Mark Leonard's World in 30 Minutes
501 episodes - English - Latest episode: 5 days ago - ★★★★★ - 89 ratingsWeekly podcast on the events, policies and ideas that will shape the world.World in 30 minutes is curated by Mark Leonard, Director of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), and features top-level speakers from across the EU and beyond to debate and discuss Europe’s role in the world. It was awarded “Best podcasts on EU politics” by PolicyLab in 2019.Member of the EuroPod network.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Homepage Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Episodes
The new Davos man: Ukraine, energy, and global powers
May 27, 2022 11:29 - 27 minutes - 22.3 MBThree months into Russia’s war on Ukraine, social, economic, and political leaders from across the globe retreated to Davos in the Swiss alps to discuss how to set about creating a brighter future for the world. Recording from the heart of the World Economic Forum, Mark Leonard is joined this week by Yara Bayoumy, world and national security editor at the New York Times opinion section, to dissect the impulses that weaved in and out of this weekend’s discussions. What were this forum’s bigges...
European solidarity and the Russia-Ukraine war
May 20, 2022 10:03 - 32 minutes - 44.8 MBRussia’s war on Ukraine has led to an unprecedented display of European unity. But the European Union now faces a daunting combination of migration, food, military, and energy crises. Assembling an all-star cast at ECFR’s annual staff retreat in Malaga, host Mark Leonard is joined by senior policy fellows Marie Dumoulin, director of the Wider Europe programme, Piotr Buras, head of the Warsaw office, and Arturo Varvelli, head of the Rome office, to discuss Europe’s solidarity on the war in Ukr...
Germany’s Zeitenwende: what does it mean for Europe?
May 13, 2022 09:00 - 33 minutes - 46.1 MBGerman chancellor, Olaf Scholz, is facing criticism for not meeting the expectations he created with his Zeitenwende speech. But how fair is this criticism? Mark Leonard ponders this question and others with some of his German colleagues: ECFR senior policy fellows Janka Oertel and Jana Puglierin, and policy fellow and head of ECFR’s Task Force for Strengthening Europe against Economic Coercion, Jonathan Hackenbroich. How is Germany actually doing in turning round its security and defence pol...
The age of the strongman
May 06, 2022 09:00 - 29 minutes - 41.1 MBThe world is currently focused on one strongman: Putin. Yet strongmen are threatening democracies across the globe. Mark Leonard is joined this week by chief foreign policy commentator at the Financial Times, Gideon Rachman, to dissect the latter's recently published book “The Age of the Strongman”. They discuss such questions as what defines a strongman, and what varieties of this curious species exist? Are there any strongwomen? And when did the age of strongmen really begin?This podcast wa...
A European Confederation: a common political platform for peace
April 29, 2022 08:15 - 30 minutes - 24.3 MBAs Russia undermines democracies and reduces Ukrainian territory to a mere power play, European ideology is flourishing more than ever before. In this week’s episode, Mark Leonard hosts Enrico Letta, former Prime Minister of Italy and current President of the Jacque Delors Institute, to discuss his solution to the EU’s problems: a European Confederation. Nations such as Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova want the security of EU membership, but how likely are they to be accepted into the union? How...
New era, new alliance: NATO, Sweden, and Finland
April 22, 2022 08:42 - 30 minutes - 41.3 MBAs Russia shifts the focus of its military offensive to southern and eastern Ukraine, Finland and Sweden are moving closer to NATO membership. In this week’s episode, Mark Leonard speaks to Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden and current ECFR co-chair, and Alexander Stubb, former prime minister of Finland and current ECFR council member. Beyond both countries’ expressions of intent, where do they stand on NATO membership? What can Sweden and Finland offer NATO? And are they worried ab...
