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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

00:43:18

Truce without talks: What room for diplomacy between...

The Debate ·

2026/04/23

How to mediate between Iran and the United States when one side wants revenge for the killing of its leader and the other's erratic messaging seems ratings-driven? Donald Trump's unilateral ceasefire declaration has brought neither side back to the bargaining table, what with more ships seized in the Strait of Hormuz and lockdown mode relaxed in Pakistan's capital for talks that may or may not resume. We ask about US demands that can change course inside the same presidential tweet, and an unclear

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00:42:08

World's worst energy crisis? Iran war sparks scramble...

The Debate ·

2026/04/22

Will the world have enough fuel to fill the tanks and fertilise the crops? The seizure of ships by Iran is adding to global jitters as the extension of a ceasefire offers zero visibility on prospects for the planet's biggest choke point for oil and gas. Nearly two months on, the Paris-based International Energy Agency is calling it the biggest-ever energy disruption in history. We ask about prices at the pump, cancelled flights and more broadly, if oil's not flowing through the Strait of Hormuz,

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00:43:20

What exit strategy? Trump, Iranians send mixed...

The Debate ·

2026/04/20

A container ship seized in the Gulf, a ceasefire deadline that's running out fast and plenty of bargaining table brinkmanship between the US and Iran. With the price of oil back on the rise, de-escalation would certainly offer relief to Donald Trump's constituents. So what's the plan of a US president who’s proved impulsive – at times threatening civilizational erasure, at others floating the idea of splitting the profits with Iran on a Strait of Hormuz toll for tankers? How to bargain when your

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00:43:10

Leo and 'the tyrants': Does new pope's defiant...

The Debate ·

2026/04/16

The new US-born pope is on his first-ever visit to Cameroon's restive English-speaking northwest, and he's not turning the other cheek. "Blessed are the peacemakers! But woe to those who manipulate religion and the very name of God for their own military, economic and political gain, dragging that which is sacred into darkness and filth," Pope Leo XIV declared on Thursday in Bamenda. Read morePope Leo blasts 'handful of tyrants' ravaging world during Cameroon visit The message was the same when he

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00:42:46

Will the Gulf ever be the same? Trump, Iran and the...

The Debate ·

2026/04/15

Iran is proving that missiles don't need to travel thousands of kilometres. Across the Gulf is all it takes to force the world's mightiest army to the bargaining table. Pressure on the choke point for one-fifth of the planet's oil and gas is exposing the vulnerability of Arabian Peninsula monarchies. They'd spent decades building reputations as reliable havens of stability fuelled by an endless supply of petrodollars. We track the price of crude, the latest movement of tankers through the Strait,

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00:43:48

What will it take? Israel-Lebanon talks open as...

The Debate ·

2026/04/14

Israeli and Lebanese envoys are appearing together on camera in the same room – that may well be a first. It's happening under the auspices of the US secretary of state in Washington. If you're rooting for peace, there's good news and bad news. The good news is that the Lebanese government's never been so vocal in calling on Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah to disarm and the US president has a real stake in reining in Israel if he wants his attempts to strike a deal with Tehran to bear fruit.

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00:43:57

End of an era: Why did Hungary vote out far-right's...

The Debate ·

2026/04/14

Eurosceptics may come and go, but there's only one Viktor Orban. It took 16 years and Sunday's record turnout in Hungary to vote out the seemingly unbeatable far-right leader who once boasted of building an illiberal state. Why did the far-right idol of MAGA world finally fall out of favour? And not just by a nose: "The Hungarian people didn't vote for a simple change of government, but for a complete change of regime," boasts Prime Minister-in-waiting Peter Magyar. How will the

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00:45:15

Who profits from the Iran war? Strait of Hormuz toll...

The Debate ·

2026/04/09

A most confusing Wednesday it was. In the space of six minutes, during a single press conference, the White House spokesperson first hailed the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, then called on Iran to reopen the world’s most oil-sensitive shipping lane. Five weeks of contradictory statements have bred wider uncertainty over the true contents of the ceasefire deal – and even who is party to it. Confusion moves markets, and in a war that has triggered the most severe energy crisis in decades, oil

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00:44:15

Can ceasefire hold? US-Iran truce tested before talks...

The Debate ·

2026/04/08

No apocalypse. Instead an eleventh hour ceasefire between Iran and the United States, one that is still being tested, two sides that are both claiming victory, and five and-a-half weeks of a war that may change the way the rest of the world looks at both Iran and the United States. Meanwhile, no ceasefire in Beirut where Israel's hit the capital with its hardest strikes yet across multiple densely populated areas. Dozens feared dead in Beirut. Will Washington tell Israel to stop its operation

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00:45:10

Europe's future on the ballot? Hungary's Orban in...

The Debate ·

2026/04/07

Is Europe’s future on the ballot in Hungary? In Budapest, the US vice president is actively stumping for far-right incumbent Viktor Orban who trails in the polls ahead of Sunday’s general election. European politicians sometimes campaign for likeminded peers from neighbouring nations, but in this case, it is the United States openly taking aim at the bloc using the same talking points as Vladimir Putin’s Russia. We talk about whether JD Vance’s support helps or hurts Orban in the homestretch of a

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00:43:11

No longer so mighty? Iran war tests US strength and...

