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PODCAST

The Debate

FRANCE 24 English

A live debate on the topic of the day, with four guests. From Monday to Thursday at 7:10pm Paris time.

news & politics

All Episodes

00:45:14

The demolition of Gaza City: Can Israel ignore...

The Debate ·

2025/09/16

First came October 7, 2023 and the bloodiest day of terror in Israel's history. Then came retribution. Since then, it has never stopped. Gaza is entering a new circle of hell with Israeli tanks entering the centre of its capital city and the apparent launch of a ground offensive. We ask why the spectacle is allowed to unfold. The consequences for Palestinians are all too obvious, but what about for Israelis? Does the flattening of Gaza kill off sympathy for a state founded in large part by survivors

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00:44:32

While Washington waivers: Can Europeans deter Russia...

The Debate ·

2025/09/15

It seems that summoning ambassadors for a scolding somehow won't be enough. After last week's unprecedented wave of Russian drones that landed in Poland, it's now Romania's turn to scramble fighter jets and call in the Kremlin's envoy. As Russia fills Ukraine's skies with ever-increasing unmanned devices, we asked why and whether Vladimir Putin is indeed testing frontline NATO states, who until now thought that the US had their backs. The US president can't bring himself to categorically condemn

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00:43:36

Damascus on the back foot: What next for Syria after...

The Debate ·

2025/07/17

The world couldn't believe it last December when Syria's Assad regime, after decades of iron-fisted rule, suddenly fell like a house of cards. The speed of that collapse exposed how the state had been hollowed out on the quiet. Eight months on, how weak does Syria remain? The government forces of Ahmed al-Sharaa are pulling out from the Druze-majority city of Sweida after bombardment from neighbouring Israel and pressure from a United States that's only recently offered Damascus a lifeline through

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00:44:17

To whom does Venice belong? Bezos wedding draws...

The Debate ·

2025/06/26

Where else but the city of merchants, one whose fortune was founded on global trade, to host the celebrity wedding of the digital age's king of ecommerce? In Venice, Jeff Bezos, the billionaire owner of online trading platform Amazon, is tying the knot with journalist-turned-TV personality Lauren Sanchez in a spectacle that's drawn both paparazzi and protesters. What does this spectacle out of a Fellini movie say about the age we live in? Organisers are tempering the extravagance with pledges of

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00:44:54

Alliance with "daddy" issues? NATO leaders flatter...

The Debate ·

2025/06/25

Allies can breathe a sigh of relief. The same Donald Trump who left the G-Seven Summit early showing up on time for the Nato summit in the Netherlands, an abridged summit to curry favor and keep his undivided attention. The U-S president played with members' nerves, entertaining suspense ove the United States’ commitment to Nato’s Article 5 though in the end reaffirming support for the Alliance's “all for one and one for all” clause in case of attack. After a victory lap over Iran, Trump all smiles

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00:45:45

What do Iranians want? Population caught between...

The Debate ·

2025/06/19

For citizens still reeling from the crackdown on the 2022 “Women, Life, Freedom” movement, the focus now is on hunkering down as best they can. Nearly 700 people have been killed in Iran since last Friday, according to the human rights group HRANA, and citizens are bracing for more violence in scenes reminiscent of the Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s. How do those who defied the regime just a couple of years ago feel about this moment – and about those abroad who are cheerleading for regime change? On

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00:41:05

South Korea's election: After Yoon's turmoil, can Lee...

The Debate ·

2025/06/03

Can South Korea turn the page on its most turbulent time since democracy was installed? An election held this Tuesday looks like a landslide victory for the Democratic Party of Lee Jae-myung. What is his agenda? Where will he take South Korea? Will he be able to bring stability to the East Asian economic powerhouse that was plunged into doubt and confusion last December with a declaration of martial law by soon-deposed leader Yoon Suk Yeol? Produced by Rebecca Gnignati, Elisa Amiri, Ilayda

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00:46:28

Poland's pro-Trump pivot: What next after narrow...

The Debate ·

2025/06/02

Why did an EU success story vote for a pro-Trump candidate? Karol Nawrocki has been narrowly elected Polish president, in part thanks to a first-round surge by candidates further to the right. Why has a nation that's a net recipient of EU funding, one that shares a border with Belarus and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, turned its back on Brussels? We ask if time's soon up for the swing of two years ago in favour of the reformist coalition led by centre-right Prime Minister Donald Tusk and draw

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00:45:37

Thought police? US scrutinises foreign student visas

The Debate ·

2025/05/28

The man who coined the term "soft power" recently died. It’s ironic that Joseph Nye taught at Harvard University, the institution that's in the eye of the storm of the Trump administration’s crackdown on foreign students. A court has now stopped the US government from banning foreign student enrolment at the country's most elite university, but more suspensions of federal funding are in the works. Now comes a broader move. The US State Department is pausing visa applications for the country's more

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00:41:37

AI goes to the movies: Does technology kill creativity?

The Debate ·

2025/05/15

Once a year, movie fans from near and far flock to the French Riviera resort of Cannes to catch a glimpse of their favourite celluloid stars: real stars, in the flesh. They've always seemed larger than life – particularly on a big screen –but now, in the age of virtual reality, what exactly is real? These days, what still resonates as authentic in the make-believe world of cinema? The Hollywood actors and screenwriters' strike of 2023 was in large part about technology encroaching on artistic

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00:30:40

Steve Witkoff in Paris: Who's Trump's Mr Fix It?

