Interview

Lord John Hudson, former UK Secretary of State for Defence, joins Shephard to discuss Europe’s air defence challenges. He argues that high-energy laser weapons offer a nearly limitless ammunition supply for such threats.

Hudson highlights capability gaps across NATO, including limited deployed laser systems, and stresses the need to accelerate procurement timelines. He points to lessons from recent conflicts and the example of a drone incursion into Lithuanian airspace, which NATO aircraft were called in to destroy, as illustrating the economic pressures on European defences.

Sources: Shephard Media (YouTube)

A short tribute to airmen.

Sources: DoD News (YouTube)

Joseph Majkut and Kevin Book discuss the return of permitting reform in Washington, focusing on the bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act released September 30 by the Senate Environment and Public Works and Energy and Natural Resources committees. The proposal, described as sweeping and maximalist, faces a Senate vote expected in the lame-duck session after the midterms.

The hosts examine how the bill’s four key negotiators are framing it, from restoring vitality and American efficiency in infrastructure development to flooding the grid with clean, affordable energy. They also break down the bill’s provisions, including changes to environmental review, permitting timelines, and transmission support, and consider the political risks ahead.

Sources: CSIS (YouTube)

A CSIS and George W. Bush Institute panel discussion refocuses attention on North Korean human rights by examining conditions at the Alabuga drone-production facilities in Russia. The event marks the launch of a joint report analyzing state-sponsored trafficking and how these drones enable the war in Ukraine.

The report details how China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea—collectively CRINK—are supporting one another, and how this cooperation challenges American leadership and the rules-based international order.

Sources: CSIS (YouTube)

At Euronaval 2026, Michael Vaxelaire, Marketing Director for Surface Ships and Systems at Naval Group, presented the upcoming features of the SETIS Combat Management System (CMS). The system, already used on France’s FREMM and FDI frigates, is being upgraded with AI, augmented reality, and a new open architecture to handle data overload and accelerate the OODA loop.

Vaxelaire explained that the system integrates sensors and weapons to provide a unified tactical picture, including drone feeds.

Sources: Naval News (YouTube)

Secretary Hegseth delivers a full address aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, according to the video’s title and description. The clip presents the address in its entirety. No further details about the content of the speech are provided in the available material.

Sources: DoD News (YouTube)

With the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) renewed through 2028, CSIS experts discuss what the next chapter of U.S.-Africa economic engagement should look like after 25 years of the program.

In this episode of Into Africa, CSIS’s Oge Onubogu is joined by Enoh Ebong, president of the Global Development Department, and Navin Girishankar, president of the Economic Security and Technology Department, to examine AGOA’s legacy, the changing global trade landscape, and the elements of a future U.S.-Africa economic framework.

Sources: CSIS (YouTube)

CSIS experts Joseph Majkut and Kevin Book discuss the return of permitting reform in Washington, focusing on the bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act released September 30 by the Senate Environment and Public Works and Energy and Natural Resources committees. The bill is described as a sweeping, maximalist proposal with a Senate vote expected in the lame-duck session after the midterms. Using new data, they examine how the bill’s four key negotiators are framing it, from restoring America’s ability to build to flooding the grid with clean, affordable energy.

Sources: CSIS (YouTube)

CSIS’s Victor Cha hosts a discussion on President Lee’s new North Korea initiative, unveiled at the UN General Assembly in late September, amid renewed tensions on the Korean Peninsula. The episode covers the recent DMZ mine blast, the transfer of two North Korean POWs to South Korea, and other developments.

Cha is joined by Wonchul Kim of The Hankyoreh and Jeehye Yoo of JoongAng Ilbo to unpack these events and their implications for inter-Korean relations.

Sources: CSIS (YouTube)

Fighting has broken out between Ethiopia’s government and an alliance of seven opposition groups — the first major conflict in the region since the 2022 peace agreement. Ethiopia has accused Eritrea, Egypt and Sudan of backing the rebel alliance; officials from all three governments deny the claim.

Aaron Stanley and Dr. Yonas Ashine Demisse discuss how we got to this place, how shifting geopolitics are shaping conflict dynamics, and what the most likely trajectory of the war is.

Sources: CSIS (YouTube)