The Debate

00:43:10

Ethiopia back to civil war? Horn of Africa fears...

The Debate ·

2026/09/30

After contagion in the Arabian Peninsula, should the entire Horn of Africa fear a domino effect? Just as Donald Trump’s decision to invade Iran drew the Saudis back to Yemen: did threats over the Strait of Bab el-Mandeb light the fuse in Ethiopia, where last week, unresolved issues between the government and its Tigray region erupted? Could a potential return to civil war draw in regional rivals? Ethiopia didn’t need pressure over the Red Sea to ignite. The breakdown of dialogue after the 2022

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00:43:06

Leo the moderate? Pope in France defends EU values

The Debate ·

2026/09/28

There's a new Pope in town and he's got very different ideas on what France's far-right calls the defense of Christian civilization. Leo the 14th concluding his trip to France in the eastern city of Metz, hometown of a founding father of present-day European federalism Maurice Schumann. There, the head of the world's largest organized religion proudly stated fact, that Europe’s roots are Christian, dating back to the Romans, all the while hailing an EU model that transcends 'us versus them'

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00:44:29

The future of AI in their hands? Trump-Xi summit...

The Debate ·

2026/09/24

It's their AI world and we're just living in it. If that's the feeling of those who suffer from AI anxiety, it may worsen watching the Chinese president's first state visit to Washington in nine years. If there's one issue that the planet's biggest superpowers agree on, it's that now is not the time for global regulation of artificial intelligence. As they sit down to a White House state dinner just hours after news that OpenAI had hacked the Australian government, we ask who will call to task the

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00:36:01

Trump's world? Leaders navigate consequences of US...

The Debate ·

2026/09/22

A year ago, Donald Trump went to the rostrum of the United Nations General Assembly - and after taxing an axe to US aid and development funding, read the world the riot act. One Iran war later, the US president sticking to script with a speech that borrowed much of the language of last year. With citizens on five continents now feeling the pain at the pump, we'll ask what it will take to tame a global energy crisis whose potential spiral mirrors the contagion of hostilities from the Strait of Hormuz

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00:43:13

First New York, now Berlin: Why the left turn for...

The Debate ·

2026/09/22

There's the inroads of the far right, but also the broader desire for change. Introducing Berlin's answer to Zohran Mamdani: Elif Eralp, who led the far-left Die Linke party's historic win in Sunday's municipal elections in Berlin. We ask if the 45-year-old daughter of Turkish political exiles can push through her promises of rent freezes and nationalisation of private real estate companies. Just like in New York last year, affordable housing was a hot-button issue. It didn't hurt that her party ran

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00:45:51

The Ceuta effect: how far will Europe's anti-migrant...

The Debate ·

2026/09/17

As the United States threatens Europe with more tariffs and eyes Greenland, Russia tests the continent’s resolve over Ukraine and the planet overheats, where do citizens feel the biggest threat is coming from? In her Wednesday state of the Union speech, the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen went big on manning the borders, suggesting new tools to better deal with migration. This comes against in a context of Ceuta where over two days in July, tens of thousands of mostly Moroccans

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00:42:05

The 28th state? Carney's Canada draws closer to...

The Debate ·

2026/09/16

With a US president who talks of making Canada the 51st state, its leader in Europe where it’s not quite the EU's 28th state on offer, but something the president of the European Commission is calling ‘associate membership’. We’ll ask what that means, how it differs from the close status afforded to the likes of Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and the UK which Carney’s also visiting ahead of his own Strasbourg speech Thursday before the European Parliament. What are Canada’s options? What are Europe’s

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00:44:12

First Hormuz, now the Red Sea? Oil spikes as Saudis...

The Debate ·

2026/09/15

First, there was Donald Trump’s surprise decision to strike Iran. Then, came the quagmire of a war without an exit strategy. Now, six months later, with access to the Gulf all but shut… global shipping holding its breath over the other end of the Arabian Peninsula. Saudi Arabia drawn back into Yemen as Iran-backed Houthis threaten access to the Red Sea. And whereras Washington jumped at Israel’s request to take out the Supreme Leader, Donald Trump’s reluctant to go all in for his other great ally

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00:45:27

Where is the kill switch? AI doomsday warnings...

The Debate ·

2026/09/14

Talk about doomsday scrolling. In the past week, our timelines have been alight with dark predictions of our imminent demise, including the one by a Silicon Valley engineer who puts a number on the chances of artificial intelligence wiping out humanity. Better than 10-percent. Triggering the wave of panic, the recent breach of the machine-learning programmers' site Hugging Face by AI machines who banded together to keep their nefarious deeds secret from their human overlords. Can machines actually

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00:43:31

Will football ever be the same? The legacy of a...

