Global Dispatches — World News That Matters
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The longest running independent international affairs podcast features in-depth interviews with policymakers, journalists and experts around the world who discuss global news, international relations, global development and key trends driving world affairs. Named by The Guardian as "a podcast to make you smarter," Global Dispatches is a podcast for people who crave a deeper understanding of international news.
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How Super El Niño Could Trigger Humanitarian Crises Around the World
Climate forecasters are warning that a potentially historic "super El Nino" could bring devastating droughts, floods, and other extreme weather events to vulnerable communities around the world. The …
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Climate forecasters are warning that a potentially historic "super El Nino" could bring devastating droughts, floods, and other extreme weather events to vulnerable communities around the world. The humanitarian consequences could be severe, particularly as this climate event unfolds against the backdrop of widespread hunger, conflict, displacement, and deep cuts to international aid.
In this episode, I'm joined by Michelle Nunn, President and CEO of CARE, one of the world's leading humanitarian organizations. We discuss what makes this El Nino potentially so powerful, where its humanitarian impacts are likely to be felt most acutely, and what CARE and other aid organizations are doing now to prepare for a crisis that, unlike many natural disasters, can be anticipated months in advance.
Somalia's Political Crisis Is Spiraling. Can a Wider Conflict Be Avoided?
Somalia is in the midst of a dangerous political standoff that has resulted in armed clashes in Mogadishu and other parts of the country. At the heart of the crisis is President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud's …
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Somalia is in the midst of a dangerous political standoff that has resulted in armed clashes in Mogadishu and other parts of the country. At the heart of the crisis is President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud's controversial effort to extend his term in office by one year, from May 2026 to May 2027, through constitutional amendments that opposition leaders and several regional governments reject. Meanwhile, countries in the region are competing for influence in Somalia, raising the specter that outside forces could fuel a wider conflict.
Aweis Ahmed of Chatham House explains what's driving the crisis, what's at stake, and whether a path to de-escalation remains.
The Foreign Policy Implications of the Mid-Term Elections
Now that Democrats have won large majorities in the House and Senate, what influence might they be able to exert over US foreign policy? I'm joined today for this special day-after-the-election episode by Joel …
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Now that Democrats have won large majorities in the House and Senate, what influence might they be able to exert over US foreign policy?
I'm joined today for this special day-after-the-election episode by Joel Rubin, a veteran of both Capitol Hill and the State Department and proprietor of The Briefing Book Substack, for a conversation about the tools Democrats might wield to shape US foreign policy.
We kick off by discussing the implications of this election for the ongoing war in Iran, then turn to some of the Democrats' legislative priorities, including potentially restoring funding for foreign aid and global development. We also discuss some of the incoming chairs of key congressional committees and subcommittees. We close with a conversation about what this Democratic landslide means for the rest of the world and how it might reshape other countries' relations with the United States.
This is a timely conversation that will provide useful context for understanding the far-reaching implications of these midterm elections.
Can the Next UN Secretary-General Restore the UN's Role as a Peacemaker? | Jeffrey Feltman
We are down to the wire in the race for UN Secretary-General, as eight candidates vie to lead the United Nations. They are a diverse group of diplomats, but one thing unites them: each has made revitalizing the …
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We are down to the wire in the race for UN Secretary-General, as eight candidates vie to lead the United Nations. They are a diverse group of diplomats, but one thing unites them: each has made revitalizing the UN's role in peacemaking, conflict mediation, and conflict prevention a priority of their campaign. This reflects a broad recognition that the UN's role and influence in these areas have waned in recent years.
So what can be done to restore the UN as a more meaningful player in global peacemaking? And what can the next Secretary-General personally do to promote peace and bring conflicts to an end?
I'm joined today by Jeffrey Feltman, a longtime diplomat who served as the UN's Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs and is now a senior fellow at the UN Foundation. We kick off by exploring why the UN has seemingly become less effective in conflict mediation and peacemaking in recent years. We then discuss concrete steps the next Secretary-General can take to revitalize the UN's role in peacemaking and conflict resolution, some of which Feltman outlined in a recent piece for [Re]Group.
