Deep Dish on Global Affairs

One year after the attack on the United States Capitol, 64 percent of Americans believe US democracy is "in crisis and at risk of failing," an NPR/Ipsos poll revealed this week. Democracy expert Larry Diamond joins Deep Dish to explain why democracy has been declining around the world for the last 15 years and offer urgent solutions to stop its retreat.   If you’re a Deep Dish subscriber, don’t forget to share your thoughts in our listener survey.

A major Russian troop buildup on the Ukrainian border has the international community concerned about the possibility of an invasion. The Atlantic Council’s Melinda Haring and George Washington University’s Maria Snegovaya join Deep Dish to explain the factors driving Russia’s threats against Ukraine, what’s going on in Putin’s mind, and why this conflict matters for the world. Share your feedback about our show in our new listener survey!

Russia’s aggression towards Ukraine is dominating headlines, but another crisis looms in Eastern Europe: the Balkans. Bosnia and Herzegovina experts Jasmin Mujanović and Patrice McMahon join Deep Dish to explain why the risk of conflict is so high and how Europe and the United States can help ensure more than a decade of peace continues.  

This holiday season we’re all seeing the impact of shifts in the global trade system firsthand while shopping: shortages, high prices, and long shipping delays. The Economist’s Soumaya Keynes joins Deep Dish to explain why this situation is about more than just supply chains or COVID-19—it's about politics and the way our world is dismantling the rules-based trade system.  

Deep Dish is taking this week off for the Thanksgiving holiday in the US, but we'll be back next week with a new episode! In the meantime, here’s a quick note about Giving Tuesday. We’re able to make this show because of the support from our community of listeners —people like you!   Would you consider making a tax-deductible gift this upcoming Giving Tuesday so that we can keep bringing you Deep Dish each week? To make a gift, just go to our website.   Thank you for your generosity and join us next week for another slice of Deep Dish!  -The Deep Dish team

At least 2,000 Middle Eastern migrants spent weeks trapped at checkpoints between Belarus and Poland—unable to legally enter the European Union and, until today, unable to return to Belarus or go home. Former US Ambassador to Poland Daniel Fried joins host Brian Hanson on Deep Dish to explain how Belarus’ strongman President Lukashenka weaponized these migrants as a tool of "hybrid war," and why Russia’s President Putin looms behind this crisis—and others—on Europe’s doorstep.

As countries finalize their commitments at the UN Climate Conference, COP26, soaring global energy prices and shortages around the world emphasize our world’s current dependence on fossil fuels. The Economist’s Vijay Vaitheeswaran and the Just Transition Initiative’s Sandeep Pai join Deep Dish to explain what the energy crisis tell us about the costs of a green energy transition and how to manage shocks in a way that ensures countries and communities with fewer resources are not left behind. 

Recent US intelligence and defense agency reports warn that a warming climate is a fundamental threat to US national security by raising geopolitical tensions, increasing instability, and driving mass migration. The Center for Climate and Security’s Erin Sikorsky and the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft’s Anatol Lieven join Deep Dish to examine what a climate-focused US national security and defense strategy might look like and how to balance other competing threats.

China’s rapid recent nuclear expansion—from a hypersonic missile test to hundreds of new nuclear missile silos—is a stark contrast to years of a minimum deterrence approach. To explain the shift, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s Tong Zhao joins host Brian Hanson on Deep Dish to unpack China’s nuclear strategy, the need for nuclear stability, and how to avoid an arms race or worse.

2020 marked the most significant increase in US domestic terrorism in a quarter-century, data from the Center for Strategic and International Studies reveals. The University of Chicago’s Kathleen Belew and Robert Pape join Deep Dish to explain the trends they believe are driving the uptick and the role war and conflict play in shaping these groups. Further Reading The Capitol Rioters Aren’t Like Other Extremists, the Atlantic, by Robert Pape What an Analysis of 377 Americans Arrested or Charged in the Capitol Insurrection Tells Us, Washington Post, by Robert Pape Bring the War Home by Kathleen Belew The Right Way to Understand White Nationalist Terrorism,  New York Times, by Kathleen Belew