Chatham House - Undercurrents

In this week's episode, Mariana is joined by Hameed Hakimi from the Asia-Pacific Programme to discuss the implications of the US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan. They consider, among other things, the strength of Afghan governance structures, the prospects for the Taliban, and the complexity of responding to widespread population movement in the region.  Then Amrit speaks to Debashish Roy Chowdhury and John Keane about the state of Indian democracy under PM Narendra Modi. Their latest book, To Kill A Democracy, describes India's daily struggles for democratic survival, and explains how lived social injustices and unfreedoms rob elections of their meaning, while at the same time feeding the decadence and iron-fisted rule of its governing institutions. Read the World Today article: Afghanistan: America pulls out the dagger Credits: Speakers: Hameed Hakimi, Debashish Roy Chowdhury, John Keane Hosts: Amrit Swali, Mariana Vieira Editor: Jamie Reed Recorded and produced by Chatham House.

In the wake of the storming of Capitol Hill on 6 January 2021, social media platforms took steps to remove former President Donald Trump from their websites for infringing community standards. This step was welcomed by many, but also raised serious questions about the power of social media companies to limit free speech and censor elected officials. The suspension of President Trump from Facebook was referred to the Oversight Board, an independent body of experts set up to scrutinise the platform's content moderation decisions.  In this episode, Ben speaks to Thomas Hughes, Director of the Oversight Board Administration, and Dr Kate Jones from Chatham House's International Law programme. They discuss the outcome of the Oversight Board's inquiry into the Trump suspension, and the wider implications for content moderation on social media.  Then Lara is joined by Hans Kundnani from the Europe Programme at Chatham House, to assess the political outlook in Germany and reflect on the legacy of Chancellor Angela Mer

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused governments across the world to re-imagine their systems for engaging with citizens. Many have turned to digital tools to find new ways of tracking the spread of the virus, and to deliver public services during national lockdowns. In this episode of Undercurrents, Ben is joined by Kyriakos Pierrakakis, the Minister of Digital Governance for the Hellenic Republic (Greece). They discuss the e-governance tools Greece is pioneering under the administration of Prime Minister Mitsokakis, and the challenges involved with rolling out digital systems to the public.  Then, Mariana is joined by Dr Kate Ferguson, Co-Executive Director of the charity Protection Approaches. They discuss Ferguson's new book, Architectures of Violence, which explores state involvement in violent mass atrocities, from Yugoslavia to Syria.  Read the book: Architectures of Violence: The Command Structures of Modern Mass Atrocities Credits: Speakers: Kate Ferguson, Kyriakos Pierrakakis Hosts: Ben Horton, Mariana

In this episode, Undercurrents has teamed up with Saferworld's Warpod to discuss security forces in Nigeria and the role played by young people in trying to bring about change. The episode is broken into two halves. Abigail Watson and Delina Goxho are first joined by Tarela Ike from Teesside University and Odeh Friday from Accountability Lab. They discuss the problems with responses to Boko Haram in the North East of the country and the recent EndSars movement.  Then Amrit Swali speaks to Mariam Haruna, a member of Chatham House’s Common Futures Conversations, and Tolu Oni, a member of Chatham House’s Panel of Young Advisers, about their experiences of the EndSARS movement in 2020, the role of social media in the protests and how to move towards sustainable change in policing structures.  The episode can also be listened to on the Saferworld website. Please note the views and opinions expressed during this podcast are those of the contributors featured. They are not the views or opinions of Saferworld or Cha

This week Lara Hollmann and Mariana Vieira bring you two fascinating interviews with recent contributors to Chatham House's publications, International Affairs and The World Today.  First, Lara speaks to Dr Sophie Harman from Queen Mary University of London about her research into the gender dynamics of the COVID-19 pandemic. Sophie argues that for too many policymakers, gendered roles are complacently seen as a solution to the social effects of the pandemic, with women expected to shoulder the additional burdens of domestic work and childcare during national lockdowns.  Then Mariana is joined by Dr Daniel Strieff to discuss the trajectory of the climate politics in the United States. They cover the early signs from the Biden administration as well as the domestic forces influencing foreign policy in this area.  Read the International Affairs article: Threat not solution: gender and global health security and COVID-19  Read The World Today article: America must heal itself first Credits: Speakers: Sophie Har

Over the course of five episodes, all published this week, John Nilsson-Wright, the Korea Foundation Fellow in the Asia-Pacific Programme at Chatham House explores the strategic relations of Korea, asking how the country is seeking to protect its interests in an increasingly contested Pacific region. In this, the final episode, John is joined by Eui-Hae Cecilia Chung, Deputy Director-General of the ASEAN & Southeast Asian Affairs Bureau, in the Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs. They discuss how the Republic of Korea is positioning itself within the key organizations and alliances of the region, and what the Korean government’s priorities are in an increasingly contested international context. Credits:  Speaker: Eui-Hae Cecilia Chung Hosts: John Nilsson-Wright Editor: Jamie Reed Producer: Ben Horton Recorded and produced by Chatham House