Making Sense of Israel's Election Results
About an hour after polls closed in Israel yesterday, I caught up with longtime Israeli politics analyst Joel Braunold, Managing Director of The Center Project, for a wide-ranging conversation about the …
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About an hour after polls closed in Israel yesterday, I caught up with longtime Israeli politics analyst Joel Braunold, Managing Director of The Center Project, for a wide-ranging conversation about the implications of the election results.
We kick off with a summary of where things stand (which has not changed much since the polls closed). To that end, Joel argues that the results represent a profound rebuke of the coalition government led by Benjamin Netanyahu, including its explicit policy of ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.
He then takes us deep into the complex parliamentary politics that will play out over the next few weeks as a new government seeks to form, including the implications of the strongest showing ever by Arab-Israeli parties. We then discuss what this vote means for Israeli policies in the West Bank and Gaza.
I think you will find this timely conversation to be an accessible but nuanced take on how to make sense of these historically significant elections.
Inside the "Shadow Fleet" That Russia and Iran Use to Evade Sanctions
Over the last several years, a vast network of aging oil tankers operating under opaque ownership structures has emerged as a critical lifeline for countries facing Western sanctions—particularly Russia and …
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Over the last several years, a vast network of aging oil tankers operating under opaque ownership structures has emerged as a critical lifeline for countries facing Western sanctions—particularly Russia and Iran. This so-called shadow fleet now accounts for about 20% of all seaborne oil transport worldwide. Joining me to discuss how this rogue network of tankers evades Western sanctions, and whether we are witnessing the emergence of a parallel maritime trading system, is Nitya Labh of Chatham House.
What Happens if Trump Fully Abandons Ukraine for Putin?
Trump appears to have swung decisively in favor of Russia. Trump has waived sanctions on Russia, from which the United States is now purchasing diesel. Ukraine's defense has been undermined by restrictions on …
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Trump appears to have swung decisively in favor of Russia. Trump has waived sanctions on Russia, from which the United States is now purchasing diesel. Ukraine's defense has been undermined by restrictions on Elon Musk's Starshield, a critical communications platform upon which the Ukrainian military relies. Trump has invited Putin to the upcoming G20 meeting at his club in Florida, and has stymied intelligence sharing to warn about incoming missile attacks from Russia.
My guest today is journalist Luke Johnson, proprietor of the Public Sphere Substack. Based in Europe, Luke covers the war in Ukraine, European politics, and the impact of American foreign policy on Europe. We kick off our conversation with the news that an American prisoner held in Russia has been released by Putin in what is being billed as a "humanitarian" gesture, but which, in effect, further solidifies the growing alignment between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin.
Are We Close to an International Agreement on AI -Powered Weapons?
Over the last several months, the use of fully autonomous, artificial intelligence-powered weapons has been escalating. These weapons are capable of selecting and killing targets without a human in the loop …
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Over the last several months, the use of fully autonomous, artificial intelligence-powered weapons has been escalating. These weapons are capable of selecting and killing targets without a human in the loop. But as this technology advances, momentum is building around an international agreement that would establish guardrails for how these weapons can be used and deployed in warfare. At a recent meeting in Geneva, most countries agreed on the broad outlines of such an agreement, though the United States and Russia raised objections. So, can the pace of diplomacy keep up with the rapid development of AI-powered lethal autonomous weapons systems? Joining me to discuss this question is Magnus Løvold of Lex International.
What a Massive International Poll Tells Us About the State of Global Public Opinion
The Rockefeller Foundation recently released the results of a massive international survey examining how people view the state of the world and the role of international cooperation in addressing global …
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The Rockefeller Foundation recently released the results of a massive international survey examining how people view the state of the world and the role of international cooperation in addressing global challenges. Some 35,000 people across 34 countries were polled, revealing widespread pessimism about the direction the world is heading, but also a strong desire for greater international cooperation to tackle shared problems.
