William Inboden: After thirteen incomparable years at the University of Texas at Austin, and ten years leading the Clements Center for National Security, I have accepted a new leadership position at the University of Florida. Beginning August 1, I will be working for University of Florida…

Congratulations to our Executive Director Will Inboden! His book, The Peacemaker: Ronald Reagan, the Cold War, and the World on the Brink, has been included on the shortlist for the 2023 Council on Foreign Relations Arthur Ross Book Award! The annual Award recognizes books that make an outstanding contribution to the understanding of foreign policy…

Clements Center alum Dr. Jaehan Park was recently on the Applied Geopolitics podcast to discuss the geopolitics of the Korean Peninsula–past, present, and future.

Hear Gen. Brooks discuss President Biden’s nomination of Gen. Charles Q. Brown for the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. 

Last month, the America in the World Consortium’s team of scholar-practitioners from Duke University, Johns Hopkins SAIS, and the University of Texas at Austin hosted the fourth iteration of the AWC Annual Policy Conference. This year, the Consortium convened at the Salamander Resort & Spa in Middleburg, Virginia to bring together experts from academia and…

In On Writing Podcast, Inboden and Neiberg Discuss Avoiding Preconceived Notions While Writing “The Peacemaker”

Will Inboden & Peter Feaver have a new piece in the Journal of Democracy “…considering what can be learned from the fruits and failings of the Freedom Agenda.”

Be sure to read the Wall Street Journal Opinion Saturday Interview by Kate Bachelder Odell with our own Will Inboden: “The Reagan Lesson for the Trumpian Right on Ukraine and China.”

Clements Center Executive Director Will Inboden joins Eric Eric Edelman on The Bulwark to discuss the alleged “October Surprise” in 1980, the charge made by former Carter NSC staffer Gary Sick that Reagan campaign manager Bill Casey colluded with Iranian intermediaries to forestall the release of the U.S. hostages until after the election.

Clements Center alum Dr. Jaehan Park was recently on the Applied Geopolitics podcast to discuss the geopolitics of the Korean Peninsula–past, present, and future.

This last semester, Graduate Fellow Sam Rosenberg cowrote two articles for RUSI about military assistance to Ukraine. You can read them here: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: Assessing a Year of Military Aid to Ukraine US-led Security Assistance to Ukraine is Working  

Clements Center Executive Director pens “Kissinger at 100” commemorating the centenary of Henry Kissinger. “When anyone lives to celebrate a 100th birthday, it is notable. Living to a century while still commanding public attention, influencing policy, and writing bestselling books is another matter altogether. Such is the case with Henry Kissinger.” Kissinger serves as a member…

Hear Gen. Brooks discuss President Biden’s nomination of Gen. Charles Q. Brown for the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. 

Last month, the America in the World Consortium’s team of scholar-practitioners from Duke University, Johns Hopkins SAIS, and the University of Texas at Austin hosted the fourth iteration of the AWC Annual Policy Conference. This year, the Consortium convened at the Salamander Resort & Spa in Middleburg, Virginia to bring together experts from academia and…

In the newest episode of the U.S. Army War College’s On Writing, Will Inboden & Michael Neiberg discuss process of writing “The Peacemaker” and how Dr. Inboden sought to avoid preconceived notions in order to present an unbiased, accurate account of the of the Reagan national security team in the 1980s.

Will Inboden & Peter Feaver have a new piece in the Journal of Democracy “…considering what can be learned from the fruits and failings of the Freedom Agenda.”

Be sure to read the Wall Street Journal Opinion Saturday Interview by Kate Bachelder Odell with our own Will Inboden: “The Reagan Lesson for the Trumpian Right on Ukraine and China.”

Clements Center Executive Director Will Inboden joins Eric Eric Edelman on The Bulwark to discuss the alleged “October Surprise” in 1980, the charge made by former Carter NSC staffer Gary Sick that Reagan campaign manager Bill Casey colluded with Iranian intermediaries to forestall the release of the U.S. hostages until after the election.

James Barnett, research fellow at Hudson Institute and Clements Center alum, adds context to Tuesday’s attack on the US convoy in Nigeria “so that policymakers, analysts, and the media can understand how an attack like this could come about and avoid misinterpreting the incident.”

How will the United States and China sustain the large defense budgets required for long-term competition? Rosella Cappella Zielinski, a former visiting professor at the Clements Center, and Sam Gerstle, an upcoming participant in our Summer Seminar in History and Statecraft, try to answer this question.