The Real Story

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Natalie Alcoba, an Argentinean-Canadian journalist

Ignacio Labaqui, senior analyst with Medley Global Advisors, which offers advice to clients on political risk

Christopher Sabatini. he's Senior Research Fellow for Latin America, US and the Americas Programme at the Chatham House thinktank

Also featuring:

Marcela Pagano a newly elected member of the Argentine Congress for Javier Milei's La Libertad Avanza

Gustavo Martínez Pandiani, Sergio Massa's principal foreign policy advisor and the Ambassador to Switzerland.

Pau Bressi, a university student in Buenos Aires

Produced by: Max Horberry and Ellen Otzen

(Photo: Presidential candidate Javier Milei speaks after first round results, Buenos Aires, Argentina - 23 Oct 2023. Juan Ignacio Roncoroni/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

As presidential candidates head to a run off, can Argentina save its downward spiral?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

As presidential candidates head to a run off election, what can they do to save the spiralling economy?

Haiti is the poorest country in the Americas with a history of political instability, dictatorships and natural disasters. It became the world's first black-led republic and the first independent Caribbean state when it threw off French colonial control and slavery in the early 19th Century. But it was forced to pay crippling reparations to France, which demanded compensation for former slave owners. That 'independence debt' was not paid off until 1947 with many Haitians saying that it has prevented the country from developing and moving forwards. So, how has Haiti's history shaped its present? And can it break free from its past and, if so, how can it do so? Celia Hatton is joined by a panel of experts:

Monique Clesca - A Haitian journalist, writer and advocate in Port Au Prince.

Professor Marlene Daut - A Haitian American Professor of French and African American Studies at Yale University.

Alex Dupuy - A Haitian born academic who has retired after a long career as Professor of Sociology at Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT. He's authored many books on Haiti's history and development.

Image: People run down a street in Port-au-Prince, Haiti escaping from gang violence. Credit: Johnson Sabin/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

This programme has been edited since it was originally broadcast.

Gangs threaten the Haitian state but the past looms large over the security crisis

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Gangs threaten the Haitian state but the past looms large over the security crisis.

Shaun Ley is joined by Eyck Freymann, economic historian and China specialist, currently a Hoover Fellow at Stanford University; Niva Yau, political scientist from Hong Kong and a non-resident fellow with the Atlantic Council's Global China Hub; Kerry Brown, professor of Chinese Studies and director of the Lau China Institute at King's College, London.

Also featuring: Pakistan Senator Afnan Khan, Pakistan Muslim League, Victor Gao of the Beijing based Centre for China and Globalisation, a think tank with links to the governing Chinese Communist Party and Nicola Procaccini, Member of the European Parliament from the Fratelli d'Italia party

(Photo: Chinese President Xi Jinping waves to children upon arrival at Islamabad airport in Islamabad, 20 April, 2015. Credit: Pakistan Presidency Press Information Department /Getty Images)

Producer: Rumella Dasgupta and Ellen Otzen

What have President Xi's Belt & Road projects linking China, Africa and Europe achieved?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

In the ten years since the BRI was launched, 152 countries have collaborated with China to develop their infrastructure in an aim to improve trade links. But is it a success?

Stewart Patterson - Co-founder of an investment management firm in Singapore, author of 'China trade and power: Why the West's Economic Engagement Has Failed' and research fellow at The Hinrich Foundation.

Nancy Qian - Professor of Economics at Kellogg Business School, Northwestern University, Illinois

Yu Jie - Senior research fellow on China in the Asia-Pacific Programme at the independent policy institute, Chatham House

(Photo: A man sells food in his street booth in Shanghai. Credit: Alex Plavevski/EPA-EFE/Rex/Shutterstock)

Can Beijing enjoy the benefits of capitalism while retaining full control of the economy?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Shaun Ley is joined by: Anshel Pfeffer, an Israeli journalist based in Jerusalem who writes for the Economist and the Israeli newspaper Haaretz; Tahani Mustafa, who is British-Palestinian and a senior Palestine analyst at the International Crisis Group; Dennis Ross, who was Middle East Envoy in Clinton administration and later served as Special Assistant to President Obama on his National Security Council.