Eric Pelofsky, Vice President for International Policy at the Rockefeller Foundation, joins me to discuss the survey's findings, what they reveal about public attitudes toward global challenges, and what they suggest about the future of multilateralism at a time of growing international uncertainty.
Navi Pillay Wins the Nobel! And Trump Goes Nuclear on the ICC | To Save Us From Hell
Get full episode: https://www.globaldispatches.org/50PercentOffAnnual The former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and chair of the UN body that concluded Israel committed genocide in Gaza has …
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Get full episode: https://www.globaldispatches.org/50PercentOffAnnual
The former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and chair of the UN body that concluded Israel committed genocide in Gaza has won the Nobel Peace Prize.
In the first segment of this episode of To Save Us From Hell, Anjali and Mark break down the implications of Navi Pillay's Nobel Peace Prize — and why it was significant that the Nobel Committee chose to honor the South African jurist when it did.
As it happens, Navi Pillay also spent nearly a decade as a judge at the International Criminal Court (ICC). On the same day she was awarded the Nobel, the Trump administration announced new plans to impose sweeping sanctions on the entire court. We have an extended discussion about the implications of this move for the ICC and how the court's defenders might respond.
Finally, we unpack the latest developments in the race for UN Secretary-General, which has come down to just two candidates.
Can the World Build a Better, Fairer System for the Next Pandemic?
It did not receive much attention at the time, but one of the more consequential gatherings at the United Nations during UNGA was a high-level meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response. The …
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It did not receive much attention at the time, but one of the more consequential gatherings at the United Nations during UNGA was a high-level meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response.
The meeting was intended to build momentum toward a global Pandemic Agreement that was negotiated at the WHO last year, but which left a few key issues unresolved. Chief among them is the creation of a so-called Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing System, or PABS. The basic idea is that countries that share viral samples with pharmaceutical companies and researchers should, in turn, have access to the vaccines, medicines, and other products developed from those samples.
All of this was up for discussion at the UN meeting, but the United States ultimately blocked the adoption of a consensus outcome document.
Joining me to discuss what happened at this meeting, why it matters, and what comes next for a global agreement on pandemic prevention, preparedness and response is Courtney Carson, Senior Director of Programs at RANI, an NGO.
Ethiopia is on the Brink of Civil War
Over the last several weeks, fighting has intensified in the country's north. A coalition of seven armed groups recently formed a new alliance, vowing to topple the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. The …
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Over the last several weeks, fighting has intensified in the country's north. A coalition of seven armed groups recently formed a new alliance, vowing to topple the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. The Ethiopian government is fighting back. The conflict is also becoming increasingly regional. Sudan, Egypt, and Somalia are all connected in different ways to the shifting alliances and rivalries surrounding Ethiopia. And there is an even broader geopolitical dimension. Just two days before the new Eritrea-backed rebel alliance was announced, the United States lifted sanctions on Eritrea. Eritrea occupies a strategically important stretch of the Red Sea coast, directly across from Yemen, where Houthi attacks have threatened international shipping through the Bab al-Mandab Strait. Some analysts believe the sanctions relief gives Eritrea more room to pursue its interests in Ethiopia.
Joining me today to help make sense of this complicated web of factions, alliances, and regional rivalries is Dr. Jalale Getachew Birru, East Africa Regional Expert with the conflict-monitoring nonprofit ACLED.
Small States and Middle Powers are suddenly Banding Together at the United Nations
Christian Wenaweser is a legend around the United Nations. He has served as Liechtenstein's Ambassador to the United Nations since 2002 and, despite representing one of the world's smallest states, has an …
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Christian Wenaweser is a legend around the United Nations. He has served as Liechtenstein's Ambassador to the United Nations since 2002 and, despite representing one of the world's smallest states, has an impressive record of diplomatic achievements. He played an instrumental role in the development of the International Criminal Court, including efforts to define the crime of aggression. He has also spearheaded several important initiatives at the General Assembly, including the creation of a mechanism to collect and preserve evidence of war crimes in Syria and the "veto initiative," under which any veto at the Security Council triggers a meeting of the General Assembly.
