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
US election special: Polling
Polls are not always accurate and in the US they are more regular and more detailed than everywhere else. But can polling actually shape a campaign, rather than merely reflect it? In this special…
How worried should we be about the global economy?
The global economy is in trouble again: Europe is stagnant, China is slowing down and we still haven’t really recovered from 2008. Monocle’s Steve Bloomfield is joined by Tom Keene, the editor at large…
Germany and the refugees
In her end-of-year message German chancellor Angela Merkel said “thank you” to those who had welcomed the large numbers of refugees to the country over the previous months. However, that same evening a string…
Spain, what next?
Who governs Spain? Elections in December were inconclusive: the old parties lost votes, the new ones won some and no-one came out on top. Spain’s divide will not be easy to fix. Monocle’s Steve…
Should Schengen be saved?
For more than three decades Europe has been enjoying the end of internal borders between nations. But weaker border controls in the newest frontier countries and the influx of refugees has made the Schengen…
Iran vs Saudi Arabia
If there was any doubt that the proxy war between Iran and Saudi Arabia is one of the greatest threats to peace in the Middle East, the events of the past few days have…
2016 in global affairs
What are the biggest events to look forward to in 2016? Monocle’s Steve Bloomfield is joined by guests Isabel Hilton, Quentin Peel and Oscar Guardiola-Rivera to discuss the year ahead in current affairs.
Affairs highlights of 2015
Monocle’s Steve Bloomfield is joined by guests Oscar Guardiola-Rivera, Isabel Hilton and Quentin Peel for a review of the past year in affairs.
The battle over Zwarte Piet
Like a number of nations, the Netherlands has its own version of Father Christmas – in its case, Sinterklaas. But Sinterklaas has a little helper not found anywhere else: Zwarte Piet, or Black Pete.…
Interests vs values
Richard Murphy, former US ambassador to Saudi Arabia and Syria and John Everard, former UK ambassador to Uruguay, North Korea and Belarus, discuss what is more important: to promote a nation’s interests or a…
