Episode 16: Threading the Needle

Brandon Yoder is Senior Lecturer at the Australian National University. He holds a Ph.D. in foreign affairs from the University of Virginia. He studies a range of topics, including foreign policy, international security, US-China relations, and signaling and credibility. He’s the author of a 2025 article in the British Journal of Politics and International Relations, titled, “Will there be war over Taiwan? Structural stability and policy pitfalls in cross-Strait deterrence.” Yoder and I discuss stability in the relations between China and Taiwan. OTHER LINKS --"Wen and Bush in Oval office," from YouTube --"Obama tells Trump to 'think it through' on China," from YouTube --"Biden reaffirms 'One China Policy' after talks with Xi | ANC," from YouTube --"Will there be war over Taiwan? Structural stability and policy pitfalls in cross-Strait deterrence," (2025) by Yoder, in The British Journal of Politics and International Relations --"The Taiwan tightrope: Deterrence Is a balancing act, and America is starting to slip," (2025) by Mastro and Yoder, in Foreign Affairs --"Iran war complicates contingency plans to defend Taiwan, some U.S. officials say," (2025, April 23) by Ward et al., in The Wall Street Journal MUSIC CREDITS (all songs from Free Music Archive, and each song carries the "cc by" license) --"The Trail," by Unheard Music Concepts --"Precisamos de um plano," by rui --"Post Drone," by Uuriter --"Monsters of the past," by Pawel FeszczukSpecial Guest: Brandon Yoder.