Originally published 15 March 2023. The recent annual meetings of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and the National People’s Congress (NPC) - the ‘Two Sessions’ - have already confirmed the national budget, high-level personnel appointments, and noted China's foreign and security outlook. Newly appointed Foreign Minister Qin Gang used tough language when discussing the US, while President Xi accused the West – led by the US – of seeking China's containment. Amid growing str...
Mar 15, 2023•37 min
Following the announcement of the ‘Windsor Framework’ between the UK and Brussels over Northern Ireland’s trading arrangements - ending the most bitter Brexit dispute - there is a palpable sense that the UK may have turned a corner in its relations with the EU. With the UK taking a leading role in support of Ukraine and in more broadly countering Russia , the country also seems to have to have reasserted itself as one of Europe’s leading powers. At home, the weakening of the Scottish Nationalist...
Mar 08, 2023•47 min•Season 1Ep. 45
As we approach the one-year mark of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Global Security Briefing looks at the effects of the war, the potential risks for escalation, and what to expect in the future. A year after Russia’s full-scale invasion began, the Ukrainian armed forces and population, with strong backing from a coalition of allies, have managed to blunt the attack. Russia has, however, begun to reorganise and learn from its mistakes. Host Neil Melvin sits down with Hanna Shelest, Director of Sec...
Feb 22, 2023•44 min•Season 1Ep. 44
Originally published 15 February 2022. The current year is set to be a significant one for India, as it takes on both the G20 and Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) presidencies – two landmark moments for the Modi government ahead of the highly anticipated general elections next year. Host Veerle Nouwens sits down with Garima Mohan, Senior Fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, to discuss just what the Indian government hopes to achieve through these two significant positi...
Feb 15, 2023•27 min
With growing uncertainty about the regional power balance in Nagorno-Karabakh, we analyse the concerns that another conflict could erupt. For nearly 30 years, the confrontation over landlocked Nagorno-Karabakh persisted through numerous rounds of negotiations and a massive regional arms build-up between Azerbaijan and Armenia. In 2020, Azerbaijan launched an offensive using its modernised armed forces, overwhelming the Armenian defences and reclaiming the occupied territories as well as key part...
Feb 08, 2023•50 min
After decades of peace, the Antarctic is emerging as a zone for future geopolitical competition. While recent years have seen a growing international focus on the Arctic, the Earth’s southernmost region – governed by the 1959 Antarctic Treaty – has appeared divorced from wider polar tensions. However, in the last decade, China has expanded its presence and, along with Russia, has emerged as a disruptor of the existing system of Antarctic governance. This episode of Global Security Briefing exami...
Jan 25, 2023•34 min•Season 1Ep. 42
To welcome in the new year, the International Security Studies team at RUSI reviews the biggest stories from 2022 and what to look out for in 2023. In the second instalment of the two-part seasonal special, host Neil Melvin is joined by Tobias Borck, Carlos Solar and Simon Rynn to discuss key developments in the Middle East, Latin America and Africa. What are the key threats to look out for in these regions? How are these regions engaging in the international security community and what kind of ...
Jan 11, 2023•40 min•Season 1Ep. 41
As the year comes to a close, the International Security Studies team at RUSI reviews the biggest stories from 2022 and what to look out for in 2023. 2022 has been a watershed year in the security sphere, from the war in Ukraine to major developments in the Indo-Pacific. This two-part seasonal special brings together the regional experts from RUSI’s International Security team. Host Neil Melvin is joined by Emily Ferris, Veerle Nouwens and Ed Arnold to discuss what to look out for in 2023. What ...
Dec 28, 2022•44 min•Season 1Ep. 40
Originally published 21 December 2022. Tough times lie ahead for Beijing, with a turbulent external environment now matched with domestic unrest. To round out 2022, Veerle and Dr Sheena Chestnut Greitens, Associate Professor at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, UT Austin, reflect on a turbulent year for China policy. From a downward spiral in Sino-US relations and tensions over Taiwan, to the war in Ukraine and Beijing’s relationship with Moscow, this has been a tumultuous year. The search for a...
Dec 21, 2022•42 min
As NATO prepares to welcome Sweden as a member, we examine what Stockholm’s security agenda could look like in the years ahead. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Sweden quickly announced its intention to seek NATO membership. This move marked a significant departure from the country’s previous military non-alignment. With a new right wing-led government in place, and the country awaiting Turkey and Hungary’s ratification of its NATO membership, Sweden has made clear that national interests...
