The Evening: Russian S-400s, Rally to Save Iran Deal, For Your Life and More

Russian S-400s Will be Fully Deployed

Turkish President Erdogan said on Monday that the Russian S-400 missile defense system, parts of which have been delivered to Turkey over the past four days, would be fully deployed in April 2020, as Reuters’ Sarah Dadouch reports.

Dive Deeper: “Coup-proofing? Making Sense of Turkey’s S-400 Decision,” by CSIS’s Tom Karako.

Europe Rallies to Save Iran Deal

European foreign ministers said the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran can still be saved, despite recent U.S. and Iranian threats to further undermine the agreement, as the WSJ’s Laurence Norman reports.

Dive Deeper: “Is Iran’s Nuclear Program Back for Good?” by CFR’s Philip Gordon.

Ebola Reaches Major City in Congo

The year-old Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo has reached the city of Goma, which has a population of nearly 2 million, an international airport and ferries and buses that fan out over much of the region. Goma is also just one kilometer, or about half a mile, from the border with Rwanda, as the NYT’s Denise Grady reports.

Enroll for Fall

Now enrolling for the Fall, CSIS & Syracuse University's Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs offer a new Executive Master's in International Relations. Information here.

Video Shorts

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

In That Number

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China’s economy grew at its slowest pace in almost three decades in the second quarter as the trade war with the U.S. took its toll on exports. Gross domestic product grew at 6.2 percent year on year. China reported 6.4 percent growth in the first quarter and 6.6 percent for full-year 2018.

Source: FT

Critical Quote

“Iran is still a good year away from developing a nuclear bomb. There is still some closing, but small window to keep the deal alive.”

— UK Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt

iDeas Lab

CSIS
Nikos Tsafos, senior fellow in the Energy and National Security Program at CSIS, testified before the Senate Energy and Natural Resource Committee covering the future role for the U.S. in the worldwide liquid natural gas market. Watch his Testify video short.

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

Optics

CSIS
(Photo credit: Lionel Bonaventure/AFP/Getty Images). French soldiers parade in military vehicles during the Bastille Day down the Champs-Elysees on Sunday.

Recommended Reading

In Global Tech Battle, the Philippines Has Chosen Sides: Not the U.S.,” by the WSJ’s Niharika Mandhana.

This Town Tomorrow

At 10:00 a.m., join CSIS’s Energy & National Security Program for the U.S. Launch of the IEA’s "The Future of Hydrogen" and "Nuclear Power in a Clean Energy System."

Later, at 12:00 p.m., CSIS will hold a book launch event for Robert Hutchings and Gregory Treverton's newly released Truth to Power: A History of the U.S. National Intelligence Council.

And, at 2:30 p.m., CSIS will host a conversation with Rt. Hon. Winston Peters about the importance of enhancing Pacific partnerships for New Zealand and U.S. foreign policy.

Video

CSIS today hosted an event regarding prospects for U.S.-Russia relations. With both countries facing numerous problems, from Venezuela to strategic stability, are more effective bilateral relations possible? Watch the video here.

Podcasts

Die Welt
Steve Morrison and Andrew Schwartz speak with Kenneth Cole, iconic fashion designer and activist, about confronting the stigma and silence surrounding HIV/AIDS in New York City in the 1980s.

Listen on SoundCloud, Spotify & Apple Podcasts.

Smiles

Ok, so my rambling on about Led Zep’s seventh studio album “Presence” bleeds into this week from last. Judging from your emails I didn’t think you would mind.

First released in late March, 1976 “Presence” was commercially successful selling over 3 million copies, but it was the lowest selling Zep record while the band was active. Hardcore Zep fans are mesmerized by it—musically, as my friend John wrote to me last week, the band was never tighter. Jimmy Page’s guitar performance on the record is astonishing. Page also produced the album. For me, Page is the greatest guitar player. Ever. Full stop.

On a not-so-well-known track off “Presence,” called “For Your Life” Page takes the listener through a series of stunning and unexpected tempo changes that begin about 2 minutes and 20 seconds into the song. The 2015 remastered deluxe edition of the album sounds incredible for the digital age. Here’s the audio of “For Your Life,” a song the band never performed together live while John Bonham was alive. And it makes me wonder