Over the course of five episodes, all published this week, John Nilsson-Wright, the Korea Foundation Fellow in the Asia-Pacific Programme at Chatham House explores the strategic relations of Korea, asking how the country is seeking to protect its interests in an increasingly contested Pacific region. In this, the fourth episode, John is joined by Nathalie Tocci, Director of Italy’s Istituto Affari Internazionali. They discuss the European perspective on the politics of the Korean peninsula, identifying opportunities for deeper engagement between the Republic of Korea and the European Union. Credits:  Speaker: Nathalie Tocci Hosts: John Nilsson-Wright Editor: Jamie Reed Producer: Ben Horton Recorded and produced by Chatham House

Over the course of five episodes, all published this week, John Nilsson-Wright, the Korea Foundation Fellow in the Asia-Pacific Programme at Chatham House explores the strategic relations of Korea, asking how the country is seeking to protect its interests in an increasingly contested Pacific region. In this, the third episode, John is joined again by Jennifer Lind to interview Nobukatsu Kanehara, a senior adviser to The Asia Group and board member of The National Bureau of Asian Research. They discuss the Republic of Korea’s complex relations with its neighbour and sometime rival Japan, and how the two countries can develop cooperation on shared challenges such as North Korea.  Credits:  Speaker: Nobukatsu Kanehara Hosts: John Nilsson-Wright, Jennifer Lind Editor: Jamie Reed Producer: Ben Horton Recorded and produced by Chatham House

Over the course of five episodes, all published this week, John Nilsson-Wright, the Korea Foundation Fellow in the Asia-Pacific Programme at Chatham House explores the strategic relations of Korea, asking how the country is seeking to protect its interests in an increasingly contested Pacific region. In this episode, John is joined by Wi Sunglac, a retired career diplomat with several decades experience of Korean foreign affairs, including posts in Washington D.C. and Moscow. They discuss the threats facing South Korean interests in northeast Asia, and how the current administration is projecting its stance through key alliances. Credits:  Speaker: Wi Sunglac Hosts: John Nilsson-Wright, Jennifer Lind Editor: Jamie Reed Producer: Ben Horton Recorded and produced by Chatham House

Welcome to Korea at the crossroads, a new mini-series on the Undercurrents podcast feed.  Over the course of five episodes, all published this week, John Nilsson-Wright, the Korea Foundation Fellow in the Asia-Pacific Programme at Chatham House will explore the strategic relations of Korea, asking how the country is seeking to protect its interests in an increasingly contested Pacific region. In this opening episode, John is joined by Jennifer Lind from the US & Americas Programme to discuss the strategic outlook on the Korean peninsula and the wider region. They explore the key questions which the rest of the series will attempt to answer.  Credits: Host: John Nilsson-Wright Speaker: Jennifer Lind Editor: Jamie Reed Producer: Ben Horton Recorded and produced by Chatham House

Despite a rapidly mounting domestic agenda, President Biden has already set up an ambitious foreign policy programme, from taking the United States back into the Paris Agreement to announcing the withdrawal troops from Afghanistan. To explore what we’ve learnt from the first three months of US foreign policy under President Biden, Ben is joined by Leslie Vinjamuri. Visit the Chatham House microsite: America's Global Role Credits: Speaker: Leslie Vinjamuri Host: Ben Horton Editor: Jamie Reed Recorded and produced by Chatham House

This week the Undercurrents team dive into two critical issues for the global economy. Amrit speaks to Chris Sabatini from the US & Americas programme about his latest briefing on how governments and economic institutions can protect informal workers in the post-pandemic gig economy. Then Ben is joined by Yu Jie from the Asia-Pacific Programme, who explains the key developments and implications arising from China's 14th five-year plan, which was published in March 2021. Read the briefing: Developing social insurance schemes for informal and 'gig' workers Read The World Today article: Beijing sets new course Credits: Speakers: Yu Jie, Chris Sabatini Hosts: Ben Horton, Amrit Swali Editor: Ben Horton Recorded and produced by Chatham House

The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed much about how politicians, media and the wider public understand science. Ben is joined by Angela Saini to explore how science literacy can be improved. They also discuss how faulty science has contributed to the culture of structural racism revealed by the Black Lives Matter movement.  Then Mariana speaks to Kiran Nazish from the Coalition for Women in Journalism about the experiences of women journalists on the frontlines of conflicts and upheaval. They discuss what measures are needed to support women in a profession which so often puts their rights and physical safety at risk.   Credits: Speakers: Kiran Nazish, Angela Saini Hosts: Ben Horton, Mariana Vieira Editor: Jamie Reed Recorded and produced by Chatham House