Dec 14, 2022•40 min•Season 1Ep. 39
As the conflict enters the harshest months of the year, wen discuss what the winter could mean for both sides. The Russian invasion of Ukraine sent shockwaves around the world and has dominated the headlines ever since. Russia has focused heavily on seizing territory, and even formally annexed some regions in September. Moscow’s narratives of success have, however, been severely undercut by Ukrainian battlefield victories, the most recent of which, in Kherson, is seen by many as a turning point....
Nov 30, 2022•38 min•Season 1Ep. 38
As the final electoral results trickle in, we discusses what the midterm elections can tell us about the future of US domestic and foreign policies. Neil Melvin sits down with Max Bergmann, Director of the Europe Program at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, DC. With an anticipated strong Republican win heralding the prospect of Donald Trump’s return to the White House, the ballots were seen as a clear signpost as to the direction of travel of US politics, w...
Nov 16, 2022•45 min•Season 1Ep. 37
Originally published 9 November 2022. Six months in, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol still treads a careful balance on some policy matters. Veerle speaks with Ms Saeme Kim, Korea Foundation Visiting Fellow in RUSI’s Indo-Pacific Programme from 2021–2022. Saeme explores the policy continuities and changes in the Republic of Korea (ROK) from former President Moon Jae-in to current President Yoon Suk-yeol, outlining the country’s soon-to-be-launched Indo-Pacific Strategy and some bold new ende...
Nov 09, 2022•25 min
As the world watches, protests continue to rage across Iran. With protests continuing across the country, Dr Neil Melvin is joined by Dr Aniseh Bassiri Tabrizi, Senior Research Fellow, RUSI International Security Studies, to consider Iran’s future as it faces a changing regional and global security. They assess whether the protests can be a catalyst for domestic reform, and how these internal developments are shaping Iran’s foreign policy. What are the implications of Tehran’s growing relationsh...
Nov 02, 2022•37 min•Season 1Ep. 36
Originally published 26 October 2022. Does the recent Congress indicate triumph or challenges ahead for China? Veerle Nouwens speaks with two guests on China’s 20th Party Congress, in which Xi Jinping attained an unprecedented third term in office and brought in a set of personnel changes in Party governance. Raffaello Pantucci, RUSI Senior Associate Fellow, explores how Xi’s speech and the Party Congress’s work report indicate an emphasis on internal stability and continuity in domestic and for...
Oct 26, 2022•1 hr 2 min
More than thirty years since independence, we look at how the nations of Central Asia are navigating shifting regional power dynamics and an evolving international security environment. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, the nations of Central Asia - Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan – quickly transformed into authoritarian orders, while external investment in natural resources became the basis for the post-Soviet economies. Today, the region faces...
Oct 19, 2022•49 min•Season 1Ep. 35
We discuss the future trajectory of the region in the context of the war in Ukraine, the coronavirus pandemic, and new leadership across the continent. The global geopolitical architecture is shifting rapidly in the face of major events such as the war in Ukraine and the coronavirus pandemic. Latin America is having to contend with these changes, as well as regional challenges of transnational organised crime, cybersecurity and public health threats. As the region welcomes several new leaders an...
Oct 05, 2022•47 min•Season 1Ep. 34
Originally published 28 September 2022. As strategic and economic interest in the region grows, how can states around the Indian Ocean and their partners mitigate the risk of conflict? Jeffrey Payne of the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies in Washington joins Veerle and Aaditya to discuss growing competition in the Indian Ocean region. Why has interest in the region among nuclear maritime states – including India, China and the US – grown steadily over recent years? They consider...
Sep 28, 2022•50 min
Originally published 23 September 2022. What lessons can be learned from the war in Ukraine when tackling the cross-strait crisis? In this special episode of Bridging the Oceans, Veerle speaks with Yuichi Hosoya of Keio University, Tokyo about the parallels between the war in Ukraine and the current standoff over Taiwan, and the extent to which these comparisons are valid. They examine escalation scenarios across the Taiwan Strait, in light of Russia’s pattern of behaviour before invading Ukrain...
Sep 23, 2022•38 min
Japan is looking to play a larger role in global security as the country faces new external threats. It is increasing commitments to national defence and seeking to move beyond key political and constitutional constraints placed on the country’s security policies after the Second World War. Philip Shetler-Jones, a James Cook Associate Fellow in Indo-Pacific Geopolitics at the Council on Geostrategy, is our guest for this episode. He discusses with Dr Neil Melvin, Director, International Security...
