The Foreign Desk
Monocle’s global-affairs show with Andrew Mueller. Expert guests, in-depth analysis, and sharp commentary on major geopolitical issues.
Latest Episodes
Explainer 473: Cambodia, Thailand and phone-call warfare
Andrew Mueller explains the leaked phone call scandalising Thailand in its ongoing border dispute with Cambodia.
The view of Europe from Globsec Forum 2025
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.
Explainer 472: The furious funeral row over Zambia’s former president
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.
‘The Foreign Desk’ in Odesa: the international ripple effects of war in Ukraine
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.
Explainer 471: Who gets to be an Italian citizen?
(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…
Odesa, the Black Sea, the front line and Ukraine’s future
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.
Explainer 470: The on-again, off-again US-Iran nuclear talks
The latest round of nuclear talks between the US and Iran, why Trump is now eager after rejecting the previous deal and why Iran has fewer cards to play than in the Obama years.
Are journalists safe?
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?
Explainer 469: Who are India’s Maoists?
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).
Why does Russia still have influence in eastern Europe?
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?