What a Le Pen presidency would mean for Europe and the world
April 15, 2022 08:00 - 31 minutes - 23.4 MBEmmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen will face off against each other in the second round of the French presidential election on April 24. We have a good idea of what a second Macron presidency would look like, but Marine Le Pen is another story all together. How would her presidency affect Europe and the world? Jeremy Shapiro – seizing the reins of the podcast this week from a complaisant Mark Leonard – will explore this question with Agneska Bloch, a senior research assistant at a DC-based thi...
European defence reloaded
April 08, 2022 12:53 - 32 minutes - 44.4 MBRussia’s war in Ukraine has turned European defence and security policy upside down. The German Zeitenwende, the Versailles Summit in March, and the recently published Strategic Compass for Security and Defence are all testament to this rediscovered priority on European leaders’ agenda. Jana Puglierin takes over the podcast to talk with ECFR senior policy fellows Nick Witney – who served as the first chief executive of the European Defence Agency – and Gustav Gressel about the state of Europe...
The Middle East and the Ukraine war: energy supplies, nuclear deals and regional tensions
April 01, 2022 10:00 - 35 minutes - 48.8 MBMark Leonard is joined by the head of ECFR's Middle East and North Africa programme Julien Barnes-Dacey, ECFR visiting fellow Cinzia Bianco, professor of political science at the University of Tehran Nasser Hadian, and founder and chair of the Gulf Research Center Abdulaziz Sager to analyse current developments in Gulf energy security and the Iran nuclear deal. On location at the Doha Forum 2022, they discuss questions like: following Western energy sanctions on Russia, why is there a relucta...
Ukrainian identity and Russian strategy
March 25, 2022 09:57 - 29 minutes - 23.6 MBMark Leonard is joined by Andrew Wilson, senior policy fellow at ECFR and Ukraine expert, and Volodymyr Yermolenko, a Ukrainian philosopher and editor of the blog Ukraine World, to dissect Russia's war against Ukraine from a Ukrainian intellectual perspective. What concepts define Ukrainian history and identity, and how is this important in understanding Ukraine’s response to the Russian invasion? What role does Westsplaining play for Ukraine in the current context? And what do Russia’s zoopo...
War in Ukraine: a stale-mate for the West and NATO’s future?
March 18, 2022 11:43 - 27 minutes - 38.1 MBMark Leonard is joined by Marie Dumoulin, head of our Wider Europe programme, and ECFR’s research director, Jeremy Shapiro, to talk yet again about the ongoing war in Ukraine and some possible different scenarios for its resolution. Does this war actually mean – as per one US strategist – a complete collapse of NATO member states’ policy? How should Europe react to Russian loss or indeed victory in this war? And what are the possible ramifications for the West?This podcast was recorded on 15 ...
How Putin’s war is shaping France’s election
March 11, 2022 10:32 - 31 minutes - 43.1 MBMark Leonard and senior policy fellow and head of ECFR´s Paris Office, Tara Varma, sat down in Paris to talk about how Vladimir Putin's war on Ukraine is affecting France and the French presidential race. In the shadow of the Eiffel Tower and facing the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, they discussed such questions as: what kind of role did foreign policy play in the election campaigns before Russia's invasion of Ukraine and what role is it playing now? Have we seen candidates change their positi...
Sino-Russian relations after the Kremlin’s attack on Ukraine
March 02, 2022 10:59 - 33 minutes - 45.9 MBIn this week’s early podcast, Mark Leonard is joined by ECFR senior policy fellow Kadri Liik and the head of ECFR’s Asia programme Janka Oertel to talk about how the Ukraine war is affecting Sino-Russian relations. How is Russia's attack on Ukraine perceived in China? Will Russia and China be joining forces in an ‘alliance of autocracies’? What does Russian and Chinese policymakers planning look like now - and what should Europeans do? This podcast was recorded on 1 March 2022. Further readin...
War in Ukraine
February 23, 2022 13:47 - 42 minutes - 34.3 MBWar in UkraineAs the situation at the Ukrainian border escalates, Mark Leonard sat down with Marie Dumoulin, director of ECFR’s Wider Europe programme, and senior policy fellows Gustav Gressel and Kadri Liik – as well as Jonathan Hackenbroich, head of ECFR’s Task Force for Strengthening Europe against Economic Coercion – to talk about the recent developments and the state of play at the ground: What does the situation look like militarily? And what reactions from the West have we seen so far?...