Also featuring:

Danny Danon, Israeli member of the Knesset for the Likud party

Hiba Husseini, former Legal Adviser to the Palestinian Liberation Organisation and current chair of the Legal Committee to Final Status Negotiations between the Palestinians and Israelis.

Producer: Max Horberry and Ellen Otzen

(Photo: Olive tree outside Jerusalem's old city. Credit: Getty Images)

What could a long-term political settlement between Palestinians and Israelis look like?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Natasha Foote - A journalist and podcaster focusing on European agriculture and farming policy

Paula Andrés – Agriculture and food reporter for Politico Europe

Julia Bognar - Head of land use and climate at The Institute for European Environmental Policy think tank

Also featuring:

Christiane Lambert – A pig farmer and President of the European farmers' lobby COPA-COGECA

Tom Vandenkendelaere - A Belgian member of the European Parliament for the Flemish Christian Democrat CD&V party / European People's Party (EPP)

Bas Eickhout - A Dutch member of the European Parliament for the Greens / European Free Alliance

Producers: Zak Brophy and Paul Schuster

Image: A placard on a tractor reads 'No farmers, no food' during a protest by farmers in downtown Barcelona, Spain, 07 February 2024 - Credit: Enric Fontcuberta/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

After widespread protests, Europe is re-assessing attempts to make agriculture greener

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

After widespread protests, Europe is re-assessing attempts to make agriculture greener.

Jack Goldstone - Professor of Public Policy at George Mason University in Virginia, in the United States.

Elma Laguna - Associate Professor of Demography and Director of the Population Institute, College of Social Sciences and Philosophy, University of the Philippines, Diliman.

Frank Swiaczny - Senior Researcher at the Federal Institute for Population Research in Germany and Executive Director of the German Society for Demography.

Image: An elderly man holding a walking stick. Credit: Joe Giddens/PA Wire

With people living longer and families getting smaller how does society cope?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

The plane maker’s safety record is in the spotlight after a series of incidents. In January an unused door blew off a Boeing 737 Max 9 operated by Alaska Airlines shortly after take-off. An initial report from the US National Transportation Safety Board concluded that four bolts meant to attach the door securely to the aircraft had not been fitted. Prior to the incident, there had been other serious problems on the 737 Max production line, including the discovery of manufacturing defects affecting key parts of the planes, as well as a part protecting the central fuel tank against lightning strikes. A version of the 737 Max was also involved in two major accidents in late 2018 and early 2019, in which 346 people were killed. Those crashes were attributed to badly-designed flight control software. After the most recent incident, Boeing’s president Dave Calhoun said the company would be "implementing a comprehensive plan to strengthen quality and the confidence of our stakeholders.” So, what does Boeing need to do to win back trust? Celia Hatton is joined by a panel of expert guests.

David Soucie - A former top flight accident inspector with the US Federal Aviation Administration (the FAA) and author of "Why Planes Crash".

Oriana Pawlyk - Aviation reporter for Politico.

Sally Gethin - An independent global aviation and travel analyst.

Also in the programme:

Captain Dennis Tajer - Lead spokesman for the Allied Pilots Association and a pilot for American Airlines.

John Strickland - Aviation analyst and director of JLS Consulting.

Image: The Boeing logo as seen at the Farnborough International Airshow. Credit: Reuters/Peter Cziborra.

The plane maker\u2019s safety record is in the spotlight after a series of incidents

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

The plane maker’s safety record is in the spotlight after a series of incidents. In January an unused door blew off a Boeing 737 Max 9 operated by Alaska Airlines shortly after take-off. An initial report from the US National Transportation Safety Board concluded that four bolts meant to attach the door securely to the aircraft had not been fitted. Prior to the incident, there had been other serious problems on the 737 Max production line, including the discovery of manufacturing defects affecting key parts of the planes, as well as a part protecting the central fuel tank against lightning strikes. A version of the 737 Max was also involved in two major accidents in late 2018 and early 2019, in which 346 people were killed. Those crashes were attributed to badly-designed flight control software. After the most recent incident, Boeing’s president Dave Calhoun said the company would be "implementing a comprehensive plan to strengthen quality and the confidence of our stakeholders.” So, what does Boeing need to do to win back trust? Celia Hatton is joined by a panel of expert guests.