The Debate ·

2025/04/17

Steve Witkoff, Donald Trump's Mr Fix it on Gaza, Ukraine and now Iran, is in Paris alongside Marco Rubio. Sticklers for protocol would normally insist that the US Secretary of State is the bill topper of this diplomatic tour … but these aren't normal times. Does the 68-year-old former New York real estate mogul hold sway? And can he do better than career policymakers? When Witkoff picks up on Kremlin talking points, does it mean that Washington has turned on Ukraine for good? Who in Europe can keep

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00:43:31

What about the hostages? Netanyahu pushes back...

The Debate ·

2024/09/03

Are the gloves off in Israel? After the October 7th attack by Hamas, the nation put aside bitter differences.But after the killing of six Israeli hostages, cue the biggest protests since last year’s attempted judicial overhaul by Benjamin Netanyahu’s hard right government. Demonstrators accuse a prime minister of piling on the demands to extend a war that has become his ticket to staying in power. Not at all, insists Netanyahu. He is doubling down over his decision to now prioritize the occupation

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00:43:44

Radical turn? East Germans reject mainstream parties...

The Debate ·

2024/09/02

Thuringia may represent just two percent of Germany's population, but the eastern state is hardly an outlier. The far right finished first in Sunday's regional elections, while also surging in nearby Saxony. Admittedly, the AfD, whose lead candidate Björn Höcke was twice fined this year for using Nazi-era slogans at rallies, will not be in government. It is precisely with the Nazis in mind that Germany hard-baked moderation and compromise into its federal system. Still, how will these results impact

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00:13:55

Blossoming coalition? Japan at heart of US-led push...

The Debate ·

2024/04/11

Roll out the red carpet for Japan. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is being feted with a speech before a joint session of Congress and a White House state dinner. Key to the courtship is Tokyo's ramped-up role in policing the Pacific. Like the Germans in Europe, the Japanese have had to shed the post-war pacifism that's even embedded in their constitution. It’s with an eye to China, North Korea and Russia that they’ve drawn closer to South Korea and supported Ukraine. Enter another former World War II

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00:25:02

Building Fortress Europe? Migration pact divides EU...

The Debate ·

2024/04/10

It's not only in the US and UK that border protection is on the ballot. The European Parliament's vote on a migration pact was always going to be a nail-biter, especially two months out from EU elections. We ask about the close result and about burden sharing, this as the numbers of those crossing the Mediterranean hit their highest level since 2015. Is there too much or too little in this overhaul? What goes for migration policy goes for the EU as a whole: after all, protecting "Fortress Europe"

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00:20:15

The cost of climate inaction: Landmark ruling presses...

The Debate ·

2024/04/09

"To choose not to choose is still to act," as French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre once said. Judges at Europe's highest jurisdiction agree. Their non-binding ruling against Switzerland over its failure to formulate a concrete climate action plan resonates as scientists confirm that the planet is coming off the hottest month of March on record. We ask about the case, the two others thrown out on technicalities, and that pressing choice that governments must make between the urgent and the

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00:20:58

De-escalation or forever war? After Israel's drawdown...

The Debate ·

2024/04/08

After six months, are we seeing proof that Israel's longest war since the 1980s is winding down? Or is the weekend announcement of troops withdrawing from southern Gaza the calm before a whole new storm? Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu insists his forces will make a move for the southernmost city of Rafah, despite strong objections from the United States, which is now pressing for a ceasefire and a ramping-up of desperately needed humanitarian aid for Palestinian civilians.Last week's

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00:28:40

Rwanda, 30 years on: France to recognise failure to...

The Debate ·

2024/04/04

How to prevent a genocide? Rwanda is marking 30 years since the slaughter of an estimated 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus. During those 100 days of horror, a stunned international community watched from the sidelines. On that score, France's president is slated to recognise the international community's failure to prevent the 1994 genocide. What can the world do when it sees the red flags of hate turn to annihilation? How to prevent the dehumanisation that can lead to horror? Produced by

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00:22:05

Trump-proof plan for NATO? Alliance looks to take...

The Debate ·

2024/04/03

Originally, it was supposed to be a NATO foreign ministers' meeting to plan a birthday party. But at 75, the same alliance that just a few years ago wondered whether it had outlived its purpose, now has to instead figure out how to quickly take on more responsibility. Up until now, the United States led efforts to arm Ukraine. But the eventuality of a return of Donald Trump has members – including the current administration in Washington – preferring that NATO HQ safeguard that remit. We ask about

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00:25:36

How far could it escalate? Iran vows retaliation...

The Debate ·

2024/04/02

Israel is certainly taking on all comers. Monday's air strike on Damascus that killed three senior Iranian commanders is the most spectacular of its kind since Hamas's October 7 attacks. We ask about Tehran's response, whether it will try to draw in the United States, and – after months of cross-border rocket exchanges between Israel and Lebanon – about the risk of all-out war on a second front. Meanwhile, the nightmare continues for Gaza. Will the killing of seven aid workers and the beginnings of

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69 results

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