Politics and International Relations Podcasts

Although the 2003 Iraq War was linked to the "War on Terror" the case for the war was presented, at least in the UK, within the terms of the established framework of international relations, with the UN at the centre. The aftermath of the war pushed the UK into an arena in which terrorist methods were regularly employed and it struggled to cope. The lecture will explore what this might mean for future British interventions.

Professor Alex Bellamy (University of Queensland) discusses new challenges for implementing Responsibility to Protect (R2P) principles in the current age. Bellamy, who is also Director of the Asia Pacific Centre for the Responsibility to Protect, outlines his view that R2P has gained normative acceptance throughout the international community at a much higher level that in previous decades. Significant progress has been achieved such as putting North Korean human rights on the table. With the rumbling year of politics in 2016, however, Bellamy finds that R2P protectors must be on alert. As far back as 2012, long before the time of Trump, he suggests that R2P was challenged by an increased prevalence of atrocity crimes, displaced persons and extremist activities concurrent with a decline in international capacity to handle these issues. Countries were failing to practically implement R2P despite their implicit agreement with its promises. The dearth of leadership from the United States under the next administration, he says, will only make things more challenging. Despite these concerns though, Bellamy remains optimistic about the future of R2P and proposes six ideas to protect R2P itself. These range from searching out leadership beyond the West and striving for more complete implementation of existing policies.

Author Angela Cummine gives a brief overview of her book on Sovereign Wealth Funds: what they are, and who actually owns them. Dr Cummine then explains some of the political disagreements that can occur when the state sees itself as the primary owner of sovereign wealth, rather than the agent of the people, who she argues, are the principal-owners of these assets. It is citizens therefore, who must enjoy meaningful control over and benefit from these assets. If sovereign funds are managed and used in a way that respects this vision of them as community funds holding citizens' wealth, they could be used for a whole range of laudable public policy goals, for example, to plug budget deficits and to tackle economic inequality. You can learn more about the book by clicking here: http://citizenswealth.net

Geir Lundestad, a Norwegian historian, who until 2014 served as the director of the Norwegian Nobel Institute, delivered the 2016 Cyril Foster Lecture, 'Twenty-five Years in the Search for Peace: Reflections on the Nobel Peace Prize', on 3rd March 2016. The Cyril Foster Lecture is the University's principal annual guest lecture in the field of International Relations. It has attracted a most distinguished group of lecturers. The Cyril Foster bequest specifies that the lectures are to deal with the ‘elimination of war and the better understanding of the nations of the world.’ Geir Lundestad was the director of the Norwegian Nobel Institute and the secretary of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, which awards the Nobel Peace Prize, from 1990 to 2014. In 2015 Geir published a frank account of his 25 Nobel years. The lecture is based on Geir's book, and in particular, discusses what the Nobel Peace Prize can realistically achieve.

Professor Emerita J. Ann Tickner (University of Southern California) delivers a lecture on the role of feminist theory in the field of international relations. Tickner's talk covers the genesis of the feminist approach to IR, which she herself pioneered some 25 years ago. She details how the feminist approach is methodologically distinct as most of IR relies on state-centric approaches while feminist theory is inherently sociological. One of Tickner's examples is the investigation of how gendered reponses to 9/11 caused a return to hypermasculinity in policy. Finally, Tickner makes a case for the continued development of the field as a way to continue legitimizing the explanations of world politics that scholars produce. The lecture follows from the 2014 publication of Tickner's book, A Feminist Voyage through International Relations, by the Oxford University Press as part of their series Oxford Studies in Gender and International Relations. More information about the book can be found here: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/a-feminist-voyage-through-international-relations-9780199951260?cc=gb&lang=en&.