The Debate ·

2026/04/02

Might is right… until it isn’t. 2026 began with US commandos seizing Venezuela’s president in a zero-casualty operation that put the rest of the world on notice. But now, Donald Trump’s first prime-time address in nearly five weeks of war is worrying markets rather than reassuring them. The US president is telling affected nations to buy more oil from him – and, if they are so concerned about energy security in the Strait of Hormuz, to go in themselves and sort it out. How should Gulf, European and

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00:45:15

When the oil runs dry: What next for globalization as...

The Debate ·

2026/04/01

Are we staring at globalization's biggest turning point since the end of the Cold War? With Asia feeling the pain of Donald Trump's war against Iran, with steadfast US allies like the Philippines forced to declare an energy emergency, there's the immediate chain reaction for the nations that manufacture a good part of the stuff we buy here in the West and the boomerang effect for the rest of the planet. Will they ever again see the United States in the same light? What with a president who favors

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00:44:54

Can Lebanon keep it together? Government faces...

The Debate ·

2026/03/31

The Lebanese have seen it all, from civil war to the 2019 protests demanding an end to revolving door politics, from the 2020 port of Beirut explosion that exposed the tragic consequences of nepotism to Israel’s 2024 operation to neutralize longtime foe Hezbollah. Now Israel’s ground forces are back to again take on Tehran-backed foe Hezbollah. Thus, Lebanon finds itself the second front of the month-long war launched against Iran. We’ll ask about a return to life during wartime, the 1-point-2

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00:45:51

Boots on the ground? Trump eyes Iran's oil hub of...

The Debate ·

2026/03/30

What could possibly go wrong? As Donald Trump repeats threats of a Venezuela-style seizing of Tehran's oil exports and as US assault troops get in position, the price of oil is blowing past $110 a barrel, as markets take it at face value that the Pentagon is planning to make a grab for Kharg Island – the hub for nearly 90 percent of Iranian crude exports. We ask about the pitfalls of sailing warships past the Strait of Hormuz for an invasion, the Islamic Republic's response, and how Gulf neighbours

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00:42:05

Trump's grounds for concern: Will the US risk lives...

The Debate ·

2026/03/19

The Middle East War is now in its 20th day, with a perceived split in US and Israeli strategy emerging. Donald Trump says Israel bombed Iran's gas field "without his knowledge". Then Trump, perhaps playing catch-up, threatened to "blow up" Iran's South Pars gas field if Iran strikes Qatar; a move that experts say would literally explode the region. There's also another issue simmering away: what to do with Iran's enriched uranium? Experts say this is the next big decision for Trump. Seizing Iran's

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00:42:32

Who gives the kill order? AI and the war in Iran

The Debate ·

2026/03/12

Warfare is always evolving, sometimes slowly: Napoleon’s armies travelled little differently from those of Julius Caesar. At other times, change comes faster than commanders can process, as the futile carnage of the First World War showed. The pace of change on the battlefield today? Fast – very fast. Introducing the first war brought to you by artificial intelligence. In the first ten days of a campaign that may well have been prepared in a hurry, the US and Israel pinpointed and targeted as many

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00:46:07

A world war? Iran war draws in more than regional rivals

The Debate ·

2026/03/11

One war can fuel another. After the United States and Israel launched an operation that began on Day One with the assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Donald Trump expressed surprise at Tehran’s decision to draw in Gulf oil producers and disrupt global supplies. From the ensuing energy crisis, lots of losers and one big winner, Russia – what with Washington now suggesting it may ease sanctions on its oil. The Kremlin’s war effort in Ukraine had been feeling the pinch but now – even at a discount,

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00:46:07

Trump's war: What's the endgame in Iran?

The Debate ·

2026/03/10

Why this war of Donald Trump’s choosing? As death and destruction widen in Iran and across the region, and as oil and gas markets take fright, the US president’s reasons for launching what his administration calls Operation Epic Fury continue to shift, as do the stated scale and duration. What remains consistent is the White House’s messaging, cranked out over social media by Gen-Z handlers who have taken Silicon Valley’s “move fast and break things” mantra and turned it into memes – some even

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00:45:11

Going for broke? Iran war spirals further after...

The Debate ·

2026/03/09

Second week of a war seen more than ever as a massive gamble by the US and Israel: strikes on oil installations in Tehran prompting retaliation across the Gulf. Also blown away are claims that disruptions to global energy security would be only a passing blip. As the price of crude shoots past 100 dollars a barrel, Tehran signals it’s staying the course, with Mojtaba Khamenei – the hardline son of the assassinated Supreme Leader – chosen to take the reins of an under-siege Islamic Republic that

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00:46:01

How vulnerable is the Gulf? Iran war escalation...

The Debate ·

2026/03/05

Who's paying for this war? First and foremost, the people of the Middle East, who are directly in harm's way. But who pays the financial cost if Iran continues to target the lifeline for the region's oil and gas? Maritime employers out of London are officially designating the Strait of Hormuz, the Gulf of Oman and the Persian and Arabian Gulf a "warlike operations area". We ask what that means and how much pain is to come. The United States is far less reliant on the region's crude than the last

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