David Soucie - A former top flight accident inspector with the US Federal Aviation Administration (the FAA) and author of "Why Planes Crash".

Oriana Pawlyk - Aviation reporter for Politico.

Sally Gethin - An independent global aviation and travel analyst.

Also in the programme:

Captain Dennis Tajer - Lead spokesman for the Allied Pilots Association and a pilot for American Airlines.

John Strickland - Aviation analyst and director of JLS Consulting.

Image: The Boeing logo as seen at the Farnborough International Airshow. Credit: Reuters/Peter Cziborra.

The plane maker\u2019s safety record is in the spotlight after a series of incidents

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Recently new injectable weight-loss drugs have emerged that show promising results: Wegovy is an obesity treatment that is taken once a week which tricks people into thinking that they are already full, so they end up eating less and losing weight. The drug was approved by regulators in the US in 2021. It was also approved for use in the UK on the national health service earlier this year after research suggested users could shed more than 10% of their body weight. But it's an expensive drug and in trials, users often put weight back on after stopping treatment. If action is not taken, more than half the world's population will be classed as obese or overweight by 2035, the World Obesity Federation warns. More than four billion people will be affected, with rates rising fastest among children, its report says. Low or middle-income countries in Africa and Asia are expected to see the greatest rises.

What policies should governments put in place to curb obesity? What are the wider systemic factors that contribute to unhealthy eating and obesity? What can be done to tackle the global obesity epidemic?

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Dr Binayak Sinha, an endocrinologist with a special interest in obesity and diabetes.

Rachel Nugent is associate professor at the Department of Global Health at the University of Washington.

Dr Fatima Cody Stanford studies obesity at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School in the United States.

Also featuring:

Julianne Williams from the Europe and Central Asia regional office at The World Health Organisation.

Grace Victory, blogger and body positivity activist.

Stephanie Yeboah, body positivity campaigner; and Bethany Rutter, a writer who blogs about plus size fashion.

Produced by Max Horberry and Ellen Otzen

(Photo: Getty)

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

The Paris climate agreement in 2015 aimed to limit global warming to 1.5C. But have politics and lobbying got in the way of urgently needed progress? Is it too late for some nations? There has been much scepticism among delegates at COP28 as to whether the hosts are honest brokers in this process and if the money pledged by the wealthiest nations is enough to mitigate this crisis.

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Rachel Kyte served as Special Representative for the UN Secretary-General, and is a long standing advocate for sustainable energy. She was vice president of the World Bank and is a visiting professor at the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford in the UK.

Cassie Flynn, who's now global director of climate change at the UN Development Programme. Cassie Flynn was senior adviser to the Prime Minister of Fiji when he was presiding at COP23 in 2017.

Adil Najam, Professor of International Relations and Earth and Environment at Boston University. He's originally from Pakistan. In the summer, Professor Najam became President of WWF, the World Wide Fund for Nature.

Also featuring:

Amos Wemanya, is senior advisor on climate and energy at Power Shift Africa, a pan African non governmental organisation from Kenya.

Vishal Prasad, campaign director of Pacific Islands' Students Fighting Climate Change from Fiji.

Produced by Rumella Dasgupta and Max Horberry.

(Photo: Activists protest to demand loss and damage payments by rich countries to poor countries affected by climate change at COP28, Dubai. Credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Are countries following up their eye-catching climate pledges with concrete action?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

The Paris climate agreement in 2015 aimed to limit global warming to 1.5C. But have politics and lobbying got in the way of urgently needed progress? Is it too late for some nations? There has been much scepticism among delegates at COP28 as to whether the hosts are honest brokers in this process and if the money pledged by the wealthiest nations is enough to mitigate this crisis.

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Rachel Kyte served as Special Representative for the UN Secretary-General, and is a long standing advocate for sustainable energy. She was vice president of the World Bank and is a visiting professor at the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford in the UK.

Cassie Flynn, who's now global director of climate change at the UN Development Programme. Cassie Flynn was senior adviser to the Prime Minister of Fiji when he was presiding at COP23 in 2017.