Professor John J. Mearsheimer (University of Chicago) presents the conclusions of his latest article published in 'Foreign Affairs' on offshore balancing. Mearsheimer sets out his case against the practice of liberal hegemony by the US, making the bold statement that Presidents Bush and Obama have acted very similarly when it comes to intervention abroad. He examines the track record of US involvement in places like Iraq, Libya, Egypt and Syria before moving on to explain why 'offshore balancing' would be a superior strategy for the US government to adopt. Mearsheimer argues that by managing conflict from afar, the US can halt the buck passing that is so common in international relations today, free up resources to be spent domestically and curb the spread of terrorism. His argument is tempered by a caveat for conflict with potential world hegemons: while he believes that the US can retreat from Europe and the Gulf, onshore involvement will be increasingly required in China as it poses a strategic threat to the US that will not be tempered independently by Russia. Discussant and DPhil student Ulrike Franke (DPIR) whose research examines drone warfare questions Mearsheimer on his conceptualization of liberal hegemony, the role of NATO and the Obama administration's legacy. She also raises the relevance of public opinion for his theory's implications. 'The Case for Offshore Balancing' is coauthored with Stephen M. Walt (Harvard Kennedy School) and may be found here: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/2016-06-13/case-offshore-balancing.

St Antony's College hosts the 2015 Nobel Prize winner in Literature, Svetlana Alexievich, for a discussion of her the Soviet soul and her current and former projects. Conducted in Russian and translated by Oxford DPhil student Margarita Vaysman, the discussion captures key insights into Alexievich's writing process, often described as a new genre between journalism and literature for her extensive usage of interviews to craft a global voice. Alexievich explains the pique of her interest for storytelling from a conversation with her grandmother and the methods she uses to approach her subjects as neighbors who form part of the same history of the Soviet experience. Her profound musings on truth, suffering and evil versus good provide a broader context for her works Second-Hand Time (newly translated to English this year) and Chernobyl Prayer as well as many others.

Professor Timothy Garton Ash discusses the premise of his new book titled 'Free Speech: Ten Principles for a Connected World.' Introduced by Warden Margaret MacMillan of St. Antony's, Professor Timothy Garton Ash presents his newest book, 'Free Speech: Ten Principles for a Connected World.' The work is based on the premises that the conditions of free speech are changing given movements of mass migration and the wide dissemination of the Internet, both of which make us all neighbors, both literally and figuratively. Professor Garton Ash organizes his book around what he argues are the ten main dimensions of free speech: lifeblood, violence, knowledge, journalism, diversity, religion, privacy, secrecy, icebergs and courage. Crucially, Professor Garton Ash argues that we must be able to agree on how we disagree and that issues of civility ought not to be mediated by the law. University scholars Adam Roberts (Balliol), Patricia Thornton (Merton) and Faisal Devji (St. Antony's) address the new publication with contextual information on the cases of India and China as well as a debate on the existence of universal values. Associated with the book is a website curated by Professor Garton Ash and graduate students of the University featuring information and contributions on the ten principles of free speech in 13 different languages including Turkish, Japanese, Urdu and Arabic. The website is available here: http://freespeechdebate.com.

President of the Stefan Batory Foundation Aleksander Smolar discusses nationalism and internationalism in contemporary Poland

Félix Krawatzek and Andy Eggers discuss methods to analyse large bodies of text in more systematic and reliable ways.

Félix Krawatzek and Andy Eggers discuss methods to analyse large bodies of text in more systematic and reliable ways.

Félix Krawatzek and Andy Eggers discuss methods to analyse large bodies of text in more systematic and reliable ways.

Félix Krawatzek and Andy Eggers discuss methods to analyse large bodies of text in more systematic and reliable ways.

Professor Todd Hall discussed his recently published book, 'Emotional Diplomacy: Official Emotion on the International Stage.'

Samuel Greene talks about outbreak of protests in Russia and political events after the annexation of Crimea

The seminar series addresses some of the acute problems affecting Europe, as seen especially from a South Eastern European perspective, and combine the thematic (refugee, economic and political crises) with the country specific approaches.

The speaker analyses the concept of 'sovereignty' as presented in the Objectives Resolution of Pakistan presented to the Constituent Assembly in March 1949

In 2013, the UK Parliament legalized same-sex marriage in England and Wales. Dr Scot Peterson discusses whether this is the first time there has been a divergence in the general understanding of marriage and the definition enshrined in law.

Sheila A. Smith, a senior fellow for Japan studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, discusses her new book, "Intimate Rivals: Japanese Domestic Politics and a Rising China."

