Best International Relations Podcasts (2024)

1
Biden's Foreign Policy Legacy 27:22

2h ago27:22

27:22

Ray Suarez sits down with Dr. Timothy Naftali, senior research scholar at Columbia University’s SIPA, to examine Biden’s foreign policy legacy… and how country's around the world are preparing for a new US President in 2025. Guest: Dr. Timothy Naftali, senior research scholar at Columbia University’s SIPA Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this epi…

1
South China Sea: Politics, alliances and regional dynamics 26:11

1h ago26:11

26:11

In the final episode of our series on the South China Sea, host Susannah Patton and Lowy Institute colleague Richard McGregor debate the implications of the recent tensions at Second Thomas Shoal for Beijing’s strategy, the credibility of US alliances, and the considerations of other regional countries such as Australia. See omnystudio.com/listener…

1
Is Africa's Debt Crisis a Threat to International Security? | Live from the Aspen Security Forum 20:28

1h ago20:28

20:28

I caught up with Ndidi Okonkwo Nwuneli at the Aspen Security Forum in mid-July. She is the new President and CEO of the One Campaign, which advocates on behalf of global development, justice, and equal rights, with a particular focus on Africa. I was interested in speaking with her at a major conference dedicated to international security precisely…

1
#18: 16-20 July 1914 - France at Sea 25:07

1h ago25:07

25:07

As the French President and Premier made their way to Russia, on board the France, they tried their best to keep up to date with what was happening outsides the confines of their vessel. Troubling rumours were not hard to come by, but they could not be wholly ignored. The Central Powers kept up a front of ignorance, even luring Sazonov into a false…

1
EVENT: Girt by Sea: Finding security in Australia’s maritime domains 1:07:06

15m ago1:07:06

1:07:06

What do the maritime security challenges close to Australia mean for the country's future? We were joined in discussion with Rebecca Strating and Joanne Wallis on their new book Girt by Sea: Reimagining Australia's Security, which looks at six maritime domains central to the country's national interests and offers an alternative vision for how Aust…

1
Our Biggest Fight: Reclaiming Liberty, Humanity, and Dignity in the Digital Age 22:36

2h ago22:36

22:36

Frank McCourt, chairman of McCourt Global and founder of Project Liberty, joins the podcast to discuss his new book, Our Biggest Fight: Reclaiming Liberty, Humanity, and Dignity in the Digital Age, as well as Project Liberty’s mission and the evolution of the internet.By CSIS | Center for Strategic and International Studies

1
Netanyahu's Gambling on Trump 26:42

3d ago26:42

26:42

A few weeks ago, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke before the US Congress, and he showed no signal that his government is open to a ceasefire with Hamas. President Biden had hoped to broker an Israeli-Hamas peace deal before leaving office, but an attack from Hezbollah in the Golan Heights—and Israel's military response—could dash any…

1
#17: 15-18 July 1914 - Secrecy and Haste 54:11

1h ago54:11

54:11

With the Austro-Hungarian government on the same page at long last, it remained to follow through with the ultimatum. To Berchtold, this meant moving as quickly and as secretly as possible, so that once the ultimatum arrived in Serbia, Europe would be presented with a fait accompli. The Germans were similarly anxious, and emphasised the necessity o…

1
Venezuela's Stolen Election 27:09

1h ago27:09

27:09

The July 28th national elections in Venezuela were supposed to usher in a new era of democracy after 25 years of Chavismo rule. Back in October, President Nicolas Maduro agreed to free and fair elections and, in return, had some US sanctions lifted. He quickly reneged on that deal, barred a popular opposition leader from running, and engaged in oth…

1
#16: March-June 1914 - The Entente Part 3 57:52

2h ago57:52

57:52

In our final episode looking at the Entente, we bring our story up to the eve of the July Crisis. How had past lessons influenced the way Russia and France interpreted the world by spring 1914? Was war certain? Had new military reforms so affected the balance of power that war was now inevitable? What did the position of Britain mean for the two al…