These may sound like fairly technical diplomatic maneuvers, but they represent something much bigger: an innovative way of thinking about how small and middle powers can work together to overcome great-power gridlock and achieve substantive goals at the United Nations.
We spoke one week after UNGA — a defining theme of which was the banding together of small states and middle powers in the face of intransigence from some of the world's great powers. This included the launch of a new Partnership for Multilateralism and a political declaration on frontier AI, both of which Liechtenstein joined.
In our conversation, Ambassador Wenaweser explains the emerging dynamics of an alliance between middle powers and small states at the UN, what they can actually accomplish, and why they these countries are suddenly asserting themselves.
Our conversation is free for all, and was produced in partnership with [Re]Group, a substack from the UN Foundation.
Why the Red Cross Wants a New Treaty for People Caught in Disasters.
My guest today is Jagan Chapagain, Secretary General of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the IFRC, which is calling on countries to adopt a new treaty that would set …
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My guest today is Jagan Chapagain, Secretary General of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, the IFRC, which is calling on countries to adopt a new treaty that would set standards and rules of the road for helping people caught in natural disasters.
We spoke on the day of the massive flash floods in Nepal, which he argues underscore the need to streamline how governments and NGOs cooperate when a sudden disaster strikes.
Trump at the UN — And the Biggest Moments From UNGA
President Trump delivered his annual address to the United Nations General Assembly, kicking off a week of speeches from presidents and prime ministers from over 100 countries. In this special edition of Global …
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President Trump delivered his annual address to the United Nations General Assembly, kicking off a week of speeches from presidents and prime ministers from over 100 countries. In this special edition of Global Dispatches, I am joined by Anjali Dayal, my To Save Us From Hell co-host and a professor of international relations at Fordham University, and Harshani Dharmadasa, Senior Director at the UN Foundation and a veteran of the UN system.
We kick off with an extended conversation about President Trump's speech to the United Nations, including what it says about the future of U.S. foreign policy and American engagement with the United Nations. We then turn to a number of the key themes emerging from speeches, meetings, and events around New York this week.
We wrap up with a discussion of António Guterres's legacy at the United Nations and a speech he delivered that we all agreed encapsulates his 10-year tenure as UN Secretary-General.
Here's What Will Drive the Agenda at the UN This Week | With Elizabeth Cousens
UN week is here. Hundreds of presidents and prime ministers are headed to New York this week for the annual opening of the United Nations General Assembly. The presence of so many world leaders all in the same …
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UN week is here. Hundreds of presidents and prime ministers are headed to New York this week for the annual opening of the United Nations General Assembly. The presence of so many world leaders all in the same place at the same time makes UNGA the most important week of the diplomatic calendar.
I'm joined today by Elizabeth Cousens, President and CEO of the United Nations Foundation who previews some of the key speeches, stories, trends and moments that will define UNGA81. We kick off discussing the leadership transition at the top of the United Nations before turning to some of the key issues she expects to drive the diplomatic agenda — including AI, Iran and and an international order teetering on the edge.
My UNGA Plans (And Your General Assembly Cheat Sheet)
Mark here! I just wanted to talk directly to you about my comings and going this UNGA and preview for you my plans for covering the UN. Some relevent links: 50 % discounted subsciption to support the show! …
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Mark here! I just wanted to talk directly to you about my comings and going this UNGA and preview for you my plans for covering the UN. Some relevent links:
50 % discounted subsciption to support the show!
Haiti Is Getting More Dangerous. The U.S. Is Sending People Back Anyway.
Haiti's security crisis is deepening as armed gangs expand their control over territory and daily life, while a new UN-backed Gang Suppression Force begins to deploy amid major questions about whether it can …
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Haiti's security crisis is deepening as armed gangs expand their control over territory and daily life, while a new UN-backed Gang Suppression Force begins to deploy amid major questions about whether it can actually reverse the country's descent into violence.
Diego Da Rin of the International Crisis Group joins me to explain how Haiti reached this point, what the gangs are doing to consolidate their power, what the new international force is supposed to accomplish, and what it means that the United States is deporting Haitians back into this increasingly dangerous environment.
