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Good Evening,

We are glad to be dug out of the snow and to welcome you back to The Evening CSIS \u2014my daily guide to key insights CSIS brings to the events of the day plus HIGHLY RECOMMENDED content from around the world. If you want to view this in your browser, click here [ http://CSIS.informz.net/InformzDataService/OnlineVersion/Individual?mailingInstanceId=5309046&subscriberId=1062005454 ] .

Pushing Regional Unity
Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in China for talks late today following several days of meetings with Southeast Asian nations to urge unity in the face of Beijing\u2019s increasingly assertive behavior in the South China Sea, as the Wall Street Journal \u2019s Felicia Schwartz reports [ http://on.wsj.com/20ro2lD ] .

Dive Deeper: CSIS\u2019s Kathleen Hicks and Michael Green today published a new commentary, \u201cRevving up the Rebalance to Asia [ http://bit.ly/20roe4D ] .\u201d

Lifting Iran's Sanctions
Iran wants to become a major exporting nation following the lifting of international sanctions, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said today in Rome, adding that economic growth was crucial to defeating extremism in the Middle East, as Reuters reports [ http://bit.ly/20rorol ] .

Dive Deeper: CSIS\u2019s Anthony Cordesman published a new commentary today \u201cNew Estimates of Iran\u2019s Petroleum Exports and Income after the Nuclear Implementation Day and Reductions in Sanctions [ http://bit.ly/20roCji ] .\u201d

Plus, ICYMI, Brookings\u2019 Robert Einhorn published a commentary last week \u201cA major milestone for the Iran nuclear deal\u2014but a bumpy road ahead [ http://brook.gs/20roLU1 ] .\u201d

North Korean Hackers
South Korea raised its cyber alert level following the influx of malicious e-mails presumed to have originated from North Korea amid a spike in cross-border tensions after Pyongyang tested a fourth nuclear device earlier this month, as South Korea\u2019s Yonhap News service reports [ http://bit.ly/20rpa91 ] .

Dive Deeper: CSIS\u2019s Victor Cha, James A. Lewis, Jenny Jun, Scott LaFoy and Ethan Sohn today released a major report, North Korea\u2019s Cyber Operations: Strategy and Responses [ http://bit.ly/1lPRYs4 ] . The report\u2019s executive summary was released in late December, but today marked the full launch of the report. It is the only comprehensive report out on North Korea\u2019s cyber activities since the Sony hack in November of 2014.

In that Number
36,528

The number of refugees who risked the trip across the Mediterranean and Aegean seas in January 2016.
Source: Foreign Policy [ http://foreignpolicy.com/2016/01/25/mapped-the-refugee-crisis-in-the-aegean-sea/?utm_content=buffer00bb0&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer ]

Critical Quote
"This was a tremendous success, but at best a partial success."
- Anthony Cordesman, CSIS Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy, on the recent victory against ISIS in the Iraqi city of Ramadi.
Source: Associated Press [ http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/iraqs-military-struggling-us-training-36528883 ]

One to Watch


Julie Vitkovskaya (@Julie_Vit [ https://twitter.com/Julie_Vit ] ) is the Washington Post \u2019s new [ https://www.washingtonpost.com/pr/wp/2016/01/22/julie-vitkovskaya-to-become-deputy-digital-foreign-editor ] deputy digital editor for foreign and national security. Julie was previously a producer on WaPo \u2019s mobile innovations team, where she was a digital designer and curated content on their mobile apps. For innovative foreign affairs and national security coverage, Julie is one to watch.

Optics
We've experienced a winter wonderland in DC for many days now. Some have labeled it "Snowzilla." I was talking to a guy from BBC Singapore the other night and he even knew about our snowfall! ("I've seen the pictures, mate...") Our amazing CSIS photographer/producer Sam Ellis braved the tundra over the weekend and produced this photo essay [ https://swellis.exposure.co/snowzilla ] . It was shot in the neighborhood around Union Station and gives a sense of what some people experienced in this town.

Highly Recommended
[ http://thebea.st/1a6v4re ] \u201cMapped: The Refugee Crisis in the Aegean Sea\u201d [ http://atfp.co/20rkHTG ] by Foreign Policy\u2019s Siobhn O'Grady.