Professor Sarah Chartock discusses ethnodevelopment policies, illustrated with the cases of Peru, Ecuador and Guatemala.

Dr Slaughter discusses workplace policies and the value we place on care of children and other loved ones.

Dr Micah Muscolino discusses his new book entitled "The Ecology of War in China: Henan Province, the Yellow River, and Beyond, 1938–1950." This book explores the interplay between war and environment in Henan Province, a hotly contested frontline territory that endured massive environmental destruction and human disruption during the conflict between China and Japan during World War II. In a desperate attempt to block Japan's military advance, Chinese Nationalist armies under Chiang Kai-shek broke the Yellow River's dikes in Henan in June 1938, resulting in devastating floods that persisted until after the war's end. Greater catastrophe struck Henan in 1942–3, when famine took some two million lives and displaced millions more. Focusing on these war-induced disasters and their aftermath, this book conceptualizes the ecology of war in terms of energy flows through and between militaries, societies, and environments. Ultimately, Micah Muscolino argues that efforts to procure and exploit nature's energy in various forms shaped the choices of generals, the fates of communities, and the trajectory of environmental change in North China

Modern European History Professor Paul Betts reflects on the legacy of World War II and its relevance to conflicts and crises today.

How Europe's external border controls that limit and monitor the entry of non-Europeans relates to the reception of migrants in the European Union

Both undergraduate degrees in Politics, Philosophy and Economics, as well as History and Politics have a gender discrepancy in finals results. This workshop addresses the reasons for these differences. This workshop organised by the Oxford Q-Step Centre* (OQC) brings together key speakers from Oxford and beyond to discuss gender differences in examinations in the context of courses that include quantitative methods.

Both undergraduate degrees in Politics, Philosophy and Economics, as well as History and Politics have a gender discrepancy in finals results. This workshop addresses the reasons for these differences. This workshop organised by the Oxford Q-Step Centre (OQC) brings together key speakers from Oxford and beyond to discuss gender differences in examinations in the context of courses that include quantitative methods.

Discussion of 'Making Sovereign Finance and Human Rights Work,' a recently-published collection that introduces novel legal theories and analyses the links between sovereign debt and human rights from a variety of perspectives. Poor public resource management and the global financial crisis curbing fundamental fiscal space, millions thrown into poverty, and authoritarian regimes running successful criminal campaigns with the help of financial assistance are all phenomena that raise fundamental questions around finance and human rights. They also highlight the urgent need for more systematic and robust legal and economic thinking about sovereign finance and human rights. The recently published edited collection Making Sovereign Finance and Human Rights Work aims to contribute to filling this gap by introducing novel legal theories and analyses of the links between sovereign debt and human rights from a variety of perspectives. The chapters include studies of financial complicity, UN sanctions, ethics, transitional justice, criminal law, insolvency proceedings, millennium development goals, global financial architecture, corporations, extraterritoriality, state of necessity, sovereign wealth and hedge funds, project financing, state responsibility, international financial institutions, the right to development, UN initiatives, litigation, as well as case studies from Africa, Asia and Latin America. These chapters are then theorised by the editors in an introductory chapter. This roundtable brings together a number of contributors to the volume to discuss their chapters and engage in an interdisciplinary critique of their work with Oxford scholars from the fields of law, politics, economics and philosophy.

This panel includes two talks: 'Hume on Authority' and 'Political Philosophy and Autobiography.' This conference was held in honour of David Miller's contribution to political philosophy.

This panel includes two talks: 'Miller on Human Rights' and 'The Right to Drive People Away.' This conference was held to honour David Miller's contribution to political philosophy.

This panel includes two talks: 'Self-Determination, Revolution, and Intervention' and 'Multiculturalism, National Identity, and Failed Citizenship.' This conference was held to honour David Miller's contribution to political philosophy.

David Miller describes his experience in the field of political philosophy at a conference held in his honour.

This panel includes two talks: 'Religious Freedom, Public Space and Democratic Self-Determination' and 'Fertility, Mortality, and National Responsibility.' This conference was held to honour David Miller's contribution to political philosophy.

