Do you think the war is a watershed moment in regard to the era of the strong man? I hope so. Of course, strong men can survive. Military setbacksthings sulliman did. Christopher bellig i was thinking about the retreat from the gates of vienna when he went away and said, well, i was never intending to take it anyway. It reminded me of russia and kiev. They can survive. But i would just, i think the point that's now being made, which is that the war and ukrane could be a wal shed momenta speaks to the necessity of success.
In The Age of the Strongman, the journalist Gideon Rachman explores how populist and authoritarian leaders have become a central feature of global politics. Since Vladimir Putin took power in Russia at the beginning of the new millennium, self-styled strongmen have emerged across the globe, from Trump and Bolsonaro to Orbán, Xi and Modi. Rachman tells Tom Sutcliffe how these leaders have taken power and the challenge they pose to liberal democracy.
Judy Dempsey is a senior fellow at Carnegie Europe and editor in chief of the Strategic Europe blog. She explains how Viktor Orbán has tightened his grip on power in Hungary, while the EU has dragged its heels. And how Putin’s war in Ukraine has not only exacerbated pre-existing global divisions but divided Europe as well.
History is littered with powerful leaders, and Christopher de Bellaigue, tells of the rise of one of the most feared – Suleyman the Magnificent. In The Lion House: The Coming of a King the 16th century Ottoman Sultan dominates the lives of those from Baghdad to the walls of Vienna.
Producer: Katy Hickman