CSIS Tomorrow
Join us tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. for the launch of a new CSIS initiative, \u201cDefense Outlook: A CSIS Series on Strategy, Budget, Forces, and Acquisition.\u201d [ http://csis.org/event/defense-outlook-csis-series-strategy-budget-forces-and-acquisition ] And, stick around for \u201cClean Power Plan 2016,\u201d [ http://csis.org/event/clean-power-plan-2016-outlook ] as an energy expert panel discusses an overview of the state, federal, and court level activity planning for the upcoming year. And lastly, at 1:00 p.m. Admiral Harry B. Harris, Commander of the US Pacific Command, will join CSIS for a discussion on strategic opportunities in the Indo-Asia-Pacific. [ http://csis.org/event/strategic-opportunities-indo-asia-pacific-admiral-harry-b-harris ]

This Town Tomorrow
Join the Wilson Center tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. as they host a discusison on US-Russian cooperation in Syria; Russia experts will present their views on the geopolitical challenges in the region, as well as Russia\u2019s role in resolving the Syrian crisis. For more information and to register, click here. [ https://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/us-russian-cooperation-syria ]

CSIS on Demand
Last week CSIS hosted a discussion on \u201cStrategic Deterrent Forces: A Foundation for National Security,\u201d featuring Admiral Cecil Haney, Commander of the US Strategic Command. Catch the insight event on demand here. [ http://csis.org/event/strategic-deterrent-forces-foundation-national-security ]

Sounds
CSIS's latest podcast [ https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-csis-podcast/id214886950?mt=2 ] features Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull as he speaks on the international challenges facing the country, and its role in the global order.

I Like It Like That
Eye-catching things in CSIS's orbit
The Washington Post just launched a new feature called \u201cBackdrop,\u201d that will be part of their 2016 presidential race coverage. Backdrop is a pop up button located in the lower left-hand corner of politics articles. When you tap or click it, Backdrop will slide out and feature updates on the latest polling, video explainers, key quotes that illuminate candidates\u2019 stances, charts on money in the election, and more as the campaign dictates. Here\u2019s today\u2019s latest use [ http://wapo.st/20rkcZK ] of Backdrop

Smiles
It is great to be dug out of the snow and back at work. I\u2019m not a big fan of winter and, unlike some ski bums I know, I do not worship \u201cthe pow(der).\u201d

I do however, worship the sun and the ocean. And one of these days I\u2019ll be in full pursuit of an \u201cEndless Summer.\u201d

Not that I didn\u2019t have fun digging out of three feet of snow\u2014that\u2019s always kind of fun and a good workout if not exactly a smile. While I was digging, I kept thinking about music that keeps me warm.

I thought of the Beach Boys and their mega-hit compilation record, \u201cEndless Summer\u201d which was released in late June, 1974. From the first time I laid eyes on it, I was obsessed with it.

When this record came out, the Beach Boys fame had faded quite a bit. Surf music was in decline and the mass audiences they once enjoyed in the US and UK didn\u2019t think of the Beach Boys as anything more than beach bums.

Their 1966 record, \u201cPet Sounds\u201d had fallen on mostly deaf ears\u2014except Paul McCartney and John Lennon paid quite a bit of attention to it. It\u2019s now regarded as Brian Wilson\u2019s masterpiece, but back then it was viewed as the beginning of the end of the Beach Boys\u2019 successful surfing safari. For years following \u201966, the Beach Boys were caught up in a constant wipeout.

But \u201cEndless Summer\u201d with its spectacular album artwork and peerless compilation of hits blew America\u2019s doors down like the fast cars the Beach Boys famously sang about. The record hit number 1 and spent 155 weeks on the Billboard chart.

Before \u201cEndless Summer\u201d resurrected the Beach Boys career, it had been all but forgotten that the band had once elicited a youth culture mania that rivaled The Beatles.

Take this 1964 appearance filmed for the TAMI Show. To me, it\u2019s one of the most electrifying performances in the history of rock and roll. The Beach Boys are at their very best. It\u2019s the original 5 members of the group\u2014brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love and friend Al Jardine. Here they are introduced by Jan & Dean, and they are actually playing their instruments and singing live\u2014not miming to a soundtrack per usual. This clip of \u201cSurfin\u2019 USA [ http://bit.ly/1JCBvDd ] \u201d warms my heart, my soul and just makes me smile.

Feedback
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