Ask Ivo — on Substack Live
A new monthly feature — I will go live the first Wednesday of every month (and more frequently if events warrant — to answer your questions and reflect on your thoughts.
Starting next month, I’m adding something new to America Abroad: a live monthly session called Ask Ivo.
Here’s how it works. The first Wednesday of every month, I’ll go live on Substack for about 30 minutes to answer your questions on U.S. foreign policy, global affairs, and whatever is happening in the world. You submit questions in advance — I’ll display them on screen as I answer — and I’ll also take questions live from the chat.
The first session is Wednesday, May 6, at noon ET. Here’s the link.
Though I have done something like this when I was at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, “Ask Ivo” will be more interactive, more conversational, and more immediate. If something is breaking in the world, we can talk about it in real time.
To submit a question for the May 6 session, just leave it in the comments below. I’ll pick the ones that seem most interesting and timely, and display them during the session so everyone can follow along.
The Substack live will be open to everyone. I’ll publish the recording afterward for anyone who can’t make it.
See you May 6.
Great initiative! I do have a question:
I appreciate your call for a more European NATO, but this passage from an op-ed by Alexander Gabuev in today’s NYT about a recent German war game raises some questions:
"Once the U.S. president stood down, NATO was effectively deactivated: Absent America’s buy-in, allies couldn’t use the organization’s collective defense plans or command-and-control system. They could do little other than watch as Mr. Trump agreed to high-level talks with the Kremlin."
Cannot the U.S. as a member of NATO always sabotage efforts to respond to a future Russian attack in this manner, even if the organization becomes “more European”? Even worse, could Europeans use such a NATO to coordinate a defense against a U.S. invasion of Greenland, if it came to that? Or does Europe need to develop entirely separate institutions?
I understand that a byproduct of President Trump's actions toward our NATO allies should eventually result in a stronger NATO, one where the United States has a less powerful influence as NATO countries become stronger. This will indeed lend itself to a stronger NATO. Over the next 5 years I believe the incongruity in our long-held identity and our position in the new world order will be a difficult transition for our leaders which could cause a lack of harmony for quite some time both internally and globally.