Activity Overview
Episode publication activity over the past year
Always be my Bibi? Israel back at the polls
17 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The country has never had two elections in a year, and the second looks to be as close-run as the fi...
Pipe down: attacks on Saudi oil
16 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Strikes on the world’s largest refinery are bad news for the state oil firm ahead of a record-brea...
To Viktor, more spoils: Hungary’s autocracy
13 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
He was once a liberal reformer, but now no institution is safe from Viktor Orban’s iron grip. His ...
Trust issues: Huawei’s radical plan
12 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The tech giant finds itself enmeshed in a broad battle between China and America. But Huawei’s bos...
Scapegoating: xenophobia in South Africa
11 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Migrants have become a convenient scapegoat for South Africans frustrated by a slumping economy and ...
Things fall apart: Britain’s fading centre-right
10 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Parliament is suspended for weeks. The Conservative party has been hollowed out. The prime minister’...
Tali-banned: Trump calls off Afghan peace talks
09 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
President Trump has abruptly cancelled talks with the Taliban in Afghanistan, raising fears of renew...
Disunited Russia party? Moscow’s elections
06 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
This weekend’s vote will fill some fairly inconsequential city positions. But how it plays out wil...
Age-old problem: reforming France
05 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
President Emmanuel Macron embarks on a serious policy challenge today over pensions. Will his effort...
This is revolting: Britain’s parliament rebels
04 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Boris Johnson has lost his parliamentary majority. Conservative party rebels will now help push for ...
No safety in numbers: America’s immigration raids
03 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Workplace raids catch many undocumented migrants in one place. But they do nothing to tackle the cri...
Until blue in the face: Hong Kong’s protests
02 Sep 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The territory’s authorities have used live rounds, pepper spray and water cannon with blue dye to ...
Out to launch: American nuclear policy
30 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
There is a push in America to subscribe to a “no first use” policy on nukes, in a bid to reduce ...
Suspend, disbelief: Parliament and Brexit
29 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Boris Johnson, Britain’s prime minister, sparked widespread outrage by suspending Parliament in th...
Ex-Seoul-mate: Japan-South Korea spat escalates
28 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Century-old discord is never far from the surface for the two countries, but the latest flare-up ris...
Emmanuel transmission: outcomes of the G7
27 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The weekend summit hosted by France’s President Emmanuel Macron resulted in few concrete actions; ...
A friend of mines: Asia’s coal habit
26 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The region accounts for three-quarters of the world’s coal consumption—even as giants such as Ch...
Fight or flight: Cathay Pacific
23 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
China’s central government has made an example of the huge, Hong Kong-based carrier. Will the ploy...
Pull out all the backstops: Boris Johnson in Europe
22 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Britain’s prime minister is on the continent ahead of this weekend’s G7 meeting. We ask whether ...
League of its own? Italian politics
21 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini has pulled the rug from under the country’s government, betti...
Power rationing: Sudan in transition
20 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
After months of unceasing protests, military leaders have struck a deal to share power with civilian...
Scarcely surviving: Zimbabwe
19 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Electricity, food, water: everything is in short supply in the country, including faith in the gover...
Yield signs: the global economy
16 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Investors are piling into safe assets as markets whipsaw: what’s driving the global economy these ...
Poll reposition: Macri fights back
15 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
President Mauricio Macri’s thumping presidential-primary loss in Argentina left the markets fearin...
Let’s not make a deal: Brexit
14 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Talk grows ever-louder of Britain exiting the European Union without a divorce agreement. Most parli...
Sex cells: the modern fertility business
13 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Companies are rushing to fill new niches for would-be parents: in vitro fertilisation extras, swish ...
Raid in Aden: Yemen’s fragmented conflict
12 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Over the weekend, armed rebels overran Aden, the seat of Yemen’s internationally recognised govern...
Withdrawal symptoms: America-Taliban talks
09 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
America’s envoy claimed “excellent progress” in negotiations ahead of the country’s planned ...
Clear-cut risks: the Amazon degrades
08 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Deforestation is on the rise and Brazil’s government is all but encouraging it. Beyond a certain t...
State of alarm: India moves on Kashmir
07 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has gutted the autonomy of the restive and disputed Jamm...
PLA a part? Hong Kong’s growing unrest
06 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
China’s central government held another press conference to address increasingly chaotic unrest in...
Sticking to their guns: violence in America
05 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Two mass shootings over the weekend add to the unrelenting stream of gun violence in America. We loo...
A farewell to arms control: the INF treaty dies
02 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
As America abandons the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces treaty we examine the future of arms contr...
Disbelief, dysfunction, disaster: Congo’s Ebola outbreak
01 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
As aid workers battle the second-worst outbreak in history, they face violence and disbelief. A hist...