Sep 21, 2022•48 min•Season 1Ep. 33
Originally published 14 September 2022. Will UK foreign policy under Liz Truss be business as usual or a radical departure? While the UK’s relations with China have been strained in recent years, Raffaello Pantucci, Senior Associate Fellow at RUSI, explains how current policy towards China may experience a radical shift and, should that happen, what the repercussions would be. Similarly, the Hon. Alexander Downer, the former Australian foreign minister, joins Veerle in exploring Liz Truss’ views...
Sep 14, 2022•1 hr 7 min
A new security space is emerging around the Red Sea. Encompassing the East Mediterranean and the northern Indian Ocean, the region is seeing increasing strategic competition between countries from the Gulf, the Middle East and North Africa, Asia and the Horn of Africa, as well as Europe and the US. The shifting security environment in this complex and diverse region is the topic for this episode. Dr Tobias Borck, RUSI Research Fellow for Middle East Security Studies, and Dr Simon Rynn, RUSI Seni...
Sep 07, 2022•51 min•Season 1Ep. 32
Originally published 31 August 2022. Thoughts from Japan on the recent cross-strait tensions and a look at what lies ahead In this episode, Veerle speaks with Li Hao, Research Fellow at the Japan Institute of International Affairs (JIIA), about the Japanese reaction to Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi’s recent visit to Taiwan and China’s subsequent live-fire drills in the region. They discuss the direct impacts the military exercises have had on Japan and consider the larg...
Aug 31, 2022•34 min
This episode traces the roots of growing tensions between China and the US over Taiwan, and assesses the danger of war between the two superpowers over the island’s fate. Veerle Nouwens, RUSI Senior Research Fellow in the security of the Indo-Pacific, and Bonnie Glaser, Director of the Asia Programme at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, discuss with Dr Neil Melvin, Director, International Security Studies at RUSI, the origins of the dispute between the US and China over Taiwan, the ...
Aug 24, 2022•39 min•Season 1Ep. 31
Originally published 19 August 2022. Reflections from Taipei offer a different perspective on recent cross-Strait tensions. In this episode, Veerle speaks with activist Brian Hioe, a founder of the New Bloom Magazine – an online magazine covering activism and youth politics in Taiwan and the Asia-Pacific – about the Taiwanese reaction to US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit and China’s subsequent live-fire military drills. While the latter marked an escalation in tensions and...
Aug 19, 2022•35 min
This episode considers where Russia’s war against Ukraine stands nearly five months after it began, as the conflict enters a potentially pivotal moment with Ukraine planning to mount a counteroffensive to reclaim lost territory. Edward Arnold, our Research Fellow in European Security, and Dr Neil Melvin, RUSI International Security Studies Director, explore Russia’s political aims, how Ukraine is planning to move onto the offensive in key areas with increased supplies of NATO military equipment,...
Jul 13, 2022•40 min•Season 1Ep. 30
Originally published on 30 June 2022. As the war in Ukraine rages on, Japan debates its next security steps. Veerle is joined by Tetsuo Kotani, Professor at Meikai University and Senior Fellow at the Japan Institute of International Affairs. They explore the level of Japanese domestic support for sanctions policy on Russia, and the ongoing Sino-Russian military activities at sea around Japan and in Japan’s airspace. They also ask whether the ongoing situation in Ukraine is impacting Japan’s view...
Jun 30, 2022•26 min
This episode considers the agenda for the NATO Madrid Summit as the organisation faces an unprecedented challenge in responding to the war against Ukraine and the wider threats that Russia, as well as China, present to the Alliance. In this episode, Dr Thierry Tardy, Director of the Research Division at the NATO Defence College, discusses with Dr Neil Melvin, Director, RUSI International Security Studies, what is on the agenda for the NATO Madrid Summit, how the Alliance is seeking to adapt, wha...
Jun 29, 2022•44 min•Season 1Ep. 29
This episode examines the evolving Belarus–Russia defence and security relationship at a time when Minsk has become closely intertwined with Russia’s war against Ukraine, and as Aleksandr Lukashenko, Belarus’ authoritarian president, is increasingly reliant on political support from Russia to remain in power. RUSI’s Emily Ferris and Dr Akady Moshes, Programme Director for the EU Eastern Neighbourhood and Russia research programme at the Finnish Institute for International Affairs, discuss with D...
Jun 15, 2022•45 min•Season 1Ep. 28
This episode examines how the South Caucasus states of Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan are being affected by Russia’s war against Ukraine. The crisis comes at a time when the region is already experiencing significant changes as a result of the second Karabakh war and growing external competition for influence from Russia, Turkey, Iran and China. It also occurs as the transatlantic community considers its future approach to Black Sea security. Natia Seskuria, Director of the Regional Institute o...
Jun 01, 2022•51 min•Season 1Ep. 27
