Summary: Relevant Reading: Nuclear Know-How Adam Garfinkle andamp; Gary Samore Obama’s Big China Win at APEC: Not What You Think Elizabeth C. Economy By All Means Necessary: How Chinas Resource Quest is Changing the World Elizabeth C. Economy and Michael Levi Good evening, podcast listeners! Youre in for a stellar episode this week, as we take the time to look both ahead to next weeks deadline for Iranian nuclear negotiations, and back to the momentous agreements between the U.S. and China at last weeks APEC summit. First, Gary Samore, President Obamas White House Coordinator for Weapons of Mass Destruction Arms Control and Counterterrorism from 2009 to 2013 and executive director for research at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard University, looks at the state of the negotiations to curb Irans nuclear program as they move to Vienna this week ahead of a November 24 deadline. He argues that its very unlikely a deal will be hashed out, as supreme leader Khamenei looks dead set against any proposed curtailment of his countrys nuclear program. Samore discusses the likelihood that the two sides will agree to extend the deadline, noting that both the U.S. and Iran see the maintenance of the status quo as beneficial. He covers a large range of topics related to these negotiations, including the rise of ISIS, Russias interests, Americas new Republican-controlled congress, and President Obamas recent letter to Khamenei. Then, Elizabeth C. Economy, C.V. Starr Senior Fellow and Director for Asia Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, takes a look at what has changed in U.S.-China policy after last weeks APEC summit. She discusses the importance of the climate agreement, and looks at how cooperative a Republican Congress might be with regards to the Presidents goals in Asia. She also speaks on what this means for the Presidents popularity and his Administrations legacy, and evaluates Americas pivot to Asia as a work in progress, but one that is working. In conclusion, she offers her assessment of how these agreements were received by Americas allies. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, and follow our host Richard Aldous @RJAldous and Liz Economy @LizEconomy on Twitter.
