America was on top of the world in the 1990s, but the same cannot be said of its greatest rival. Russia emerged from the ashes of the Soviet Union amidst hopes for a brighter future. President Boris Yelstin pledged to undertake liberal reforms, but those hopes were soon dashed by economic crisis, internal pressures, and the great power aspirations of Russian elites. In this episode of None Of The Above’s ‘90s Rewind miniseries, the ’ Mark Hannah explores where the 1990s went wrong for post-Soviet Russia, from shock therapy to NATO enlargement. He is joined by former diplomat Thomas Graham and historian Susan Colbourn. NPR’s Deborah Amos and retired ambassador Thomas Pickering also return to provide insights and commentary.

Episode 2: How Democracy Failed in Russia

This is the story of how a CIA covert action program inadvertently created the conditions for the Taliban to seize control and provide safe haven for Osama bin Laden. Following a Cold War proxy battle between the Soviet Union and the United States, al Qaeda gained strength throughout the 1990s, leading to the deadliest attack on American soil on September 11, 2001. In this episode of None Of The Above’s ‘90s Rewind miniseries, the&nbsp;’ Mark Hannah explores America’s misplaced trust in partnerships with Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, and the lack of coherent US policy toward the Taliban and al Qaeda during the 1990s. He is joined by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Steve Coll. NPR’s Deborah Amos and retired ambassador Thomas Pickering return to provide insights and commentary.

Episode 3: The CIA, Afghanistan, and the Road to 9/11

Nightmares of mushroom clouds and fears of mutually assured destruction plagued many during the Cold War. But by the early 1990s, both the United States and Russia promised a world with fewer nuclear weapons. Together, they agreed to dismantle 80% of their strategic nuclear warheads. Meanwhile, other countries such as North Korea and Pakistan saw value in nukes amid a less balanced world, and raced to acquire them. In this episode of None Of The Above’s ‘90s Rewind miniseries, the&nbsp;’ Mark Hannah explores the decade’s mixed track record on nuclear arms control and nonproliferation. He is joined by Emma Belcher, president of Ploughshares Fund. Historian Susan Colbourn and retired ambassador Thomas Pickering return to provide insights and commentary.

Episode 4: Fewer Nukes, More Danger

The 1990s witnessed a turning point in one of the world’s most intractable disputes. After four decades of conflict, the 1991 Madrid Conference opened the door for peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians. A flurry of negotiations and agreements followed. The Camp David Summit in 2000 was the Clinton administration’s last-ditch attempt to produce a final deal but it failed to deliver on that goal. In this episode of None Of The Above’s ‘90s Rewind miniseries, the&nbsp;’ Mark Hannah remembers how America launched a peace process, and explores why its objectives ultimately failed. He is joined by former diplomat Aaron David Miller. NPR’s Deborah Amos and retired Ambassador Thomas Pickering return to provide insights and commentary.

Episode 5: Why the Israel-Palestine Peace Process Failed

In the 1990s, democracy triumphed in South Africa over a brutal system of racial segregation known as apartheid. South Africa was a US ally during the Cold War, but years of grassroots activism pushed Washington to reassess its policy toward the apartheid government. Nelson Mandela was released from prison in 1990 and won the first democratic election in 1994. He embraced global leadership and carried his moral authority into a new South Africa, with an independent foreign policy centered on human rights and peaceful conflict resolution. In this episode of None Of The Above’s ‘90s Rewind miniseries, the&nbsp;’ Mark Hannah explores the role the United States played in ending apartheid and how South Africa emerged as a strong voice in the Global South. He is joined by Chris Alden of the London School of Economics and Sean Jacobs of The New School.

Episode 6: How Apartheid Ended in South Africa

Sudan’s civil war recently entered its third year. It has claimed the lives of around 150,000 people and displaced around 13 million. In this archival episode, we revisit the outbreak of violence that erupted in April 2023 between the Sudanese Army, led by Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and a paramilitary group called the Rapid Support Forces, led by Lt. Gen. Mohamed Hamdan–known also as Hemedti.&nbsp;   As the warring factions competed for control of resource-rich Sudan, regional leaders like Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Israel, as well as the United States and the United Nations grappled with how to respond the catastrophic violence and humanitarian crisis still unfolding. But, as our guest reminds us, peacebuilding efforts from external actors like the US and the UN, however well-intentioned, have unintended consequences. Guest host and former IGA research fellow Zuri Linetsky spoke with Sudan expert Justin Lynch to help us make sense of the conflict and how external actors helped embolden the military leaders, who have brought the country to the brink of collapse.&nbsp;   &nbsp;

Sudan and the Limits of Western Peacebuilding (from the archive)

China’s violent Tiananmen Square crackdown in 1989 marked a turning point in US-China relations. After two decades of slowly but steadily nurturing friendly relations, the United States would choose to develop economic ties without insisting on democratic reforms. The prevailing hope was that China’s economic growth would inevitably lead to political change. That hope, however, was never fully realized. Today, China is America’s largest trading partner and yet its biggest geopolitical rival.  &nbsp;    In this episode of None Of The Above’s ‘90s Rewind miniseries, the ’ Mark Hannah explores the origins of 21st century US-China rivalry. He is joined by modern China historian Jeffrey Wasserstrom of the University of California, Irvine. NPR’s Deborah Amos and Ambassador Thomas Pickering return to provide insights and commentary.

Episode 7: America's China Gamble

The 1990s were a pivotal decade for the United States and the world. This season on None Of The Above, we rewinded to the ‘90s to cover the breakup of the Soviet Union, America’s unipolar moment, and the rise of China. We explored civil war in Afghanistan, the spread of nuclear weapons, South Africa’s transition to democracy, and much more. The ‘90s also gave rise to free trade, globalization, and the growth of the internet – all of which profoundly shaped the world we live in today. In the final episode of our ‘90s Rewind miniseries, we asked Ian Bremmer to wrap it all up. He joins the&nbsp;’ Mark Hannah to revisit some of these key moments and walk us through how he was thinking about them at the time, and how he looks back on them now with the benefit of hindsight. Ian also happens to be our founder here at IGA.

Episode 10: Why The '90s Matter

As the United States confronts an ever-changing set of international challenges, our foreign policy leaders continue to offer the same old answers. But what are the alternatives? In None of the Above, the Eurasia Group Foundation’s (EGF) Mark Hannah asks leading global thinkers for new answers and new ideas to guide an America increasingly adrift in the world.

Sudan and the Limits of Western Peacebuilding (from the archive)

None of the Above

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