Adil Najam, Professor of International Relations and Earth and Environment at Boston University. He's originally from Pakistan. In the summer, Professor Najam became President of WWF, the World Wide Fund for Nature.

Also featuring:

Amos Wemanya, is senior advisor on climate and energy at Power Shift Africa, a pan African non governmental organisation from Kenya.

Vishal Prasad, campaign director of Pacific Islands' Students Fighting Climate Change from Fiji.

Produced by Rumella Dasgupta and Max Horberry.

(Photo: Activists protest to demand loss and damage payments by rich countries to poor countries affected by climate change at COP28, Dubai. Credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Are countries following up their eye-catching climate pledges with concrete action?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Rachel Kyte served as Special Representative for the UN Secretary-General, and is a long standing advocate for sustainable energy. She was vice president of the World Bank and is a visiting professor at the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford in the UK.

Cassie Flynn, who's now global director of climate change at the UN Development Programme. Cassie Flynn was senior adviser to the Prime Minister of Fiji when he was presiding at COP23 in 2017.

Adil Najam, Professor of International Relations and Earth and Environment at Boston University. He's originally from Pakistan. In the summer, Professor Najam became President of WWF, the World Wide Fund for Nature.

Also featuring:

Amos Wemanya, is senior advisor on climate and energy at Power Shift Africa, a pan African non governmental organisation from Kenya.

Vishal Prasad, campaign director of Pacific Islands' Students Fighting Climate Change from Fiji.

Produced by Rumella Dasgupta and Max Horberry.

(Photo: Activists protest to demand loss and damage payments by rich countries to poor countries affected by climate change at COP28, Dubai. Credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Are countries following up their eye-catching climate pledges with concrete action?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

The Paris climate agreement in 2015 aimed to limit global warming to 1.5C. But have politics and lobbying got in the way of urgently needed progress? Is it too late for some nations? There has been much scepticism among delegates at COP28 as to whether the hosts are honest brokers in this process and if the money pledged by the wealthiest nations is enough to mitigate this crisis.

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Rachel Kyte served as Special Representative for the UN Secretary-General, and is a long standing advocate for sustainable energy. She was vice president of the World Bank and is a visiting professor at the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford in the UK.

Cassie Flynn, who's now global director of climate change at the UN Development Programme. Cassie Flynn was senior adviser to the Prime Minister of Fiji when he was presiding at COP23 in 2017.

Adil Najam, Professor of International Relations and Earth and Environment at Boston University. He's originally from Pakistan. In the summer, Professor Najam became President of WWF, the World Wide Fund for Nature.

Also featuring:

Amos Wemanya, is senior advisor on climate and energy at Power Shift Africa, a pan African non governmental organisation from Kenya.

Vishal Prasad, campaign director of Pacific Islands' Students Fighting Climate Change from Fiji.

Produced by Rumella Dasgupta and Max Horberry.

(Photo: Activists protest to demand loss and damage payments by rich countries to poor countries affected by climate change at COP28, Dubai. Credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Are countries following up their eye-catching climate pledges with concrete action?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Lisa Mitchell - Professor of anthropology & history in the Department of South Asia Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. Author of a recent book: 'Hailing the State: Indian Democracy between Elections'.

Debasish Roy Chowdhury - journalist and co-author of the book 'To Kill A Democracy: India's Passage To Despotism'.

Tripurdaman Singh - a British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, University of London

Also featuring:

Swapan Dasgupta - national executive member of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)

Hartosh Singh Bal - the Executive editor of Caravan News Magazine

Produced by : Rumella Dasgupta & Ellen Otzen

This programme has been edited since originally broadcast

(Photo : Journalists protesting in Delhi this week, Credit : Vipin Kumar/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

Is freedom of speech under threat in the world's most populous country?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Is the secular fabric of India's multi religion, multi language democracy slowly tearing apart?

Borso Tall - Freelance journalist based in the Senegalese capital Dakar, recipient of the Chevening scholar with The University of Glasgow and member of The International Women's Media Foundation.

Paul Melly - Consulting fellow for the international affairs think tank Chatham House and a journalist specialising on development, politics and business issues in francophone Africa.