Why Yemen is Becoming the Iran War's Next Front
The Iran war is spilling over into Yemen. And now, the country is on the verge of a full-blown civil war that could drag in Saudi Arabia, Iran — and potentially the United States. Over the last several weeks …
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The Iran war is spilling over into Yemen. And now, the country is on the verge of a full-blown civil war that could drag in Saudi Arabia, Iran — and potentially the United States.
Over the last several weeks, the Iran-backed Houthis and the Saudi-backed internationally recognized government have been clashing at a pace and with a fury not seen since a 2022 ceasefire brought a halt to a devastating eight-year civil war. The war in Iran has changed the dynamics of the region in ways that have left Yemen poised to become the next place where the conflict spreads.
My guest today, Alexandra Stark, is a political scientist at RAND who studies the region. She is the author of the book The Yemen Model and recently wrote a New York Times op-ed about the prospect of Yemen becoming a new front in a widening Middle East conflict.
We kick off by discussing recent events on the ground in Yemen, their connection to the U.S.-Iran war, and the mechanisms through which Yemen could once again become engulfed in a devastating civil war — one fueled by Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United States.
Zambia's Fraught Election and the Global Race for Copper
Zambia's election is raising fresh questions about the country's democratic trajectory — even as its vast copper reserves make it increasingly important to the global economy and to strategic competition …
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Zambia's election is raising fresh questions about the country's democratic trajectory — even as its vast copper reserves make it increasingly important to the global economy and to strategic competition between the United States and China. In this episode, Zaynab Hoosen of Pangea Risk explains the political tensions surrounding the election, Zambia's economic outlook, and why the global race for copper is putting the country in the geopolitical spotlight.
Why Oman Could Be Crucial to Ending the Iran War
Oman has long played one of the Middle East's most unusual diplomatic roles: maintaining close ties with rivals and quietly creating space for enemies to talk. Secret U.S.-Iran negotiations in Muscat helped …
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Oman has long played one of the Middle East's most unusual diplomatic roles: maintaining close ties with rivals and quietly creating space for enemies to talk. Secret U.S.-Iran negotiations in Muscat helped pave the way for the 2015 nuclear deal, and Oman has continued to serve as an intermediary on prisoner exchanges, regional conflicts, and nuclear diplomacy.
But the Iran war has thrust Oman into a much more precarious position. Sitting directly across the Strait of Hormuz from Iran, the small Gulf state is no longer just a mediator on the sidelines. It is now deeply exposed to a conflict that threatens shipping, regional security, and the very diplomatic relationships Oman has spent decades cultivating.
I'm joined by Tyler Parker, a professor at Mercer University who studies the foreign policies of the Gulf states, to discuss how Oman became the region's indispensable intermediary, why the Strait of Hormuz has made Muscat so important to the current crisis, and whether Oman could ultimately help create a path toward ending the war.
Did Russia Just Cross a New Line in AI Warfare?
Last month, a Russian drone flew toward a gas station in the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia. It crashed into a wall and exploded, killing three civilians. What made this strike different — and potentially a …
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Last month, a Russian drone flew toward a gas station in the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia. It crashed into a wall and exploded, killing three civilians.
What made this strike different — and potentially a major turning point in modern warfare — is what investigators found afterward. According to reporting by The New York Times, the drone was equipped with an artificial intelligence system that allowed it to navigate toward the gas station and, once it got close, apparently choose its precise target on its own. Ukrainian officials and experts who examined the wreckage say the drone carried the telltale signs of being a fully autonomous, AI-powered weapon.
If that assessment is correct, it represents a disturbing new threshold in the evolution of the war in Ukraine — and warfare more broadly: a weapon using AI to autonomously identify and attack a target, with lethal consequences.
The day after The New York Times report, UN Secretary-General António Guterres and the International Committee of the Red Cross renewed their call for states to establish specific prohibitions and restrictions on autonomous weapon systems. "We are now dangerously close to crossing a moral red line: the autonomous targeting of humans by machines," Guterres said.
