The Evening: Coronavirus Travel, Taliban Call, Sturgill Simpson and More

March 3, 2020

Coronavirus Travel

President Trump said today that he may further tighten limits on international travel in hopes of blocking the arrival of more visitors infected by coronavirus, but he ruled out for now any restrictions on domestic travel within the United States, as the NYT reports.

Dive Deeper: Listen to the new CSIS Coronavirus Crisis Update podcast on Spotify & Apple Podcasts.

Trump Call with Taliban

President Trump spoke by telephone with chief Taliban negotiator Mullah Baradar Akhund on Tuesday, the first known direct communication between a U.S. leader and a top Taliban official, as a dispute over a prisoner release threatened a U.S.-led effort to bring peace to Afghanistan, as Reuters reports.

Iran’s Stockpile of Enriched Uranium Has Jumped

Iran has nearly tripled its stockpile of enriched uranium since early November, the United Nations’ atomic agency said Tuesday, as the WSJ’s Laurence Norman and Michael Gordon report.

U.S. Support for Turkey

Three top U.S. officials toured Turkey's border with Syria on Tuesday, even briefly crossing into Syrian territory, in a concerted effort to underscore U.S. support for its NATO ally against the Syrian government and its Russian backers, as the Washington Post’s Sarah Dadouch reports.

CSIS Executive Education

We invite you to apply for the Project on Nuclear Issues's 2020 Mid-Career Cadre, a select group comprised of nuclear professionals that have been in the field for five or more years and demonstrate particular promise for developing expertise and moving into leadership positions. Applications are due by March 31.

Video Shorts

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

In That Number

.5%

The Federal Reserve announced today that it is cutting interest rates by half a percentage point, an emergency move designed to bolster the U.S. economy amid risks posed by the coronavirus outbreak.

Source: Politico

Critical Quote

“I don't think that we are going to get out of this completely unscathed. I think that this is going to be one of those things we look back on and say boy, that was bad.”

— Dr. Anthony Fauci, National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases director

iDeas Lab

Nature-based solutions for climate change adaptation promise to stabilize agricultural livelihoods and protect environmental resources, both of which are important pillars of political stability. Watch the trailer for the new CSIS Global Food Security Project miniseries on nurturing climate resilience around the world.

The Andreas C. Dracopoulos iDeas Lab at CSIS enhances our research with the latest in cutting-edge web technologies, design, and video.

Optics

(Photo credit: Andreas Solaro/AFP via Getty Images). Tourists outside the Colosseum in Rome.

Recommended Reading

“Can North Korea Cope With the Coronavirus?” by CSIS’s Sue Mi Terry for Foreign Affairs.

This Town Tomorrow

At 12:00 p.m., the Carnegie Endowment will host a discussion on the Cyberspace Solarium Commission's forthcoming report and recommendations, featuring Rep. Jim Langevin (D-RI).

Later, at 4:30 p.m., the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies will host former U.S. ambassador to China J. Stapleton Roy and former U.S. ambassador to Brunei Craig Allen, president of the US-China Business Council, to discuss U.S.-China relations.

Also, at 6:00 p.m., American University will host Omani ambassador Hunaina Sultan Al Mughairy, Rwandan ambassador Mathilde Mukantabana, Afghani ambassador Roya Rahamani, and Icelandic ambassador Bergdis Ellertsdottir to discuss the role of women in politics around the world.

Video

CSIS yesterday hosted a conversation with three CIA deputies: Deputy Director for Science and Technology Dawn Meyerriecks, Deputy Director for Support Elizabeth Davis, and Deputy Associate Director for Talent, for Diversity, and Inclusion and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer Sonya Holt to discuss their careers and how the CIA will continue to be a leader in the twenty-first century. Watch the event here.

Podcasts

Host Kathleen Hicks moderates a discussion on defense innovation with her colleague Andrew Hunter (CSIS), Chris Brose (Anduril Industries), and Rachel Hoff (Ronald Reagan Institute).

Listen on Spotify & Apple Podcasts.

Smiles

There are a lot of great country music acts out there these days, but one of the very best is Sturgill Simpson who knows a thing about rock and roll too. Here he is last January in Scotland covering Derek and the Dominoes plus one of his own tunes.