1
The world after the West: Matias Spektor on Brazil 36:00

2h ago36:00

36:00

Brazil is a middle-power powerhouse. The largest and most populous country in Latin America, this founding member of BRICS+ wields strong cultural, economic, and diplomatic influence among other middle powers and beyond. No assessment of non-Western powers would be complete without a trip to Brazil. In this episode of our special Re:Order series, M…

1
What Might a Kamala Harris Foreign Policy Look Like? 20:43

18m ago20:43

20:43

Kamala Harris did not have an extensive foreign policy track record before becoming Vice President. And as Vice President, she did not assume much of a foreign policy portfolio during the Biden Administration. So what could we expect from a Kamala Harris foreign policy? How might it be the same as or different from Joe Biden's foreign policy? And i…

1
Made in America: Building Economic Resilience 39:02

4h ago39:02

39:02

Livia Shmavonian, the Director of OMB’s Made in America Office, and Heather Boushey, Member of the Council of Economic Advisers and Chief Economist of the Investing in America Cabinet, join the podcast to discuss the Made in America Initiative. Also joining the conversation is Navin Girishankar, the president of CSIS’s new Economic Security and Tec…

1
The Elites vs… the Elites? 31:16

5h ago31:16

31:16

Donald Trump’s anti-establishment message has galvanized tech leaders across the US, including in former Democratic Party stronghold, Silicon Valley. In the second half of our election special, we’ll hear from This American Life’s Zoe Chace about what happened when Michigan Republicans took his advice and actually tried to buck the system. Then, WI…

1
Conversations: What can the US do about the South China Sea? 22:08

7h ago22:08

22:08

In part three of our South China Sea series, Dr Michael Mazarr speaks with the Lowy Institute’s Susannah Patton about the US’ strategy in the South China Sea. The United States has few easy options for countering China’s coercion of its ally the Philippines. Dr Mazarr of the RAND Corporation argues that the United States needs to plan for a scenari…

1
#15: Jan-March 1914 - The Entente Part 2 1:03:25

35m ago1:03:25

1:03:25

In our second installment of this Entente analysis, we look at the Liman von Sanders crisis. By late 1913, a new crisis in Russo-German relations centred on the status of General Liman von Sanders, appointed to command the 1st Army Corps at Constantinople. To the Germans, this was a useful way to assert their influence in the Ottoman Empire and reb…

1
"The Scrutiny Should Be Public to All Citizens:" the aftermath of Venezuela's July election 32:35

8d ago32:35

32:35

On July 28, 2024, Venezuela held a long-awaited presidential election. More than 25 years after Hugo Chávez was first elected, his successor, Nicolas Maduro, ran for a third term. The opposition coalesced around a candidate; despite many obstacles, the opposition had a big enthusiasm advantage, and turnout on July 28th was very high. In the end, th…

1
#14: 1912-1913 - The Entente Part 1 58:15

3d ago58:15

58:15

In this first of three episodes, we look at the pre-war position of the Entente! Before we bring our narrative further, it would be useful to turn our attention to what came before. The Franco-Russian alliance was formed in 1894, and over the next twenty years, the two allies experienced their share of ups and downs. Even as new crises shifted the …

1
Biden is Out, Harris is In: How DNC Donors Reset the Race 32:54

6h ago32:54

32:54

Since Joe Biden dropped out of the race, Vice President Kamala Harris raised hundreds of millions in small dollar donations. Harris has received endorsements from virtually every major Democratic Party leader, and her path to nomination – and command of the dnc campaign war chest – appears inevitable. But was it the big money DNC donors who really …

1
How NOT to Defeat the Houthis in Yemen 23:55

30m ago23:55

23:55

On July 19th, the Houthis launched a drone that struck an apartment building in Tel Aviv, killing an Israeli. This was a long-range, sophisticated drone and marked the first time the Houthis successfully struck Israeli soil. Israel responded with airstrikes against the Port of Hodeida, in the Houthi-controlled part of Yemen. The Houthis are the de …