Apply liberally: Trudeau’s re-election bid
31 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Canada’s prime minister may not have an easy campaign ahead; we sit down with Justin Trudeau to di...
Primary culler: Democrats’ second debates
30 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The fields of American presidential candidates just keep getting bigger, and party rules incentivise...
One country, one system: Hong Kong’s protests
29 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Authorities in Beijing held a rare press conference addressing unrest in Hong Kong. That gives lie t...
A plight in Tunisia: the president passes
26 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Beji Caid Essebsi promised to fix the economy, re-establish security and consolidate Tunisia’s dem...
Nothing new to report: Robert Mueller testifies
25 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
As promised, the special counsel revealed no more than appeared in his report into Russian election-...
Ricky situation: Puerto Rico’s protests
24 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Rolling protests have rocked the island after leaked texts revealed the governor’s insults. But Pu...
You, May, be excused: Boris Johnson ascends
23 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Britain has a new prime minister—who will inherit all the same problems his predecessor had. Good ...
Get one thing strait: Iran’s tanker stand-off
22 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The seizure of a British-flagged tanker in the Gulf may seem counter to Iran’s international objec...
Servant’s entrance: Ukraine’s elections
19 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Volodymyr Zelensky’s Servant of the People party looks set to make big gains in Ukraine’s parlia...
Unmoving movement: Venezuela’s bloody stalemate
18 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The opposition’s momentum has faded; many protesters are too tired to go on. Nicolás Maduro, the ...
In like a Leyen: the European Commission’s new president
17 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Ursula von der Leyen has a tough task ahead, pressing a broad agenda in a fragmented European Parlia...
At stake, chips: Japan-South Korea trade spat
16 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A dispute about industrial chemicals reveals tensions that have remained unresolved since the second...
Tip of the ICE work: the immigration raids that weren’t
15 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
There was little evidence this weekend of the widespread immigration raids long promised by Presiden...
Tsai hopes: Taiwan’s president on tour
12 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The delicate diplomatic dance that America is performing during Tsai Ing-Wen’s visit hints at the ...
Unspeakable truths: Britain’s US ambassador
11 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The “special relationship” has been strained this week, following the leak of frank diplomatic c...
From Russia with launch codes: Turkey’s new hardware
10 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces increasing pressures at home and abroad, and he’s adding to t...
Late to the parting: Deutsche Bank shrinks
09 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
For years, management at Germany’s largest bank knew the firm was in serious trouble. Why didn’t...
In the after-Ba’ath: Syria’s rising Kurds
08 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
For years, Syria’s Kurdish people were largely invisible: their language, flag and festivals were ...
New Democracy in an old one: Greece’s election
05 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Kyriakos Mitsotakis looks likely to lead his New Democracy party to victory in this weekend’s snap...
Putin on a show: Russia’s resurgence
04 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Russia’s president is glad-handing in Italy, where his anti-liberal roadshow resonates. But Mr Put...
Growth anatomy: America’s expansive decade
03 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
What’s behind the record-breaking economic boom and how much longer can it last? Does America’s ...
Break a LegCo: Hong Kong’s protests boil over
02 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Protesters are in a defiant mood—a hard core of them has smashed up Hong Kong’s Legislative Coun...
Armoured Khartoum: Sudan’s bloody transition
01 Jul 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Protesters returned to the streets of Khartoum this weekend, again with deadly consequences. We look...
Census and sensibility: landmark SCOTUS rulings
28 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
America’s highest court has handed down decisions that will shape voter representation for years t...
Fight if you Haftar: the struggle for Libya
27 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Life in Libya’s capital seems calm, even as a warlord backed by ragtag forces bids to take the cit...
Rights on Q: same-sex marriage in Japan
26 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A bill to recognise same-sex marriage has failed in Japan’s parliament, exposing a widening divide...
Money in the West Bank: Kushner’s peace plan
25 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Tensions between Iran and America are distracting from Jared Kushner’s long-awaited Israeli-Palest...
Lover or Leaver? How Brexit divided Britons
24 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Exactly three years after the referendum result, it’s clear: Brexit has driven Britain a bit batty...
Blonde ambition: Boris’s bid for power
21 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Charming buffoon or cunning chameleon? Welcoming liberal or snarling Brexiteer? We ask why, despite ...
Hawks, stocks and peril: Iran-America brinkmanship
20 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Iran’s downing of an American drone today is just the latest source of tension between the countri...
Moving stories: the UN’s refugee report
19 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The worldwide count of people forced from their homelands has increased sharply, again. What’s dri...
Florida Man: Trump’s re-election campaign
18 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
America’s president heads back to the Sunshine State today to announce his candidacy. What to expe...
