Monocle 24: The Foreign Desk

Jair Bolsonaro was placed under house arrest after breaking pre-trial rules this week as he faces charges for attempting to stage a coup. But why is Trump throwing his support behind Brazil’s former president?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

International pressure mounts on Israel to end its war in Gaza, which has been dubbed a “catastrophe of epic proportions” by the UN. Plus: we examine the prospect of a Palestinian state.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, militants attached to Islamic State attacked a church in Komanda, killing at least 43 people. Why is the jihadist group keen to establish itself in the Democratic Republic of the Congo?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cameroon’s 92 year-old president Paul Biya seeks re-election to extend his 43-year tenure. We investigate the long and often violent conflict in his country. Is Anglo-Franco reconciliation possible? And is anyone paying attention?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andrew Mueller examines the fatal clashes between Druze and Bedouin Syrians. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Lesotho MP is facing charges after accusing the country’s monarch of signing over land to its neighbour, South Africa. Andrew Mueller explains the history and prospects of this decidedly niche territorial dispute. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From drones to radios, the war in Ukraine has rapidly accelerated technical development. In this fast-evolving landscape, what does the future of warfare hold and will humans have a role on the battlefield?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Recent Filipino elections were, arguably, a political episode of family feud. We examine the creation and durability of political dynasties. Plus: a banned would-be Thai leader explains how to run against a prime minister.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Russia has become the first country to recognise the Taliban as Afghanistan’s government. Andrew Mueller explains why. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As last year’s rapid descent of Syria’s president Bashar al-Assad attests, when a dictator falls, they fall fast. But what are the conditions under which that fall occurs? And how can they be sparked?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andrew Mueller explains the relocation ballot being offered to Tuvaluans by Australia and what’s in it for the host nation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Despite Trump’s assertions, the state of play between Israel and Iran remains unclear. We’re joined by Arash Azizi, Tara Kangarlou and Tom Nichols to consider the possible consequences of the past 12 days.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andrew Mueller explains the leaked phone call scandalising Thailand in its ongoing border dispute with Cambodia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Reporting from the Globsec Forum in Prague, we hear from guests including the host country’s foreign minister and Georgia’s president to discern how their countries are adapting to today’s security, military and political threats.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andrew Mueller explains how the rivalry between the late and former president, Edgar Lungu, and the current president, Hakainde Hichilema, is going well beyond the grave. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Reporting from the Ukrainian port city of Odesa, Andrew Mueller talks to leaders – domestic and international – about why Ukraine’s struggle for survival matters around the globe.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

(Some) Italians headed to the polls this week to decide who gets to be one of them. Andrew Mueller explains what’s at the heart of this debate and why apathy might have won the day.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andrew Mueller reports from the Black Sea Security Forum, asking why Odesa matters beyond Ukraine’s borders and how Ukrainians have managed to keep fighting more than three years into Russia’s brutal full-scale invasion.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andrew Mueller unpacks the latest round of nuclear talks between the US and Iran, asks why Trump is now eager after rejecting the previous deal and why Iran has fewer cards to play than in the Obama years.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At least 124 journalists and media workers were killed in 2024, about two-thirds of whom were Palestinian. Why is reporting becoming more dangerous and what can we do to protect journalists?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Indian security forces killed 27 rebels this week, including a top Maoist leader. This week, Andrew Mueller explains the nearly half-century long conflict between the state and the Communist Party of India (Maoist). See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While eyes are fixed on Ukraine, Putin’s influence continues to spread across eastern Europe, with many countries seeing a rise in far-right parties with Soviet-era sympathies. But why is this a winning policy?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After a humiliating general election defeat, Australia’s National Party has bid farewell to its coalition partners of more than 60 years. But what is behind this seemingly self-defeating manoeuvre? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After 40 years of war with Turkey, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) lay down their arms. So, where does that leave hopes for a sovereign Kurdish state? Or ambitions for a more democratic Turkey?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

President Trump is currently fielding accusations of corruption after being offered a $400m (€356m) jet by the Qatari royal family. While the US grapples with the ethics, we explain what’s in it for Qatar.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

