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 149: The Kuril Islands dispute: another pawn in Putin’s political game?
Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe was in Moscow this week to discuss an island dispute that arose in the aftermath of the Second World War. But after meeting 25 times, what real progress will be made this time around?
Yemen’s civil war: is the end in sight?
It is nearly four years since the start of Yemen’s civil war, which has turned into one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. It is also a complex conflict that seems to have reached a military stalemate. But is there an end in sight? Andrew Mueller is joined by Iona…
Explainer 148: Can Emmanuel Macron reason with the yellow-vest protesters?
As France’s president Emmanuel Macron sets off on a countrywide tour of debates with protesters, Andrew Mueller asks if even the yellow vests themselves know what they want.
Flags: whose is best?
We wave them at sporting events, we paint them on our faces at national celebrations, we fly them from our tanks when we go to war. To some they are merely a useful way to distinguish between countries; to others they’re a symbol worth dying for. Why are they taken…
Explainer 147: What will House Democrats do with their newfound power?
After the so-called blue wave in November’s midterm elections, Democrats now control the House of Representatives. But will they be able to hold President Trump and his administration to account or will the new, progressive Congressional legislators rub the old order in the Democratic party up the wrong way?
Conspiracy theories: from obscurity to mainstream
Once traded among small pockets of people on society’s fringes, conspiracy theories (and those who believe in them) have become a powerful political force. How have they infected the mainstream?
2019… if we must
It seems that every year we look back and say, ‘Could it get any worse than that?’ But there has to be a limit… doesn’t there? Andrew Mueller is joined by Parag Khanna, Tom Nichols and Amelia Hadfield to find out what we can look forward to – or brace…
The world in 2018
Andrew Mueller leafs through ‘The Foreign Desk’ archives to tell the story of another turbulent year.
Explainer 146: Will the campaign for a people’s vote on Brexit succeed?
With 100 days until the UK is set to leave the EU, campaigners are resorting to a variety of tactics to ensure the British public have the final say on the withdrawal agreement. Stephanie Sy-Quia asks if they will be successful and speaks to those leading the campaign.
Russia and the Middle East
Russia’s increasing presence is being felt across the Middle East. Not just in Syria, where it has been fighting alongside the Assad regime for almost three years, but also with business, arms and oil deals and numerous diplomatic trips to and from Moscow. Why is Putin so keen to fill…