Aanu Adeoye - West Africa correspondent for the Financial Times.

Also in the programme:

Dr Ndongo Samba Sylla -An economist who served as an adviser in the president's office.

Image: Senegalese demonstrators protest against the postponement of the Feb. 25 presidential election, in Dakar, Senegal February 9, 2024. Credit: Reuters/Zohra Bensemra

The president is accused of attempting a constitutional coup after postponing elections

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

President Macky Sall is accused of attempting a constitutional coup after postponing elections

Over the past year thousands of journalists have lost their jobs as mass media news organisations struggle to make ends meet. Ad revenue is down, many publishers are struggling to gain subscribers, and social media has resulted in plummeting traffic to homepages. More than a third of people worldwide say they sometimes or often actively avoid the news, many citing their mental health and concerns that they can’t do anything about the problems reported. Meanwhile advancements in artificial intelligence promise rapid changes to the way journalism is done. So, what’s the future of journalism?

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Emily Bell, director of the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia Journalism School

Benjamin Toff, assistant professor of journalism at the University of Minnesota, a research associate at the Reuters Institute and co-author of the book: ‘Avoiding the News: Reluctant Audiences for Journalism’

LaSharah S. Bunting, CEO and executive director of the Online News Association

Produced by Max Horberry and Paul Schuster

(Photo: Getty)

Journalists are losing their jobs and increasingly consumers are avoiding the news

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Over the past year thousands of journalists have lost their jobs as mass media news organisations struggle to make ends meet. Ad revenue is down, many publishers are struggling to gain subscribers, and social media has resulted in plummeting traffic to homepages. More than a third of people worldwide say they sometimes or often actively avoid the news, many citing their mental health and concerns that they can’t do anything about the problems reported. Meanwhile advancements in artificial intelligence promise rapid changes to the way journalism is done. So, what’s the future of journalism?

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Emily Bell, director of the Tow Center for Digital Journalism at Columbia Journalism School

Benjamin Toff, assistant professor of journalism at the University of Minnesota, a research associate at the Reuters Institute and co-author of the book: ‘Avoiding the News: Reluctant Audiences for Journalism’

LaSharah S. Bunting, CEO and executive director of the Online News Association

Produced by Max Horberry and Paul Schuster

(Photo: Getty)

Journalists are losing their jobs and increasingly consumers are avoiding the news

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

In South Africa this year's election will be a defining one. 40 years since a post-Apartheid electorate voted in Nelson Mandela, the nation is dogged by corruption and voter apathy with less than half expected to turn out. So are South Africans seeking an alternative to democracy and what might that be?

Meanwhile in India there are some concerns the world's largest democracy is slipping into authoritarianism. Prime Minister Modi is a key player on the global stage with grand ambitions for India, but his premiership has been dogged by allegations of an anti-Muslim stance. So what does his continued popularity reveal about the state of democracy in a nation where over a billion people are eligible to vote in the general election?

In some Western nations too, there is a palpable dissatisfaction with democracy. In the US, former President Trump's refusal to accept the 2020 election result led to the deadly attack on Congress – a sign for current leader Joe Biden that democracy is under threat, not just abroad but at home too.

So as we enter a record-breaking year for elections, is democracy itself on the line?

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Ziyanda Stuurman, senior analyst for Africa at the Eurasia Group think-tank.

Debasish Roy Chowdhury is a journalist and co-author of the book 'To Kill A Democracy: India's Passage To Despotism'.

Lilliana Mason is associate professor of political science at Johns Hopkins University and author of ' Uncivil Agreement: How Politics Became Our Identity'.

Also featuring:

Professor Steven Levitzsky from Harvard University in the US and author of 'How Democracies Die

Ben Ansell, Professor of Comparative Democratic Institutions at Nuffield College, Oxford University

Photo: Pro-Trump protesters wave banners outside the Capitol, Washington, January 6, 2021

Credit: REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton

Produced by Pandita Lorenz and Max Horberry

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

From the US to the UK, South Africa to Mexico, a record number of people will head to the polls in 2024.