Given this development, I wanted to revisit a conversation I recorded last year with Anna Hehir of the Future of Life Institute. We talked about lethal autonomous weapons, what it means for a machine to make targeting decisions without meaningful human control, and, crucially, whether diplomacy can prevent these systems from becoming a routine feature of warfare.
A Shakeup in the Race for UN Secretary-General | To Save Us From Hell
The United Nations is in the midst of selecting its next Secretary-General — and the race to succeed António Guterres just got more interesting. Last week, the Security Council held a straw poll to test the …
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The United Nations is in the midst of selecting its next Secretary-General — and the race to succeed António Guterres just got more interesting. Last week, the Security Council held a straw poll to test the viability of the eight women and men vying to become Secretary-General in January. The results: we have a new frontrunner, though her apparent lead is narrow. Meanwhile, some candidates once considered frontrunners now look like long shots.
On this episode of our sister podcast, To Save Us From Hell, Mark Leon Goldberg and Anjali Dayal dissect the results of the straw poll and discuss the latest developments in the Secretary-General race
You can unlock full access to To Save Us From Hell with a paid subscription --> https://www.globaldispatches.org/
Why Policies to Stop Migration Often Ends Up "Aiding Autocrats"
Kelsey Norman is a Fellow for the Middle East and Director of the Women's Rights, Human Rights, and Refugees Program at Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy. Her new book, Aiding Autocrats …
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Kelsey Norman is a Fellow for the Middle East and Director of the Women's Rights, Human Rights, and Refugees Program at Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy. Her new book, Aiding Autocrats: Migration Management, Governance and Repression in Africa, examines how wealthy countries increasingly use foreign aid to persuade other governments to stop migrants before they reach Europe or the United States—and the unintended political consequences of those policies.
In this episode, Kelsey explains what she calls "migration management aid" and how it has shaped relationships with countries including Turkey, Libya, and Rwanda. We also discuss whether more recent policies, including the Trump administration's deportation agreements with countries such as Eswatini, fit into this broader pattern.
The conversation then turns to one of the book's central arguments: that outsourcing migration control can undermine democracy and good governance by strengthening authoritarian governments and giving them new resources and leverage. We conclude by discussing whether there is a better way for wealthy countries to cooperate with governments on migration without reinforcing repression or sacrificing human rights.
UN Secretary General Candidate Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett
Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett is a Guyanese diplomat and candidate for Secretary-General of the United Nations. If selected, she would become both the first woman and the first person of Indigenous descent to lead …
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Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett is a Guyanese diplomat and candidate for Secretary-General of the United Nations. If selected, she would become both the first woman and the first person of Indigenous descent to lead the world body. She joins Mark for a substantive conversation about her vision for the UN at a moment of profound strain on the multilateral system. Drawing on her experience representing Guyana on the Security Council, Rodrigues-Birkett discusses what she learned about the UN's strengths and limitations in preventing and resolving conflict—and what she would do differently as Secretary-General. She also lays out her approach to global development and global health, and makes the case for diplomacy and international cooperation as essential tools for tackling the challenges ahead.
How Vali Nasr's Life Shaped His Understanding of Iran | From April 2017
Vali Nasr is everywhere in the news these days. The Iranian American scholar has written scores of books and articles about Iran and the Middle East, and even before the U.S.-Israel-Iran war, he was someone …
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Vali Nasr is everywhere in the news these days. The Iranian American scholar has written scores of books and articles about Iran and the Middle East, and even before the U.S.-Israel-Iran war, he was someone policymakers and journalists regularly turned to for insight into Iran.
On a personal note, I have followed his work for years, and since the outbreak of the war, I have found his commentary and analysis particularly useful.
Back in 2017, Vali came on the show to discuss his life and career. I wanted to understand how he developed his worldview and built a career that also included a stint in the Obama administration, where he worked with Richard Holbrooke on Afghanistan policy.
In this conversation, Vali opens up about the influence of his father, a prominent academic in Iran, and the trauma of being forced into exile after the 1979 revolution. He explains how those experiences shaped his worldview in ways that, at the time of our conversation, he said he was still coming to grips with.