1
#13: 13-14 July 1914 - Berchtold Supreme 26:27

1h ago26:27

26:27

As Belgrade burned with rage following the death of Ambassador Hartwig, Berchtold was on the verge of his greatest triumph. After several intense weeks of pressure, Stefan Tisza seemed finally to be seeing the light. A combination of factors, including German pressure, agitation from his subordinates, fear of Romania, outrage at Serbia, and probabl…

1
China’s new ideas: People, power, progress 44:33

5d ago44:33

44:33

Following two years of research, ECFR has released its new book, “The Idea of China: Chinese Thinkers on Power, Progress, and People”. Whether demography, AI, feminism, or green transition philosophies, “The Idea of China” seeks to enhance Western understanding of the current discourses and debates within China. After all, a Chinese perspective on …

1
Bangladesh on the Brink 31:15

14d ago31:15

31:15

Bangladesh is roiled in the most intense protests and domestic upheaval in decades. The protests began peacefully by students objecting to a quota system for government jobs, in which government jobs are mostly reserved for those who fought in the 1971 war for independence and their descendants. That quota system was in place for years, then it was…

1
The IOC and the Authoritarian Elite 30:16

40m ago30:16

30:16

The surprising success of Russian athletes at the 2014 Sochi Olympics gave Vladimir Putin the political capital to invade Crimea, and it was all built on an elaborate state-sponsored doping program. Russia received little more than a slap on the wrist by the International Olympic Committee, so President Putin was emboldened to attack Ukraine in 202…

1
EVENT: Gods, Guns and Sedition 1:03:02

14h ago1:03:02

1:03:02

Weeks prior to the assassination attempt against Donald Trump, the Lowy Institute hosted global terrorism expert Professor Bruce Hoffman for a podcast with Program Director Lydia Khalil. They spoke about the future prospects of political violence in the United States and discussed Hoffman’s latest book, God, Guns, and Sedition, which traces the tra…

1
#12: 8-12 July 1914 - Hartwig's Last Act 45:45

6m ago45:45

45:45

Now that German support had been acquired, and the delivery of an ultimatum to Serbia was virtually guaranteed, Berchtold had one final mission - to persuade the Hungarian Premier Stefan Tisza of the necessity of war. This was easier said than done, since Tisza had good reasons for resisting calls for a war which he believed was unnecessary and dan…

1
#11: 7 July 1914 - Joint Council Meeting 1:01:28

17d ago1:01:28

1:01:28

By 7 July 1914, Austria-Hungary's leading officials gathered in Vienna. The key item on the agenda was what to do about Serbia, but an unspoken item amounted to what to do about Hungary. With German support for the punitive strike on Serbia now assured, all that remained was for the Habsburg government to maintain a degree of unity at such a crucia…

1
The Olympics are Back, But Does Anyone Care? 22:54

18d ago22:54

22:54

It's been a wild few weeks in US news... but remember the Olympics? After COVID-19 threw a curveball in Tokyo, the Olympic Games are back. Since the Olympics as we know them started in 1896, they have only been canceled for drastic events like World Wars and a pandemic. The 2020 Tokyo games were postponed a year due to lockdown restrictions, and gl…

1
Conversations: Biden out, Kamala in – will it change anything? 24:40

9d ago24:40

24:40

In this special episode of Conversations, the Lowy Institute’s Dr Michael Fullilove and Hervé Lemahieu discuss US President Joe Biden’s momentous decision overnight to withdraw from his bid for a second term. In the past three weeks, US politics has been reshaped before our eyes. A resurgent former president Donald Trump, emerging from an attempt o…

1
Alsu Kurmasheva is an American Journalist Detained in Russia 17:51

11h ago17:51

17:51

Alsu Kurmasheva was visiting her ailing mother in Russia when she was detained by the authorities and had her passports confiscated. She is a journalist for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and her arrest immediately raised alarms that, like the Wall Street Journal's Evan Gershkovich, yet another American journalist has been targeted and wrongfully…