Will Western unity on Russia hold? Reporting from Munich Security Conference
February 21, 2022 13:06 - 32 minutes - 45.2 MBLive from the Munich Security Conference (MSC)! Mark Leonard huddled together with editorial director for Le Monde and ECFR board and Council Member Sylvie Kauffmann and Jana Puglierin, head of ECFR’s Berlin office in one of the many rooms of the Bayerischer Hof to talk about the West’s thinking and reaction to the geopolitical challenges and battles of today: In the spotlight is of course the question about Ukraine. Has the West really started to “unlearn helplessness” that defined the Weste...
Health of Nations: How Europe can fight future pandemics
February 18, 2022 10:23 - 27 minutes - 38.4 MBThis week, ECFR senior policy fellow, Susi Dennison, takes over the podcast to talk about international cooperation on global health. As many European countries are starting to see light at the end of the tunnel after yet another hard winter struggling with covid-19, attention is refocusing on global inequity around tackling the pandemic. What does effective multilateral cooperation on global health and pandemic preparedness look like in a growing geopolitically competitive world? And what ne...
The crisis of European security: What Europeans think about the war in Ukraine
February 11, 2022 15:02 - 31 minutes - 25.4 MBIn this episode, we reverse the usual roles: today’s host is ECFR’s Research Director Jeremy Shapiro and Mark Leonard tries out the role of guest. They discuss the surprising findings of ECFR’s latest public opinion poll on the Russia-Ukraine conflict. In recent weeks, many commentators, including this podcast’s interim host, have focused on Europe’s divisions and lack of agency in the Russia-Ukraine crisis. But Mark Leonard and Ivan Krastev demonstrate that there exists a surprising consen...
System failure: The causes of humanitarian crises
February 04, 2022 11:01 - 32 minutes - 44.2 MBHumanitarian crises in places like Afghanistan, Yemen or Ethiopia are not only a reflection of internal turmoil – but mirror a much grander development: system failure. In today’s episode, Mark Leonard is joined by David Miliband, president and chief executive officer of the International Rescue Committee and a former UK Foreign Secretary. Together, they discuss his model describing the four levels of system failure: what are the drivers behind it and what must be done in order to confront a...
The Age of Unpeace: Therapy for internationalists | Session 5 with A. Bradford, T. Wright & F. Zhang
January 28, 2022 10:00 - 41 minutes - 33.3 MBSince the holiday season, we have brought to you a special mini-series looking at how the things that keep us connected – like trade, tech, the internet, and migration – can also tear us apart. But rather than despairing at the state of the world, the geopolitics, and ongoing superpower battles, Mark Leonard is joined by a number of high-level thinkers in this mini-series in order to find strategies for shaping and surviving our new reality. We call it The Age of Unpeace: Therapy for internat...
Europe’s role in tackling the Russia-Ukraine crisis
January 21, 2022 12:25 - 35 minutes - 48.3 MBDiplomatic talks about the Russia – Ukraine crisis are increasingly icy. While Europeans continue to gnash their teeth over a patchy security architecture, US president Biden and the Russian president Putin are struggling to come to a peaceful conclusion in their bilateral negotiations. It seems Europeans are caught between the prospect of a “new Yalta” or a full-scale war on the European continent that could easily escalate out of control. To discuss these happenings, Mark Leonard welcomes M...
The Age of Unpeace: Therapy for internationalists | Session 4 with Anne-Marie Slaughter
January 14, 2022 10:00 - 32 minutes - 26.3 MBSince the holiday season we have brought to you a special mini-series looking at how the things that keep us connected – like trade, tech, the internet, and migration – can also tear us apart. But rather than despairing at the state of the world, the geopolitics and ongoing superpower battles, Mark Leonard is joined by a number of high-level thinkers in this mini-series in order to find strategies for shaping and surviving our new reality. We call it The Age of Unpeace: Therapy for internatio...
