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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
Who really runs the White House?
As commander in chief of the US and so-called leader of the free world, President Trump has achieved surprisingly little during his time in office. However, the country is still running and decisions are being made – but by whom? Andrew Mueller is joined by former US Senate aide Tom…
Gaza’s Future
After a decade of isolation from the West Bank, not to mention military bombardment from Israel, Hamas has finally reached an agreement with the Palestinian Authorities. But is it enough to bring The Strip in from the cold – and do the other big regional players even want that to…
Space: soft power’s final frontier
Is taking the giant leap into space still a muscle-flexing exercise for competing powers or has it become the blueprint for international co-operation? As Australia gears up to start its own space programme, we ask: what are countries looking for up there and is it worth it? Andrew Mueller talks…
Will Puerto Rico ever be the 51st state?
Puerto Rico’s recent referendum on statehood saw 97 per cent vote in favour of joining the US. But it wasn’t legally binding and the devastation of Hurricane Maria has left the island with more pressing issues – and a newfound resentment for the country they voted to join. Will Puerto…
Kurdistan – the end of Iraq?
This week more than 90 per cent of Iraqi Kurds voted in favour of seceding from Iraq – a predictable result that has nonetheless wrongfooted everybody. Can Iraq be kept together? Does it matter if it isn’t? And could Kurdistan’s time have come at last? Andrew Mueller is joined by…
What’s next for Europe’s broken democracies?
When Hungary and Poland joined the EU in 2004 hopes were high for the newest members. But as Europe itself goes through a troubled period they have started to lean away from the liberalism they once craved during Soviet rule. Is this a sign of things to come or will…
Strained relations
Australia’s non-compulsory postal plebiscite on equal marriage is well underway – but is it necessary, why has it taken so long and why is Australia making this so complicated? We speak to Tim Wilson MP, Josh Taylor, Christine Forster and veteran rights campaigner Peter Tatchell.
The Rohingyas – and the silence of Aung San Suu Kyi
As the violence against the Rohingya continues to intensify in western Myanmar and Aung San Suu Kyi remains defiantly silent, what is really happening inside the country and when is it time for the international community to step in?
How to heal a nation
In countries ravaged by war, once the killing stops, the white flags are raised and gun-barrels are lowered, what hope is there that former enemies can once again co-exist as citizens of a single nation? We ask veteran BBC correspondent Martin Bell, Remembering Srebreneca’s Amra Mujkanovic, former special envoy to…
Democracies and the monuments of their past
During our summer series we’ve looked at art, architecture and personality cults of autocracies. But what happens when dictatorships end? In our final episode we turn to democracies and ask how countries deal with the symbols of their troubling past. From the confederate statues in the US to former Soviet…
