Nikolas Gvosdev
Nikolas Gvosdev is a professor of national security studies at the U.S. Naval War College, and serves as Senior Fellow, U.S. Global Engagement Program.
Nikolas Gvosdev's Latest Posts
Narratives, Priorities and Defense Spending
Is the experience of the Covid-19 pandemic, more than any reports issued by think tanks and platforms developed by candidates, going to have major changes in how Americans perceive foreign policy? David Barno and Nora Bensahel make the following critical observation in a recent essay for War on the Rocks: A poll taken in February […]
Hungary and the Values Test
In the wake of the Hungarian parliament’s vote to allow the executive to rule by decree, Fred Kaplan argues that it is time to consider expelling Hungary from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization on the grounds that the country no longer upholds the liberal-democratic values that should form the basis of the security association. He […]
Does Covid-19 Change International Relations?
Does a global pandemic change the nature of international affairs? Is it likely to foster international cooperation, or will it promote disintegrative tendencies within the global system–as nations seek to disconnect themselves? Could we see renewed efforts at “decoupling” countries and rethinking global supply chains and transport networks? Moreover, will different nations see the pandemic […]
What Do Americans Think …
The U.S. Global Engagement Project at the Carnegie Council has been conducting a survey of attitudes about U.S. foreign policy with an eye to understanding where Americans are prepared to accept risks or prioritize tradeoffs with competing clusters of values and interests. While the survey is still running, I’d like to share some preliminary tabulations. […]
Super Tuesday and the Clash of Foreign Policy Narratives
The “Super Tuesday” contest has now transformed the Democratic presidential primary into a two-person race, but beyond that, Democratic voters are now presented with a clear choice between two different foreign policy narratives and ethical considerations when it comes to U.S. engagement in the international system. I had the opportunity to speak with Alex Woodson […]
Gallagher’s Proposal and Emerging Narratives
One of the members of the Carnegie Council study group on U.S. global engagement, Colin Dueck, alerted me to an important Wall Street Journal op-ed by Representative Michael Gallagher (R-WI) which lays out a new paradigm for conducting U.S. foreign policy, as it relates to trade and “great power competition” with regards to technological advancement. […]
As Biden Stalls, Is the “Restorationist” Narrative Losing Ground?
Accepting all the caveats about the Iowa Democratic party caucuses (the state is unrepresentative of the Democratic Party or the country as a whole, the process is skewed toward committed activists who are prepared to devote several hours to be present, and the reality that the number of delegates selected is quite small), the results […]
Hybrid Narratives and Competing with China
The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) has released its Congressionally-requested report on what the American approach ought to be in order to cope and compete with a rising China. In reading Rising to the China Challenge: Renewing American Competitiveness in the Indo-Pacific, what struck me was how the report’s recommendations are grounded in a number of the new and emerging narratives about the role and scope of U.S. engagement in the world–a clear effort to broaden the potential base of support for its recommendations beyond the traditional “bipartisan consensus” about the need for the United States to exercise “leadership” in the world.