This week is crucial for the future of Ukraine. After promises of open-ended support, the US and the EU are now struggling to agree on new funding for the war effort. President Zelensky says Ukraine risks losing the war if new funding is not available.

So much so that President Zelensky is in Washington in an attempt to rescue a threatened US defence package to Kyiv worth billions of dollars. The aid has become embroiled in domestic, partisan politics.

Meanwhile in Europe, EU diplomats are locked in talks throughout the week in a bid to strike a deal on a financial package.

On the battleground, Ukraine's much-vaunted counter-offensive has stalled. Public support for Ukraine has declined sharply in the US since the invasion and a cost of living crisis is sweeping across Europe. The situation in the Middle East has only served to distract world leaders even more.

Meanwhile in Russia, President Putin appears to be biding time. The Russian economy is holding together despite sanctions and he's standing for re-election next year.

So why is Western support wavering? Is time running out for Ukraine? What is Putin's plan? And what might victory look like for either side?

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Samuel Charap, a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation in Washington DC

Iuliia Osmolovska, a former Ukrainian diplomat who heads Globsec, a think-tank in Kyiv

Gustav Gressel from the European Council on Foreign Relations in Berlin

Also featuring:

Sergey Markov, former advisor to President Putin

Matt Rosendale, US Republican Congressman

Photo: US President Joe Biden hosts Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Washington, USA - 12 Dec 2023 Credit: Photo by MICHAEL REYNOLDS/EPA-EFE

Produced by Pandita Lorenz and Ellen Otzen

As US and EU funding falters, is time running out for Ukraine to win the war with Russia?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

This week is crucial for the future of Ukraine. After promises of open-ended support, the US and the EU are now struggling to agree on new funding for the war effort. President Zelensky says Ukraine risks losing the war if new funding is not available.

So much so that President Zelensky is in Washington in an attempt to rescue a threatened US defence package to Kyiv worth billions of dollars. The aid has become embroiled in domestic, partisan politics.

Meanwhile in Europe, EU diplomats are locked in talks throughout the week in a bid to strike a deal on a financial package.

On the battleground, Ukraine's much-vaunted counter-offensive has stalled. Public support for Ukraine has declined sharply in the US since the invasion and a cost of living crisis is sweeping across Europe. The situation in the Middle East has only served to distract world leaders even more.

Meanwhile in Russia, President Putin appears to be biding time. The Russian economy is holding together despite sanctions and he's standing for re-election next year.

So why is Western support wavering? Is time running out for Ukraine? What is Putin's plan? And what might victory look like for either side?

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Samuel Charap, a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation in Washington DC

Iuliia Osmolovska, a former Ukrainian diplomat who heads Globsec, a think-tank in Kyiv

Gustav Gressel from the European Council on Foreign Relations in Berlin

Also featuring:

Sergey Markov, former advisor to President Putin

Matt Rosendale, US Republican Congressman

Photo: US President Joe Biden hosts Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Washington, USA - 12 Dec 2023 Credit: Photo by MICHAEL REYNOLDS/EPA-EFE

Produced by Pandita Lorenz and Ellen Otzen

As US and EU funding falters, is time running out for Ukraine to win the war with Russia?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Jeremy Goldkorn - Editorial Fellow at the Asia Society's ChinaFile website, founding editor-in-chief of The China Project and cofounder of the Sinica Podcast.

Lindsay P. Gorman - Head of Technology and Geopolitics Team at the transatlantic, non-partisan Alliance for Securing Democracy.

Louise Matsakis - A freelance journalist covering technology and China. She writes ‘You May Also Like', a newsletter about e-commerce and Chinese tech giants.