1
#10: 6 July 1914 - Saving Austria-Hungary 32:58

1h ago32:58

32:58

With the blank cheque secured, Austria had received its ally's blessing to pursue a punitive strike against Serbia - what would happen next? The morass of questions surrounding this development deserve greater examination, but you may be wondering, just how widespread was the pro-war party in Vienna? How many officials believed that only war with S…

1
The world after the West: Pramit Pal Chaudhuri on India 42:43

1h ago42:43

42:43

As a founding member of BRICS and a member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, India is a leading middle power. With its strategic geographic and economic position, and historical associations with the nonaligned movement, India cannot be ignored when discussing the world’s rapidly shifting global order. In this episode of ‘The world after th…

1
Can Iran's New President Lower the Temperature in the Middle East? 24:39

17d ago24:39

24:39

On May 19th, a helicopter crash in Iran killed President Ebrahim Raisi and several top government officials. This forced new presidential elections, and on July 5th, Masoud Pezeshkian defeated his more hardline opponent and is now Iran's president-elect. Pezeshkian comes from the reformist faction of Iranian politics, but real power still lies in t…

1
Conversations: Beijing’s South China Sea gambit 27:40

28m ago27:40

27:40

In part two of our South China Sea series, Dr Oriana Skylar Mastro speaks with the Lowy Institute’s Susannah Patton about China’s objectives in the region. Beijing is pursuing an aggressive strategy to push out the United States and prevent Southeast Asian claimant states, especially the Philippines, from exercising their sovereign rights. Dr Mastr…

1
#9: 5 July 1914 - Drafting the Blank Cheque 48:28

36m ago48:28

48:28

Among all the controversies of the July Crisis, perhaps few compare to Germany's decision to provide Austria-Hungary with a 'blank cheque' for whatever policy it intended to adopt towards Serbia. In fact, word from Berlin suggested that the German government was impatient, and wanted Austria to strike Serbia as soon as possible. But, did this repre…

1
Pacific Change Makers: Addressing climate change in Papua New Guinea 20:19

20m ago20:19

20:19

In this episode, Debra Sungi of PNG’s Climate Change and Development Authority speaks with the Lowy Institute’s Oliver Nobetau. Discussions around development in the Pacific consistently reference climate change as a major challenge. Countries such as PNG have to manage the support offered by international development partners without being overwhe…

1
Iran’s Next Act & Houthis' Next Move 26:46

2h ago26:46

26:46

CSIS’s Norman Roule, who served in the Central Intelligence Agency for over three decades, joins the podcast to discuss the recent election in Iran and what it means for the United States. In addition, Roule discusses Iran’s role in attempting to influence the Middle East and Africa, plus a conversation about the Houthi activities in the Red Sea.…

1
Why We're Losing Faith in Democracy 55:00

22d ago55:00

55:00

A gunman just tried to assassinate former President Donald Trump weeks after he was convicted of election interference… Joe Biden’s campaign is in freefall… and all along voters have resented a choice between two troubled candidates. Americans — from the largest urban centers to the smallest rural towns — are deeply pessimistic about the state of t…

1
#8: 1-4 July 1914 - 'Are You Certain of Germany?' 48:39

17d ago48:39

48:39

Now that Vienna had decided to use war against its Serbian neighbour, the mission became one of guaranteeing German support. As we discuss in this episode, in Austria's estimation it was far from certain that Berlin would give this support. The record of diplomatic crises and cooperation in recent years suggested that Germany might even try to cont…

1
How the UK Elections Will Shape Britain's Global Development and Foreign Policy 23:41

25d ago23:41

23:41

The Labour Party won an overwhelming victory in the recent elections in the United Kingdom. Keir Starmer is now Prime Minister, ending 14 years of Conservative rule in the UK. So what does this mean for Britain's foreign policy? Can we expect any major changes to Britain's relationship with the world? Joining me to discuss the foreign policy implic…

