Jim & Ray interview former U.S.Ambassador Ted Osius--now the President and CEO of the US-ASEAN Business Council--about the importance of Southeast Asia's rapidly growing economies, especially as companies seek to de-risk away from China's deteriorating business environment. They discuss the growth and potential of Southeast Asia, the opportunities for US investment in the region, and the continuing challenges faced by American companies who want to operate there. They also touch on America's failed involvement with the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and how that has negatively affected its economic opportunities and strategic position in Asia. They further discuss ASEAN's role in regional politics--what it can and can't do in the economic, diplomatic and security arenas.

In this episode's "There I was..." segment, Jim recalls how as diplomats in Jakarta he and Ted would meet regularly with a wealthy Indonesian businessman who often had an axe to grind.

Jim and Ray interview the Philippine Coast Guard's spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, Commodore Jay Tarriela, about China's continuing harassment of Philippine ships at a time when the mist of the previous day's water-cannoning near Scarborough Shoal was still dissipating. They discuss the importance of countering Chinese aggression and protecting the international rules-based order. They ask Jay to weigh the benefits of the Philippines' transparency campaign against its risks, and to comment on ASEAN's reluctance to publicly back Manila in its maritime struggles and its inability to produce a South China Sea Code of Conduct.

They also laugh and lament over the accusations by Beijing's propagandists about Ray's supposed manipulation of Jay and the Philippine government.

Finally in "There I was...", Ray tells the story of the eruption of Mount Pinatubo in 1991, when he and his new bride were evacuated from the Philippines.

Ray and Jim are joined by retired Lieutenant General Lori Reynolds, former U.S. Marine Corps Deputy Commandant for Information, who provides insights into China's recently uncovered "Volt Typhoon" cyber operation and its implications for national security, both within the U.S. and across the free world. They discuss Beijing's shift from simple snatch-and-grab intellectual property theft to now conducting high-level cyber espionage and embedding its operatives within a nation's critical infrastructure. They also talk about the data security and cognitive threats posed by TikTok and the need for free countries to become more resilient, and to leverage their own asymmetric advantages by exposing the Chinese Communist Party's cyber aggressions.

00:00 Introduction and Background

05:12 China's Shifting Cyber Strategy: From Intellectual Property Theft to Critical Infrastructure Embedding

11:58 The Threat of TikTok: Data Access and Manipulation

22:23 The Threat of TikTok and the Need for Divestment

28:04 Leveraging Asymmetric Advantage: The Power of Truth and Strategic Narratives

32:44 Contesting Chinese Influence: Exposing and Countering Manipulation in Various Industries