Top 10 foreign policy trends for 2022
January 07, 2022 09:00 - 25 minutes - 20 MBTraditions die hard, or so they say. And thus, we are especially excited to continue one of our most popular traditions: Predicting ten foreign policy trends for 2022. This week, host Mark Leonard and Jeremy Shapiro, Research Director at ECFR, are looking into their crystal balls to foretell the forces and events that will shape the upcoming year. They also convened an impartial jury consisting entirely of themselves to rate last year’s predictions. It concluded that Mark and Jeremy set a new...
The Age of Unpeace: Therapy for internationalists | Session 3 with Dan Drezner
December 31, 2021 09:30 - 34 minutes - 27.4 MBOver the holiday season, we are bringing you a special mini-series looking at how the things that keep us connected – like trade, tech, the internet, and migration – can also tear us apart. But rather than despairing at the state of the world, the geopolitics and ongoing superpower battles, Mark Leonard is joined by a number of high-level thinkers in this mini-series in order to find strategies for shaping and surviving our new reality. We call it The Age of Unpeace: Therapy for international...
The Age of Unpeace: Therapy for internationalists | Session 2 with Parag Khanna
December 24, 2021 09:30 - 40 minutes - 55.5 MBOver the holiday season we are bringing you a special mini-series looking at how the things that keep us connected – like trade, tech, the internet and migration – can also tear us apart. But rather than despairing at the state of the world, the geopolitics and ongoing superpower battles, Mark Leonard is joined by a number of high-level thinkers in this mini-series in order to find strategies for shaping and surviving our new reality. We call it The Age of Unpeace: Therapy for internationalis...
The Age of Unpeace: Therapy for internationalists | Session 1 with Marietje Schaake
December 17, 2021 09:30 - 28 minutes - 39 MBOver the holiday season, we are bringing you a special mini-series looking at how the things that keep us connected – like trade, tech, the internet and migration – can also tear us apart. But rather than despairing at the state of the world, the geopolitics and ongoing superpower battles, Mark Leonard is joined by a number of high-level thinkers in this mini-series in order to find strategies for shaping and surviving our new reality. We call it The Age of Unpeace: Therapy for internationali...
Jamil Anderlini: Inside scoop on POLITICO Europe
December 10, 2021 14:16 - 34 minutes - 47.5 MBIn this episode, host Mark Leonard is joined by POLITICO Europe's Editor-in-Chief Jamil Anderlini to discuss his plans for POLITICO. They talk about life in Brussels, breaking news in Asia, how to find a good story and what makes good reporting. Also, many of the big impetuses that have changed Europe in the past came from the outside, and likely in the future, mainly from Asia: what does Anderlini think about China's rise and security issues coming from Asia think?This podcast was recorded o...
Syria’s war, Europe’s problem
December 03, 2021 09:53 - 31 minutes - 25.5 MBAfter more than a decade of death and destruction – and despite a string of international efforts to end his regime - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad remains in power. Meanwhile, the country faces deteriorating economic and humanitarian crises, with over 90% of its population currently living below the poverty line. In this week’s episode, host Mark Leonard is joined by ECFR Council Member Bassma Kodmani who is also a member of the opposition delegation for peace negotiations and a member of...
The new German coalition’s roadmap for foreign policy
November 26, 2021 10:00 - 32 minutes - 44.7 MBOn Wednesday afternoon, the German Social Democrats, the FDP and the Greens presented their coalition agreement. The long-awaited deal sets out the roadmap for the “traffic light” government for the upcoming four years led by Olaf Scholz (SPD). In this episode, Mark Leonard and ECFR senior policy fellows Janka Oertel and Jana Puglierin take a deep dive into the 170+ page-long document: what does it say about foreign policy issues, China, defence and security? What is in there about the future...