1
#7: 29-30 June - Vienna Chooses Violence 43:34

1d ago43:34

43:34

With the shots heard round the world, how would Austro-Hungarian statesmen react to the news that the heir to their throne had been murdered in Sarajevo? In fact, as we see here, Austrian patience towards Serbia had been so exhausted by 1914 that a violent, warlike response was virtually inevitable. At least, Habsburg Foreign Minister Count Berchto…

1
NATO at 75: The future of European defence 32:36

28d ago32:36

32:36

The 75th NATO summit has begun. Taking place in Washington, this year the conference welcomes new member country, Sweden, with talks focusing on how NATO allies can continue to defend Ukraine from Russian attacks. But, with a presidential election looming in November, it is unclear what the United States’ future position on NATO will be – and, if t…

1
Conversations: Sweden’s Defence Minister, Pål Jonson 24:43

1d ago24:43

24:43

The Lowy Institute’s Sam Roggeveen spoke with Sweden’s defence minister, Pål Jonson, during his recent visit to Australia. Prior to his ministerial career, Jonson worked in Sweden’s Defence Research Agency, and his depth of knowledge about not just European security but also Asia comes through in this interview. Roggeveen asks Jonson why Swedes sho…

1
China Holds Its Biggest Political Event of the Year | Anja Manuel 20:08

28d ago20:08

20:08

From July 15th to the 18th, the Chinese Communist Party is holding a gathering known as the Third Plenum. This is a highly anticipated political event, as Xi Jinping and party officials are expected to announce key economic reforms intended to spur the Chinese economy. For the past several years, especially since COVID, the Chinese economy has been…

1
#6: 28 June 1914 - Assassination in Sarajevo 36:25

30d ago36:25

36:25

On 28 June 1914, Franz Ferdinand was assassinated by Gavrilo Princip, a Bosnian Serb terrorist. What followed was the July Crisis, as Austria-Hungary attempted to gain a measure of justice, or even revenge. No story of the July Crisis is complete without beginning here, but considering its infamy, what is there left to learn about this assassinatio…

1
The far-right falters: Outcomes of the French snap election 33:44

4d ago33:44

33:44

Against all the odds and polls, the French far-right party National Rally, led by Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella, landed in third place in the second round of the French snap election. And in a runner-up upset for President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist Ensemble alliance, the left-wing alliance New Popular Front took the lead with 182 seats. In thi…

1
Conversations: Manila charts its course 21:22

30d ago21:22

21:22

Tensions between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea have reached their highest level in more than a decade. The risk of escalation, even conflict, between the two countries could test the credibility of the Philippines’ alliance with the United States. In the first of a series focused on the South China Sea tensions, Susannah Patton, …

1
Annie Jacobsen's Nuclear Doomsday Scenario 54:30

1M ago54:30

54:30

For generations, a nuclear war has been assumed to be so horrible that no one has used these weapons since 1945. But what have we done in the last 80 years to pull ourselves back from the edge of nuclear destruction? In her new book “Nuclear War: A Scenario”, pulitzer-prize finalist Annie Jacobsen explores a ticking-clock scenario. Based on dozens …

1
#5: The Balkans and Other Wars (1911-1913) 2:01:27

1M ago2:01:27

2:01:27

In this teeny tiny episode, we look at the Italian invasion of Libya and the Balkans Wars! But first, get a load of these links! Do you want ad-free episodes with scripts attached, and bonus content? Support us on Patreon and you can suggest July Crisis episodes! Join our Facebook group as we make our way through this fascinating series! Click here…

1
In The South China Sea, Water Gun Fights Risks Nuclear Escalation 30:01

24d ago30:01

30:01

A rather bizarre incident recently occurred in the South China Sea off the coast of the Philippines. On June 17th, the Chinese Coast Guard clashed with Philippine naval vessels en route to resupplying a stranded Philippine ship on a formation known as the Second Thomas Shoal. This desolate shoal is very much in the territorial waters of the Philipp…

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