Lam to the slaughter: Hong Kong’s shocking U-turn
17 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Calls for the resignation of Carrie Lam, the territory’s leader, are intensifying. Hong Kongers ma...
What’s yours has mines: the Gulf of Oman attack
14 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
America has blamed Iran for yesterday’s tanker attacks in the Gulf of Oman. If that’s true, Iran...
Vlad the un-jailer: the Ivan Golunov case
13 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
An investigative journalist’s release may look like a press-freedom win in Russia—but it represe...
Once more, with felines: half the world gets online
12 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Half of humanity is now online. What will the second half do when it logs on? The same as the first:...
Independence say: Hong Kong’s ongoing protests
11 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A proposed change to the judicial system is just the latest sign that mainland China is exerting pre...
No way to tweet a friend: Trump’s Mexico tariffs
10 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
In the end, President Donald Trump’s tariff threat did what he had hoped: Mexico has pledged to ti...
Tory story: Britain’s next prime minister
07 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Today Theresa May stepped down as leader of the Conservative Party, and would-be replacements are al...
Basta! The EU challenges Italy’s finances
06 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
European officials have threatened a substantial fine if Italy doesn’t shrink its debt and budget ...
Same as the old boss? Crackdown in Sudan
05 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Nearly two months after staging a coup, military leaders have brutally cracked down on protesters in...
Thirty years of forgetting: Tiananmen
04 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
On the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square tragedy, our correspondents reflect on a dark and co...
Get pomped up: Trump’s British visit
03 Jun 2019
Contributed by Lukas
President Donald Trump kicks off his state visit to Britain with some opening shots at London's mayo...
Protectionist racket: trade-war rhetoric
31 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
As President Donald Trump threatens new tariffs on Mexican goods, retaliatory ones between China and...
Likudn’t: Israel’s political crisis
30 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
For the first time since Israel’s founding, efforts to form a government have failed. What will th...
Baba Go Slow: Nigeria’s President gets another term
29 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Muhammadu Buhari earned the nickname “Baba Go Slow” for a lackadaisical approach to reform as Ni...
Continental breakfast: European elections
28 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Europe’s voters have shown they are not happy with traditional parties. But even as the Brexit Par...
This May hurt: British politics
24 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Britain’s prime minister Theresa May has at last revealed the date she will step down. She had the...
Repeat performance: India’s election
23 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Narendra Modi’s BJP appears to have won a convincing re-election victory. What will that mean for ...
Ibiza remix: Austria and the European fringe
22 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
As a scandal involving Austria’s hard-right Freedom party causes the government to unravel, we exa...
In a heartbeat: abortion in America
21 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The strict anti-abortion bills cropping up in multiple American states aren’t expected to become t...
Battle for legitimacy: Afghanistan v the Taliban
20 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
After 18 years and almost a trillion dollars to fight the Taliban, Afghanistan’s government still ...
Private iniquity? The Abraaj case
17 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Not long ago, Abraaj was one of the world’s highest-profile private-equity firms. We take a look a...
May, EU live in interesting times: Brexit
16 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
As party leaders grill Britain’s prime minister—and with a looming European election the country...
Don’t spend it all at once: Pakistan and the IMF
15 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The International Monetary Fund has struck another deal to bail out Pakistan—its 22nd. But how did...
Supply demands: Yemen peace talks
14 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
UN negotiators are trying to salvage a ceasefire agreement surrounding the Yemeni port city of Hodei...
Spare the Rodrigo: Philippine elections
13 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Personalities, not policies, will determine votes in today’s poll in the Philippines to fill some ...
Unbalance of trade: China-America talks
10 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Negotiations to end the trade war have been ruffled as the Trump administration again ramped up tari...
Generals’ election: Thai politics
09 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The military junta that runs Thailand almost completely sewed up a momentous vote—almost. After fu...
Nuclear diffusion: Iran
08 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Exactly a year after President Donald Trump pulled America out of the Iran nuclear deal—and days a...
Mayor may not: Turkey’s election re-run
07 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Turkey’s ruling AK party never conceded defeat in Istanbul’s mayoral election in March. Now the ...
Everything in moderation: YouTube
06 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Susan Wojcicki, YouTube’s chief executive, tells our correspondent that moderating the streaming g...
Barr, none: the White House’s defiance
03 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The no-show of America’s attorney-general in Congress is just the latest example of the White Hous...
Buy the bullet: global defence spending
02 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Governments the world over are beefing up defence spending—chief among them America’s and China’...
Putsch comes to shove: Venezuela
01 May 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Juan Guaidó, the opposition figure widely viewed as the legitimate leader of Venezuela, has made a ...
Inflationary pressure: Argentina’s strikes
30 Apr 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Patience runs thin amid rampant inflation and a devaluing currency; Argentines are taking to the str...