This panel includes two talks: 'Miller's Crossing' and 'On Self-Determination.' This conference was held to honour David Miller's contribution to political philosophy.

Using social media to analyse public opinion toward ISIS in the Arab community

The UK has a crucial role to play in the debate over how the EU should be reformed. This session engages in a conversation as to why and how.

Part of a seminar on the relationship between religion and politics in Egypt. Session 4 included two talks: 'Who is Sovereign, God or the People? Challenges Facing the Civil State' - Dr Malise Ruthven 'The End of Islamism?' - Dr Hazem Kandil

Part of a seminar on the relationship between religion and politics in Egypt. Session 3 included two talks: 'Regional Consequences of the Suppression of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt' - Dr Ewan Stein 'Islamist-Military Relations and the Crisis of Secular Democracy in Egypt' - Dr Omar Ashour

Part of a seminar on the relationship between religion and politics in Egypt. Session 2 included two talks: 'Religiosity, Activism and Mobilization' - Dr Gamal Soltan 'The Modern Egyptian State Between the "Sacred" and the "Civil"' - Dr Samir Morcos

Part of a seminar on the relationship between religion and politics in Egypt. Session 1 included two talks: 'Religion and Politics in Egyptian Public Opinion, 2011-2015' - Stephen Whitefield, Dr Mazen Hassan 'Islam, Public Opinion, and the Public Role of Islam in Egypt' - Dr Hisham Hellyer

His Grace Bishop Angaelos delivered this address as part of a seminar on the relationship between religion and politics in Egypt. Before the Arab spring, there was a long held view that democracy cannot really flourish in a predominantly Muslim society. The first three years of the post-Arab spring Egypt provide an excellent opportunity to unearth many of the arguments and counter-argument surrounding this – and other – views. But, we asked, in what ways does religion, and religiosity, impact on how citizens make choices about parties, about how parties engage with representative institutions, and with the law. The seminar was organised into four panels to explore these issues and was designed to bring together a a broad range of thinkers and perspectives to engage in evidence-based and reasoned dialogue. Professor Stephen Whitefield (Fellow in Politics), Dr Elisabeth Kendall (Senior Research Fellow in Arabic and Islamic Studies) and Dr Mazen Hassan (Cairo University) co-convened this seminar.

Much work has been done to pluralize and relativize the study of IR, but where does this agenda go next? There is now a far more sophisticated understanding of the contested character of global order and of ‘non-western’ perspectives. IR scholars now question a mainstream that is often unaware of the deeply western-centric character of its assumed historical narratives, its allegedly universal theoretical categories, and its political preoccupations. Convened by Professor Andrew Hurrell, this workshop brings together leading specialists to debate the state of the art on How to Study Global IR.

Much work has been done to pluralize and relativize the study of IR, but where does this agenda go next? There is now a far more sophisticated understanding of the contested character of global order and of ‘non-western’ perspectives. IR scholars now question a mainstream that is often unaware of the deeply western-centric character of its assumed historical narratives, its allegedly universal theoretical categories, and its political preoccupations. Convened by Professor Andrew Hurrell, this workshop brings together leading specialists to debate the state of the art on How to Study Global IR.

Much work has been done to pluralize and relativize the study of IR, but where does this agenda go next? There is now a far more sophisticated understanding of the contested character of global order and of ‘non-western’ perspectives. IR scholars now question a mainstream that is often unaware of the deeply western-centric character of its assumed historical narratives, its allegedly universal theoretical categories, and its political preoccupations. Convened by Professor Andrew Hurrell, this workshop brings together leading specialists to debate the state of the art on How to Study Global IR.

Much work has been done to pluralize and relativize the study of IR, but where does this agenda go next? There is now a far more sophisticated understanding of the contested character of global order and of ‘non-western’ perspectives. IR scholars now question a mainstream that is often unaware of the deeply western-centric character of its assumed historical narratives, its allegedly universal theoretical categories, and its political preoccupations. Convened by Professor Andrew Hurrell, this workshop brings together leading specialists to debate the state of the art on How to Study Global IR.