The Russian troop build-up near Ukraine
November 19, 2021 10:00 - 34 minutes - 47.6 MBAt the beginning of this week, NATO warned about an ‘unusual’ concentration of Russian forces close to the Ukraine border. So far, the Kremlin has dismissed the warning as “alarmist” while the US alerted allies about the possibility of Moscow preparing for a possible invasion of Ukraine. Mark Leonard is joined by Marie Dumoulin the new director of our Wider Europe programme, in her first week on the job, and ECFR Senior policy fellows Gustav Gressel and Kadri Liik to talk about the Russian mi...
How migration became a weapon: the Belarus-Polish border crisis
November 12, 2021 10:00 - 27 minutes - 22.4 MBIn the recent months, the EU and especially Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, have all seen an increasing number of people trying to enter their countries from Belarus. An estimated 2,000 migrants are said to be stranded at the Belarus border with Poland at the moment. But how did we get here? Host Mark Leonard talks to ECFR policy fellow Pawel Zerka and visiting fellow Pavel Slunkin about the situation on the ground. Moreover, we asked Kelly Greenhill, 2020-21 Leverhulme Trust visiting professor...
COP26 and Europe’s green grand bargain
November 05, 2021 10:26 - 29 minutes - 40.1 MBNegotiations of the 26th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP26) are underway in Glasgow. This week, host Mark Leonard speaks with Lykke Friis, ECFR board member and director of the Danish Think Tank Europa and former minister for climate and energy of Denmark; Susi Dennison, head of ECFR’s European power programme; and Alex Clark, researcher at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment at the University of Oxford and ECFR visiti...
Ask the author anything! - Mark Leonard on "The Age of Unpeace"
October 29, 2021 09:00 - 34 minutes - 27.3 MBThis week, Mark Leonard answers your most burning questions about his newly released book, “The Age of Unpeace: How Connectivity causes Conflict”. Hosted by ECFR’s head of communications, Ana Ramic, the special Ask Me Anything episode features Mark responding to loyal podcast listeners Zebulon Carlander, Robert Cooper, Teresa Gouveia, Antonio Notario, Jonas Parello-Plesner, Timi Okoya, and Patrycja Sasnal. This episode was recorded on 22 October 2021 **and contains spoilers**! Thanks to eve...
French connection: Macron’s plans for Europe
October 22, 2021 12:48 - 32 minutes - 44.5 MBLast week, French president Emmanuel Marcon presented a massive investment plan – “France 2030”. The roadmap sketches out France’s digital and green transformation and is meant to set up the country – as well as Europe – for growth and success ahead of the French EU Council presidency. But is this strategy only part of electoral campaigning, as critics say? Or does “France 2030” echo bigger plans which the EU has already set out for the bloc? Host Mark Leonard is in our Paris office talking t...
Out of Order: the Polish Constitutional Court’s challenge to the European Union
October 15, 2021 10:40 - 33 minutes - 26.8 MBA major ruling of Poland’s Constitutional Court challenging the primacy of EU law has escalated Warsaw’s legal and political dispute with Brussels and unleashed serious concerns of a ‘Polexit.’ In this week’s episode, host Mark Leonard speaks with Piotr Buras, head of ECFR’s Warsaw office, and Jana Puglierin, head of ECFR’s Berlin office, about the implications of the ruling for Poland as well as for the European Union. Should the EU fear ‘Polexit’? What steps can the EU take to defend its le...
Europe’s role in a post-American Middle East
October 08, 2021 09:36 - 38 minutes - 52.6 MBAs the US looks to disentangle itself from various conflicts globally, it leaves behind power vacuums. In the MENA region, various regional – and global - powers are vying to fill the void. In this week’s episode, host Mark Leonard is joined by three guests directly from ECFR’s MENA Forum in Rome: Abdulkhaleq Abdulla, professor of political science in the UAE; Alia Moubayed, MENA chief economist for Jefferies; and Julien Barnes-Dacey, head of ECFR’s MENA programme. Together, they analyse the ...