Vali Nasr is helping to shape our collective understanding of Iran at this critical moment. This conversation goes deep into the personal experiences and intellectual influences behind the views he holds today.
This episode comes from deep in the archives. Global Dispatches is now 13 years old, and the first 200 or so episodes followed a different format from the show today. Back then, I focused less on topical and thematic issues in international affairs and more on the life stories of the people who shape our understanding of the world.
For obvious reasons, this felt like a particularly good moment to republish my interview with Vali Nasr, which originally aired in April 2017.
Russia's War Economy Is Starting to Crack
Russia's economy once seemed remarkably resilient in the face of international sanctions. But in recent months, a growing number of indicators suggest that Russia's war economy is coming under strains not seen …
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Russia's economy once seemed remarkably resilient in the face of international sanctions. But in recent months, a growing number of indicators suggest that Russia's war economy is coming under strains not seen since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022. The budget deficit, which had remained relatively stable, is beginning to balloon. Inflation is accelerating. Labor shortages are widespread. And banks are being compelled to offer preferential loans to military industries, crowding out lending to the civilian economy.
Is Russia's economy finally approaching a breaking point? And what might that mean for Vladimir Putin's grip on power and his ability to sustain the war?
I'm joined today by Charles Lichfield, director of economic foresight and analysis and the C. Boyden Gray Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council's GeoEconomics Center. He is the author of a new report showing how recent developments have intensified some of the Russian economy's underlying structural weaknesses. In our conversation, he explains why Russia's economy is beginning to crack after four years of war in Ukraine—and what those cracks could mean for the future of the war.
What are the "Causes of Peace" Today? | Live from the Aspen Security Forum with the International Crisis Group
What can bring about peace in an era of geopolitical rivalry and persistent conflict? In an ambitious new report, the International Crisis Group takes a hard-nosed approach to this question, offering a …
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What can bring about peace in an era of geopolitical rivalry and persistent conflict? In an ambitious new report, the International Crisis Group takes a hard-nosed approach to this question, offering a realistic assessment of what is—and is not—possible when it comes to preventing and ending conflict today.
I caught up with Crisis Group's Comfort Ero, Michael Hanna, and Ginger Jacobs at the Aspen Security Forum in July. They explain why a new approach to conflict resolution is needed—and why the old models are no longer suited to today's world.
What Is the Future of US-China Relations? | Ambassador Nicholas Burns, Live from the Aspen Security Forum
Nicholas Burns is a veteran diplomat who served as President Biden's ambassador to China during a crucial period in U.S.-China relations. We caught up at the Aspen Security Forum in July for a wide-ranging …
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Nicholas Burns is a veteran diplomat who served as President Biden's ambassador to China during a crucial period in U.S.-China relations. We caught up at the Aspen Security Forum in July for a wide-ranging conversation about Chinese foreign policy, including Beijing's evolving diplomatic role in the conflict with Iran, what Xi Jinping hopes to gain from upcoming summits with Donald Trump, and whether China is really seeking to supplant the United States in international institutions.
How Ukraine Turned the Tide of the War | Live from the Aspen Security Forum
In recent months, Ukraine has clearly seized the initiative against Russia. Its impressive use of drones and autonomous weapons systems has put Russia on the defensive, while strikes on Russian energy …
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In recent months, Ukraine has clearly seized the initiative against Russia. Its impressive use of drones and autonomous weapons systems has put Russia on the defensive, while strikes on Russian energy infrastructure are causing gasoline shortages for ordinary Russians.
I speak with The Wall Street Journal's Yaroslav Trofimov about how and why Ukraine's fortunes have suddenly turned—and what comes next in the war.
We caught up at the Aspen Security Forum on the same day that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy fired Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, even though Fedorov had championed many of the tactics that made Ukraine's advances possible. We begin by discussing that dramatic turn of events before broadening the conversation to the current trajectory of the war.
Buy Yaroslav's book about the Urkaine war from an indy bookseller here: Our Enemies Will Vanish
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