The Debate ·

2026/07/16

After a stunning performance in Argentina’s come-from-behind win against England, 39-year-old Lionel Messi secured the defending World Cup champions their second final in a row – much to the delight of organizers. Taking note of Messi’s star power, the US bent the rules to include him on the Inter Miami side in the Club World Cup last year. In this edition we ask: what legacy will there be for the biggest World Cup ever, with its three countries, 64 teams and record-smashing ticket pricing? What

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00:43:34

French chicken chain row gets political

The Debate ·

2026/07/15

In this edition, we take a look at the French love for food – in this case, chain rotisserie chicken and the current squabble over it that has turned political. When the Master Poulet fast-food chicken chain opened up a branch in the Parisian suburb of Saint-Ouen, the Socialist Mayor Karim Bouamranne saw red, as the heat lamps and the smell of rotisserie until 2am did not gel with his vision for a modernized city centre. Meanwhile, hard-left mayor of neighbouring Saint-Denis, Bally Bagayoko savoured

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00:19:22

War, talks, repeat: How to break the cycle between US...

The Debate ·

2026/07/14

Who needs nuclear weapons when you have the Strait of Hormuz? While ordinary Iranians are far worse off than on February 28th – when the US and Israel launched a war that killed the Supreme Leader on day one – the Islamic Republic has since shown it has massive leverage in the war and is betting that Donald Trump’s threats of invasion are empty. Iran's leadership can now paint US president Donald Trump as the villain after he threatened a 20 percent toll on commercial vessels passing through the

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00:26:50

Willing to pay: Europe faces the bill for backing...

The Debate ·

2026/07/13

Forget last week's Nato summit, where Donald Trump put the alliance through another rollercoaster. It's Bastille Day in Paris, with the “Coalition of the willing” – Nato minus the United States – gathering for a more measured summit on the eve of the traditional military parade down the Champs-Élysées, where aircraft from Germany, Ukraine, the UK, Sweden and Greece will join the flypast. Beyond the pageantry and the photo opportunities, however, lies the hard reality of doing more without

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00:43:20

Not built for the heat: How do cities adapt to record...

The Debate ·

2026/07/09

It's not even Bastille Day yet, and France is already in the grip of its third heatwave of the season. Hospitals are under strain, wildfires are spreading, riverbeds are running dry, work and study are being disrupted—and there's even a shortage of ice. Many of you reacted strongly to our recent discussion on whether air conditioning is the answer. We'll briefly revisit that debate, but also look at the bigger picture: why is France still so unprepared for extreme heat? We'll ask why new

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00:43:09

Star-spangled blowup? A divided United States...

The Debate ·

2026/07/02

The world’s longest-running democracy is celebrating its 250th anniversary. It is a milestone for a United States that still seems like a new world to many Europeans. Since 1789, the US has been governed under the same constitution while in France, there have been five republics, three monarchies and three dictatorships – including the Nazi occupation. In this edition, we ask: what is the significance of this Fourth of July? What does this celebration really mean? Is it about 1776 and the birth of

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00:44:48

Iran after Khamenei: What direction following supreme...

The Debate ·

2026/07/01

Some days they talk. Some days they fight. Iran and the United States have settled into a pattern since the truce signed last month. This Wednesday in Doha, both sides are present in indirect negotiations. Whatever comes of that, the attention is now shifting to Tehran, where the Islamic Republic is preparing for Saturday's kickoff of four days of state funeral proceedings for slain supreme leader Ali Khamenei. Tehran can boast of a growing list of foreign dignitaries – a show of strength for a

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00:44:05

Crimea back in play? Russia feels pain of Ukraine...

The Debate ·

2026/06/30

A couple of weeks back, we asked if the tide was turning in Ukraine. The short answer: a little, but it's hard to cut through the fog of war. Now, we're beginning to wonder if Crimea could be back in play. Kyiv's new line of longer-range missiles and drones are wreaking havoc on fuel and power supplies. And while Russia continues to inch forward in other frontline flashpoints, the peninsula occupied in 2014 by Vladimir Putin's little green men has never looked so vulnerable. A Ukrainian offensive

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00:43:37

What aftermath for Venezuela? Earthquake relief...

The Debate ·

2026/06/29

We are in awe of Venezuela’s first responders and all the brave citizens still pulling survivors from under the rubble of some 770 buildings that collapsed in last Wednesday’s double earthquakes. Is the sudden collapsing of so many structures – many built during the boom years of high oil prices – a tipping point for a nation under sanctions that has been dogged by decades of eroding services and infrastructure? Delcy Rodriguez, Venezuelan interim president of a regime in survival mode, was booed

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00:42:50

Divorce, Italian style: Is Meloni-Trump row bringing...

The Debate ·

2026/06/25

Has Trump whispering run its course? Ask the now departing British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who famously brought that letter of invitation from the king to the Oval Office, or Hungary’s ousted leader Viktor Orban. And how about the very public breakup with the only European leader invited to Donald Trump's second inauguration last year? Beyond the spat over whether Italy's Giorgia Meloni begged the US president for a selfie at last week's G7 summit, there's a growing divide between Rome and

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00:44:03

Albania's 'Flamingo Revolution': Will protests stop...

The Debate ·

2026/06/24

Can citizens of Albania – population 2.4 million – push back against their own government and the Trump family? Albanians are accusing the US president’s son-in-law and his wife of capitalizing on their connections to build a luxury resort on protected coastline along the Adriatic Sea. Launching what activists have dubbed the Flamingo Revolution of 2026, the leaderless movement is trying to stop the couple’s bid to build a $4 billion luxury resort on the land – purchased by Qatari contacts of the

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