Germany’s election result and what it means for Europe
October 01, 2021 12:02 - 37 minutes - 51.1 MBGerman election results are in, and they mark a new era for Germany. On 26 September, Germans headed to the polls to vote in one of the most unpredictable elections since Angela Merkel took office over a decade and a half ago. Now, Germany will have to endure weeks – or possibly months – of fraught coalition talks before a new government can be formed. In this week’s World in 30 Minutes episode, host Mark Leonard talks with Jeremy Cliffe, international editor of the New Statesman, Jana Puglie...
The transatlantic meaning of AUKUS
September 24, 2021 10:00 - 33 minutes - 46.1 MBThe announcement of the new Indo-Pacific security alliance between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States - dubbed ‘AUKUS’ - has led to the biggest crisis in transatlantic relations since the Iraq war in 2003. In this week’s podcast, host Mark Leonard talks with Janka Oertel, head of ECFR’ Asia programme, Jeremy Shapiro, ECFR’s research director, and Tara Varma, head of ECFR’s Paris office, about the new security pact and its implications for Europe. What does it mean for the fu...
Sneak Peek | The Age of Unpeace: How Connectivity Causes Conflict
September 17, 2021 08:29 - 16 minutes - 22.1 MBGet a sneak peek into Mark Leonard's latest book "The Age of Unpeace - How Connectivity Causes Conflict", read by the author himself.Additionally, in October we will have a special “ask me anything” episode with Mark Leonard and ask all of you to send in your burning questions about the book to [email protected] which will then be answered in the forthcoming episode.All those who submit questions will be eligible to win a free signed book from Mark, so start emailing! We are happy to recei...
Age of Unpeace
September 17, 2021 08:29 - 29 minutes - 23.7 MBIn his newly released book “The Age of Unpeace: How Connectivity causes Conflict” ECFR director Mark Leonard explains how many of the forces that we thought would bring us together have ended up driving us apart. Trade, technology, the internet, and travel were once promised to create a global village but have instead created an era of “unpeace”, where the distinctions between war and peace are breaking down. In this week’s episode, Mark Leonard becomes the guest of his own podcast to talk w...
The Age of Unpeace
September 17, 2021 08:29 - 29 minutes - 23.7 MBIn his newly released book “The Age of Unpeace: How Connectivity causes Conflict” ECFR director Mark Leonard explains how many of the forces that we thought would bring us together have ended up driving us apart. Trade, technology, the internet, and travel were once promised to create a global village but have instead created an era of “unpeace”, where the distinctions between war and peace are breaking down.In this week’s episode, Mark Leonard becomes the guest of his own podcast to talk wit...
The fall of the Afghan government and what it means for Europe
September 10, 2021 08:33 - 35 minutes - 48.1 MBThe collapse of Afghan government forces and the rapid seizure of power by the Taliban has unleashed a series of intense debates about the implications for Europe. How will the Western withdrawal impact on the state of European defence and military capabilities? Are we likely to see a shift in Europe’s relationship with other powers - such as Turkey, China, and the United States? In this week’s podcast, host Mark Leonard talks with Jeremy Shapiro, ECFR’s research director, and senior policy ...
Introducing Mark Leonard's World in 30 Minutes | Trailer
September 06, 2021 12:51 - 1 minute - 1.71 MBEvery Friday, Mark Leonard invites top-level speakers from across the EU and beyond to debate Europe’s role in the world. We feature and discuss everything from our own research at ECFR to practical pan-European policy – and news from Africa, Asia, Middle East and North Africa, Wider Europe and our own European Power programme. So basically, we bring you the world – in 30 minutes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
CDU foreign policy post-Merkel
September 03, 2021 09:00 - 37 minutes - 51.3 MBWith Germany’s federal elections rapidly approaching, chancellor Angela Merkel is set to depart the political stage. What will the foreign policy of her party, the CDU, look like when she’s gone? In this week’s podcast, host Mark Leonard talks to ECFR senior policy fellow Ulrike Franke and Andreas Nick, a CDU member of the German Bundestag. How would a chancellor Armin Laschet approach China, Russia, and defence? And what exactly sets the CDU’s foreign policy apart from those of the Social De...