A week after the UK government published its Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy, Ben is joined by two Chatham House experts to assess what we have learnt about the future of UK foreign policy. Richard Whitman from the Europe Programme explains the thinking behind the 'tilt' towards to the Indo-Pacific region, the key allies and relationships the UK will need to foster, and the role that development spending will play in realizing this articulation of Global Britain. Then Patricia Lewis from the International Security Programme provides an insight into the defence aspects of review, with particular emphasis on the shift in UK nuclear policy and the role that science and technology policy will play in building strategic resilience at home and abroad.  Read the Expert Comments: UK’s Vision Is Confident, but Success Is a Long Way Off Global Britain Lays out Its Stall, but EU Missing in Action UK and France Should Collaborate on Indo-Pacific Security Credits: Speakers: Patri

In the week the UK government published its Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy, Ben explores the recent history of UK foreign policy with Philip Stephens, the Chief Political Commentator for the Financial Times. Stephens' latest book, Britain Alone, traces the UK's pursuit of a global role after the fall of the British Empire.   Imperial legacies are also the subject of this week's second interview. Lara Hollmann is joined by two of her Global Health Programme colleagues, Dr Ngozi Erondu and Dr Mishal Khan, to discuss efforts to decolonise the institutions and practices of global health.  Find the book: Britain Alone: The Path from Suez to Brexit Read the article: Silenced Voices in Global Health

A new collection of essays explores the role of time in military strategy. War Time: Temporality and the Decline of Western Military Power asks why, in an age of relative military dominance, the United States and its allies have become unable to successfully conclude conflicts. The book is the latest in the Chatham House Insights series, which is published by Brookings Institution Press.  In this episode Ben is joined by the editors of War Time, Sten Rynning, Olivier Schmitt and Amelie Theussen, to discuss the influence of time on the political, strategic and normative aspects of military action. Find the book: War Time: Temporality and the Decline of Western Military Power Credits: Speakers: Sten Rynning, Olivier Schmitt, Amelie Theussen Host: Ben Horton Editor: Jamie Reed Recorded and produced by Chatham House

This week, Undercurrents takes a deep dive into relations between North Korea and its neighbours. Dr John Nilsson-Wright from the Asia-Pacific Programme at Chatham House interviews Mr Thae Yongho, a North Korean-born politician and member of South Korea's National Assembly. After serving as North Korea's Deputy Ambassador to the UK, Mr Thae defected from Kim Jong-Un's regime in 2016. In this discussion he shares his perspective on the domestic situation in North Korea, as well as how South Korea and the United States should be approaching relations with Kim Jong-Un.  Then Amrit Swali is joined by Laura Dunkley from the Research Partnerships team to discuss a new toolkit developed by Chatham House, BASIC and the Centre for Feminist Foreign Policy which sets out ways to mainstream gender in think tank research and events.  Read the publication:  Gender, Think Tanks and International Affairs: A Toolkit Credits: Speakers: Laura Dunkley, John Nilsson-Wright, Thae Yongho Hosts: Ben Horton, Amrit Swali Editor: Jami

This week, Ben is joined by Claudia Sadoff, Managing Director for Research Delivery and Impact, to discuss the relationship between food systems, climate change and security. Claudia was speaking ahead of the launch of a new campaign from CGIAR and the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Transforming Agricultural Innovation for Climate, Nature and People calls for half of public investments in agricultural innovation to focus on innovations that provide new solutions across the entire spectrum of our food and agricultural industries to support the UN Global Goals that related to food, climate and the environment. Then Mariana Vieira speaks to David Veevers, a historian at Queen Mary, University of London, about his recent article on the mis-remembering of British imperial history. They discuss how empire has shaped modern British society, and the troubling signs that the UK government may attempt to define the 'right' interpretation of the nation's history.  Find out more: Transforming Agricultu

This week Undercurrents is collaborating with the Asia Matters podcast to bring you two episodes on recent events in Southeast Asia.  In this episode, Dr Champa Patel, Director of the Asia-Pacific programme at Chatham House, and Tin Htar Swe, the BBC’s former Burmese editor, provide their reaction to the ongoing coup in Myanmar. This episode was first published on 8 February 2021, and events on the ground since may have developed beyond those mentioned in this conversation.  Read the Expert Comment: Myanmar's Long Road to Democracy Remains on Hold Credits: Speakers: Champa Patel, Tin Htar Swe Host: Andrew Peaple Introduction: Ben Horton Recorded and produced by the Asia Matters podcast.

As countries across the world begin to roll out vaccine programmes to counter the COVID-19 pandemic, questions are emerging over how to ensure that competition for supply does not derail the global response. In this week's Undercurrents, Amrit Swali speaks to Rob Yates about the looming threat of vaccine nationalism and what can be done to realize more equitable distribution.  Next, Ben learns about the legal regimes that govern how militaries behave in the 'greyzone' between war and peace, with Major Juliet Skingsley. They cover how militaries respond to threats such as cyber and economic warfare, and how the national security establishment can adapt to an evolving battlespace.  Read the Expert Comment:  Countering Threats Below the Threshold of War Read the Expert Comment: Coronavirus Vaccine: Available For All, or When it's Your Turn? Watch the Chatham House Event: The Future of Global Health – The Rt Hon Matt Hancock MP Credits: Speakers: Juliet Skingsley, Rob Yates Hosts: Ben Horton, Amrit Swali Edit