Image: TikTok app logo. Reuters/Dado Ruvic

US House passes bill that could ban TikTok nationwide

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

The US House of Representatives has passed a bill that could see TikTok effectively banned

Taiwan’s voters have chosen pro-sovereignty candidate William Lai as their next president, a result which has angered China. It means Mr Lai’s party has secured an unprecedented third consecutive presidential term at a time when the Taiwanese people are debating how best to deal with Beijing. China has claimed sovereignty over Taiwan since the end of the civil war in 1949, when the defeated Nationalist government fled to the island as the Communists under Mao Zedong swept to power. So, what do the election results reveal about how the Taiwanese people view themselves in relation to their much larger neighbour? And do they make a conflict between China, Taiwan and its allies more or less likely? Shaun Ley is joined by a panel of expert guests:

Amanda Hsiao - Senior Analyst with the International Crisis Group, based in Taiwan
Hsin-I Sydney Yueh - Associate Teaching Professor, Director of Online Education and Internships at the University of Missouri
Vickie Wang - Taiwanese writer, interpreter and stand-up comedian

Also in the programme:

Sean C.S. Hu - Owner of Taipei’s Double Square Art Gallery

Produced by Paul Schuster and Zak Brophy

Image: Honor guards lower down the flag of Taiwan in Liberty Square in Taipei, Taiwan, 16 January 2024. Credit: Ritchie B Tongo/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

What do Taiwan\u2019s election results tell us about its identity and future?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Amanda Hsiao - Senior Analyst with the International Crisis Group, based in Taiwan

Hsin-I Sydney Yueh - Associate Teaching Professor, Director of Online Education and Internships at the University of Missouri

Vickie Wang - Taiwanese writer, interpreter and stand-up comedian

Also in the programme:

Sean C.S. Hu - Owner of Taipei's Double Square Art Gallery

Produced by Paul Schuster and Zak Brophy

Image: Honor guards lower down the flag of Taiwan in Liberty Square in Taipei, Taiwan, 16 January 2024. Credit: Ritchie B Tongo/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

What do Taiwan's election results tell us about its identity and future?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Contrasting with the idea of the zero-hour working week, Indian software billionaire and Infosys founder NR Narayana Murthy - says that young people should be ready to work 70 hours a week to help the country's development.

Since the pandemic, many companies allow their employees to work from home. Others have moved to a four-day working week, citing benefits such as increased productivity and significant financial savings for employees on transport and childcare. But some employers insist the shorter working week doesn't work - saying employees ended up having more stressful workdays, and feeling exhausted once they reached their scheduled days off.

How many hours should a person work in a week? Is a world without work desirable? If AI will be capable of doing many jobs, should employees be fearing the future - or take advantage of these changes, and strive for new ways of working? What's the future of work?

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Andrew Palmer, who writes The Economist's Bartleby column, which explores management and the world of work

Brendan Burchell, professor in social sciences at the University of Cambridge. He's done a lot of work on the way labour markets affect individuals

Anat Lechner, clinical professor of management and organisations at New York University

Also featuring:

Jayati Ghosh, professor of economics at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst

Elliot Keck, Head of Campaigns at the Taxpayers' Alliance

Gary Conroy, CEO of Five Squirrels, a company in the skincare industry which operates on a four-day working week

Produced by Max Horberry and Ellen Otzen

(Photo: Getty)

From a 70-hour week to no work at all, two visions of work could shape the future

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Are some of the factors that secured Geert Wilders' win also what is helping other right-wing populists in Europe? In a European context, does right-wing populism differ from far-rights politics?

Shaun Ley is joined by: Catherine Fieschi, a comparative political analyst specialising in populism, far right and authoritarian politics and a Fellow at the Robert Schuman Centre at the European University Institute in Florence; Stanley Pignal, The Economist's Brussels bureau chief and writes their Charlemagne column on Europe; Sanne van Oosten, a political scientist at the University of Oxford, Centre on Migration, Policy and Society.

Producer: Max Horberry and Ellen Otzen

(Photo: Dutch far-right politician and leader of the PVV party Geert Wilders meets the press after the PVV won the most seats in the elections, The Hague, Netherlands, 24 Nov, 2023. Credit: Piroschka van de Wouw/Reuters)

A surprise win in the Netherlands comes as Europe's hard right parties are gaining power

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

A surprise electoral win for Geert Wilders in the Netherlands comes as Europe's hard right parties are gaining power.

Geert Wilders has been described as the Dutch Donald Trump. Earlier this month his far-right Freedom Party pulled off a surprise election victory in the Netherlands. Following Mr Wilder's win, we look at what is driving right-wing populism in Europe. Italy has a right-wing populist prime minister. In Hungary there is Viktor Orban, Prime Minister since 2010, with his particular brand of nationalist populism, and in Finland the far-right Finns party is now part of the governing coalition.