Kyiv’s relations with Europe in the age of Nord Stream 2
July 30, 2021 09:33 - 35 minutes - 48.6 MBUkraine and the EU recently opened a new chapter in their strategic relationship by signing a memorandum of understanding for closer cooperation in raw materials, green and digital technologies. Making Ukraine part of the European value chain is of strategic importance, but where does the country stand on the recent US-German deal on Nord Stream 2? In this week’s episode, guest host Joanna Hosa, deputy director of ECFR’s Wider Europe programme talks with Svitlana Zalishchuk, Deputy Prime-Mini...
The geopolitics of technology
July 23, 2021 11:36 - 36 minutes - 49.6 MBThe EU is often described as a “regulatory superpower” benefitting from the so-called “Brussels effect.” But is the bloc also able to set its own rules and standards when it comes to new technologies, and let the rest of the world adapt? This week, host Mark Leonard is joined by ECFR senior policy fellows Ulrike Franke and Jose Torreblanca, as well as Marietje Schaake, international director of policy at Stanford’s Cyber Policy Center. How ready are Europeans to prevail in a world of fierce g...
A social democratic vision of German foreign policy
July 16, 2021 09:12 - 35 minutes - 28.2 MBWith Angela Merkel stepping down as Chancellor, the next German federal elections scheduled for this September promise to mark a turning point for Germany. Foreign policy issues promise to be a crucial part of the election campaign. In this week’s podcast, host Mark Leonard talks to Niels Annen, Minister of State in the German Federal Foreign Office and member of the Bundestag for the SPD to find out what a social-democratic foreign policy looks like. What would SPD foreign policy look like u...
The EU and France in the Sahel
July 09, 2021 10:59 - 35 minutes - 49.3 MBIn June this year, French President Emmanuel Macron announced the end of Operation Barkhane – a military offensive launched in 2013 against Islamist militants in the Sahel. France has determined, he said, it could no longer maintain a “constant presence” in West Africa. In this week’s episode, host Mark Leonard discusses European interests in the region and what might change after France’s Africa policy shift, together with Emanuela Del Re, former Italian deputy foreign minister and the new E...
The strike back against economic blackmail
July 02, 2021 08:04 - 29 minutes - 23.6 MBGlobalisation and economic interdependence are increasingly weaponised by various state actors. Europe faces ever greater threats of economic blackmail, sanctions against its lawmakers, and consumer boycotts of its companies. Later this year, the European Commission will launch the Anti-Coercion Instrument, a tool that could enable the EU to protect citizens and businesses by countering economic blackmail from China, Russia, and Turkey – and even the US. In what circumstances could such a too...
The election of President Ebrahim Raisi and the future of Iran
June 25, 2021 08:53 - 34 minutes - 48.1 MBAfter an election which saw the lowest turnout and highest number of spoiled ballots in the history of the Islamic Republic, the ultraconservative regime veteran Ebrahim Raisi was elected as the newest president of Iran. Does the election of Raisi represent a significant change of direction following the term of President Rouhani? Could unified hardliner control of Iran paradoxically lead to a more durable nuclear deal and greater dialogue with regional adversaries such as Saudi Arabia? Will ...
New Energies: The European Green Deal and the EU-Turkey relationship
June 18, 2021 09:43 - 29 minutes - 23.5 MBThe meeting between US president Biden and the Turkish president Erdogan, as well as the upcoming European Council Summit on Turkey come at a critical moment in the EU-US-Turkey relationship. After years of heightened tensions, there appears to have been a thawing in relations since the beginning of this year. The renewed focus on climate policy by the EU, however, makes many aspects of this relationship uncertain. Are carbon border taxes a threat to Turkish trade? How can Turkey and the EU c...