To what extent can the centre-left’s landslide victories in Australia and Canada be attributed to Trump? And will the opposite be true in upcoming elections in Eastern Europe?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the eligible cardinals assemble at the Vatican, Andrew Mueller explains the expected and unexpected goings on during a papal conclave. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Trump’s first 100 days have been busy. But what has he actually achieved? And what can we expect from the next 1,360 days? We are joined by experts to assess five policy areas. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The fraught history of India and Pakistan’s seemingly perpetual fight over Kashmir. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the change of the past 12 months, we ask experts: what does Turkey want in the Eastern Mediterranean? Is Cyprus actually solvable? And do we understand how the Middle East is being reshaped?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ecuadorian officials have placed the country on high alert, claiming imminent terrorist attacks and presidential assassination attempts. There is, however, very little evidence of these dangers. This week, Andrew Mueller explains whether the threats in Ecuador are real, invented, politicised or all the above.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In fewer than 100 days in power, Donald Trump has upended his country’s historic alliance with Europe, told the continent that it can no longer rely on security guarantees from the US and launched a trade war that threatens the global economy. Reporting from the Delphi Economic Forum, we spoke with attendees with experience at the Pentagon, Nato, the US Army and more about whether the sun is setting on the transatlantic relationship.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nepo-corruption or a politically motivated smear? Andrew Mueller explains why Bangladesh has issued a warrant for the arrest of UK MP Tulip Siddiq. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the days before this year’s edition of the Delphi Economic Forum, Donald Trump launched, and then only partially retreated from, a global trade war in which the EU was a target. Reporting from Delphi, Andrew speaks with Greece prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on what it’s like to lead an EU and Nato country in this moment. Plus: former Italian prime minister and EU commissioner for the economy Paolo Gentiloni on how Europe should respond and Meghan Hays, former special assistant to Joe Biden, on how Democrats need to reshape their opposition if they want to be the party of transatlanticism. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Andrew Mueller explains why what could have been a minor diplomatic dispute has sparked a massive feud between Mali and Algeria. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the ceasefire in Gaza falls apart, Tahani Mustafa, Nimrod Goren and Faysal Itani join ‘The Foreign Desk’ to weigh possible paths forward. Is Netanyahu even interested in peace? How will Lebanon fare? And as Trump, the Arab League and the EU push for their own ends, what will become of Gaza?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week Marine Le Pen was convicted of embezzlement and banned from seeking public office for five years. Andrew Mueller explains why the far right cares deeply about law and order – until its own is in the dock. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hundreds of thousands of protestors have poured onto Turkey’s streets after president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his authorities arrested Istanbul mayor and presidential candidate, Ekrem İmamoğlu. Since then, thousands more have been arrested, detained and, in the case of some foreign journalists, deported. So, what prompted the move? And, after 22 years in charge, could Erdoğan’s latest power grab prove a step too far? We hear from experts on the ground.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the US government scrambles to explain why the editor in chief of ‘The Atlantic’ was added to a group chat discussing war plans, Andrew Mueller considers just how serious a security breach this is.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The unloading of Bashar al-Assad in December was a hopeful moment for Syria. The installation of his successor, jihadist commander Ahmed al-Sharaa, was a more nervous one. We discuss the mood among civilians with journalist Zaina Erhaim and Monocle’s Hannah Lucinda Smith, following the latter’s trip to Damascus in February. We also hear Slovenia’s foreign affairs minister, Tanja Fajon, who has met Syria’s interim president, and consider the implications for the country’s neighbours with Faysal Itani, the senior director of Middle East programs at the New Lines Institute.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Following Rwanda’s expulsion of Belgium’s diplomats this week, Andrew Mueller explains the European nation’s troubled history of involvement in Rwanda and the DRC.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

‘The Foreign Desk’ speaks to leaders from Nato’s Baltic members about the vexing, existential questions they face: what happens if Russia strikes one of them? Is Nato’s Article 5 the unassailable security that it used to be? Is it worthwhile to keep telling Western Europe “we told you so”?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.