The Pacific Islands region is a massive and diverse region, and one with strategic value to both the United States and China. What challenges do the people of the Pacific Island Countries face and how can they navigate strategic competition between the great powers. 

April Herlevi and Chris Cairns from CNA’s Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Program, sit down to discuss the latest from the Pacific Islands, and how China and the United States are engaged in the region.

Further Reading
Army War College: Enabling a More Externally Focused and Operational PLA

CNA: Mapping the Information Environment in the Pacific Island Countries

CNA: PRC Vessels Detained for Illegal Fishing in Vanuatu EEZ 

CNA InDepth: China and the Solomon Islands: Drivers of Security Cooperation" 

CNA InDepth: ​Pacific Connectivity and Tonga's Volcanic Eruption

CNA InDepth: Tonga Aid

Brazil is currently amid a contentious presidential election between incumbent Jair Bolsonaro and former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. President Bolsonaro has consistently claimed that Brazil's election system is vulnerable to fraud, sparking fears that the peaceful transition of power could be threatened.

Ralph Espach, from CNA’s Strategy and Policy Analyses Program, joins the show to discuss the Brazilian election, the threat to democracy in the country and what this could mean for U.S. interests in South America.