Roundtable discussion with JanaLee Cherneski, Nathaniel Adam Tobias Coleman, Elizabeth Frazer, Humeira Iqtidar. Part of the Oxford Graduate Political Theory Conference, a conference that aims to explore themes and topics in political theory that resonate with contemporary political events and phenomena.

Delivered by Nathaniel Adam Tobias Coleman (University College London) Part of the Oxford Graduate Political Theory Conference, a conference that aims to explore themes and topics in political theory that resonate with contemporary political events and phenomena.

Part of the Oxford Graduate Political Theory Conference, a conference that aims to explore themes and topics in political theory that resonate with contemporary political events and phenomena. Chair: Dan Butt. Discussant: Dana Mills. Rachelle Bascara (Birkbeck) ‘Marginalizing Theories of Oppression’ Johann Lieb (Exeter) ‘Defending Rancière against McNay: Literarity, Subalternity, and Emancipation beyond Intellectual Patronising’

Part of the Oxford Graduate Political Theory Conference, a conference that aims to explore themes and topics in political theory that resonate with contemporary political events and phenomena. Chair: JanaLee Cherneski. Discussant: Joanna Rozpedowski. Johanna Maj Schmidt (Goldsmiths) ‘Worlding Heritage – The Politics of Objects’ Thomas Coughlan (Cambridge) ‘Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the Other Property’

Part of the Oxford Graduate Political Theory Conference, a conference that aims to explore themes and topics in political theory that resonate with contemporary political events and phenomena. Chair: Ashwini Vasanthakumar. Discussant: Puneet Dhaliwal. Anna-Sophie Schönfelder (Osnabrück) ‘Karl Marx and the Idea of Retaliation Emanating from the Margins of the Capitalist World’ Simon Tabet (Nanterre) ‘The French Reception of Postcolonial Studies: a Process of Marginalization / Radicalization in Political Theory’

A panel discussion on Dr Scilla Elworthy's new book 'Pioneering the Possible: Awakened Leadership for a World That Works' and the Oxford launch of 'Rising Women Rising World.' On the panel: Professor Richard Caplan (Professor of International Relations, University of Oxford) Dr Rama Mani (Senior Research Associate of the University of Oxford’s Centre for International Studies, received the 2013 Peter Becker Peace Prize for 25 years peace activism and scholarship, co-founder of Rising Women Rising World) Dr Scilla Elworthy (three times Nobel Peace Prize nominee, winner of the Niwano Peace Prize, founder of the Oxford Research Group and Peace Direct, co-founder of Rising Women Rising World) http://www.ted.com/talks/scilla_elworthy_fighting_with_non_violence?language=en Chair: Professor Kalypso Nicolaidis (Professor of International Relations and Director of the Centre for International Studies, University of Oxford)

Federico Fabbrini (Faculty of Law, University of Copenhagen) delivered a talk on his book manuscript 'Economic Governance in Europe: Comparative Paradoxes and Constitutional Challenges.' The Euro-crisis and the legal and institutional responses to it have had important constitutional implications on the architecture of the European Union (EU). The purpose of the talk – which is based on the ongoing book project – is to offer a broad picture of how relations of power in the EU have changed, considering three different dimension: 1) the vertical relations of power between the member states and the EU institutions: 2) the relations of power between the political branches and the courts; and 3) the horizontal relations of power between the EU member states themselves. Federico Fabbrini will argue that, in the aftermath of the Euro-crisis, power has been shifting along each of these axes in paradoxical ways. In particular, as a brief comparison with the United States helps to reveal, the EU is nowadays characterized by a high degree of centralization in budgetary affairs, an unprecedented level of judicialization of economic questions and a growing imbalance between the member states in the governance of fiscal matters. As the talk will suggest, however, each of these dynamics is a cause for concern – as it calls into question important constitutional values for the EU, such as the autonomy of the member states in taking decision about taxing and spending, the preeminence of the political process in settling economic matters, and the balance between state power and state equality. To address these issues, therefore, the talk will suggest possible options for future legal and institutional developments in the EU, and discuss the challenges that accompany any further step towards a deeper Economic and Monetary Union.