Are some of the factors that secured Geert Wilders' win also what is helping other right-wing populists in Europe? In a European context, does right-wing populism differ from far-rights politics?

Shaun Ley is joined by: Catherine Fieschi, a comparative political analyst specialising in populism, far right and authoritarian politics and a Fellow at the Robert Schuman Centre at the European University Institute in Florence; Stanley Pignal, The Economist's Brussels bureau chief and writes their Charlemagne column on Europe; Sanne van Oosten, a political scientist at the University of Oxford, Centre on Migration, Policy and Society.

Producer: Max Horberry and Ellen Otzen

(Photo: Dutch far-right politician and leader of the PVV party Geert Wilders meets the press after the PVV won the most seats in the elections, The Hague, Netherlands, 24 Nov, 2023. Credit: Piroschka van de Wouw/Reuters)

A surprise win in the Netherlands comes as Europe's hard right parties are gaining power

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

A surprise electoral win for Geert Wilders in the Netherlands comes as Europe's hard right parties are gaining power.

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Julia Azari, a professor of political science at Marquette University, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Julia Manchester, a reporter for The Hill

John Prideaux, US Editor for The Economist

Produced by Paul Schuster and Max Horberry

(Photo: A voter casts her ballot at a polling station on Election Day in Falls Church, Virginia, U.S., November 7, 2023. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)

On Monday Iowans begin the process of deciding who will contest the US election.

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Just last week the UN pointed to multiple indiscriminate attacks by both the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in densely-populated areas.

So who is keeping the war going and why? Is it a conflict that will be fought to exhaustion or is there any hope of a negotiated settlement? And does the appointment of a new US Special Envoy for Sudan this week suggest that the world is ready to stop ignoring Sudan?

Shaun Ley is joined by a panel of experts: Azza Aziz, a Sudanese anthropologist who was in Khartoum at the outbreak of the war and returned to London in January; Alex de Waal, executive director of the World Peace Foundation and a research professor at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University in Massachusetts; Kholood Khair, a Sudanese political analyst and the founding director of Confluence Advisory, a 'think-and-do' tank based in Khartoum. She left Sudan soon after the outbreak of the war and is now based in the UK.

(Photo: A Sudanese woman, who fled the conflict in Sudan's Darfur region, walks beside carts carrying her family belongings, 2 August, 2023. Credit: Zohra Bensemra/Reuters)

Nearly eight million people have fled their homes

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Nearly 8 million people have fled their homes - more than in any other current conflict.

Shaun Ley is joined by:

Aaron David Miller, Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Mirette Mabrouk , Senior Fellow and Director of the Egypt and the Horn of Africa program at the Middle East Institute

Sanam Vakil, Director of the Middle East and North Africa programme at Chatham House

Also featuring:

Dr Seyed Mohammed Marandi, professor of English literature and Orientalism at the University of Tehran

Producer: Max Horberry and Ellen Otzen

(Photo: An Israeli artillery unit fires during a military drill in the annexed Golan Heights, 02 Nov, 2023. Credit: Ayal Margolin/EPA)

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.

Shaun Ley is joined by Scott Niekum, associate professor and director of SCALAR, the Safe, Confident, and Aligned Learning & Robotics Lab in the College of Information and Computer Sciences at The University of Massachusetts, Amherst; Karen Hao, a journalist and data scientist who writes about Artificial Intelligence for the US magazine, The Atlantic; Prof Philip Torr, a specialist on AI at the University of Oxford and a fellow of both the UK's national academy of sciences, The Royal Society and the Royal Academy of Engineering.

Also in the programme: Dragoș Tudorache, a member of the European Parliament involved in crafting the EU's AI Act.

(Photo: People attend the launch event of the first commercial application of artificial intelligence for the mining industry in Jinan, Shandong province, China, 18 July 2023. Credit: Mark R Cristino / EPA-EFE/ REX/Shutterstock)

How do we protect our privacy and our democracies while still benefiting from AI?

Global experts and decision makers discuss, debate and analyse a key news story.