The Fourcast

In this conversation, Bronwen Maddox, Director of Chatham House, and Lindsey Hilsum, Channel 4 News’ International Editor, dive into the complex Ukraine peace talks in Saudi Arabia. They discuss the stark absence of Ukrainian representation and the implications of American and Russian strategies. The dialogue explores the economic motivations influencing these negotiations, the need for a united approach involving Europe, and the shifting dynamics of international relations, highlighting the tensions that shape global diplomacy today.

As Trump is invited to Moscow and praises Putin after a call with the Russian leader about peace negotiations, his defence secretary Pete Hegseth says American troops will not go to Ukraine as peacekeepers as part of any future deal with Russia. He also announced Ukraine will never be part of NATO and needs to say goodbye to territory seized by Russia. In this episode of the Fourcast, Matt Frei discusses all of this and more with Channel 4 News’ international editor Lindsey Hilsum. Produced by Calum Fraser, Helene Cacace and Ka Yee Mak.  

Donald Trump has spent the week turning the world upside down again - launching a trade war with China and claiming America will take over the Gaza Strip - and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is scrambling to work out how best to respond to the American president. Sir Keir met with EU leaders earlier in the week for post-Brexit reset, but the prospect of closer ties comes just as Donald Trump has the EU in his crosshairs - saying he’ll slap tariffs on the bloc, while suggesting he might spare the UK.  So, the prime minister is walking a tightrope that stretches across both the Channel and the Atlantic, will he keep the balancing act going or topple over? In this week’s episode of the Fourcast, Gary Gibbon is joined by Michael Gove, cabinet minister under four Conservative Prime Ministers and now editor of the Spectator, journalist and biographer of Keir Starmer, Tom Baldwin. And head of the Europe programme at the Chatham House think tank, Armida van Rij . Produced by Silvia Maresca, Calum Fraser, Ka Yee Mak, Rob Thomson.  

Donald Trump, with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his side, has said the US should take over Gaza, own it, and turn it into the "Riviera of the Middle East", but within hours of these comments Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Palestinians have rejected the suggestion outright. So what is Donald Trump really up to? Is this a serious proposal, a negotiating position or the dreams of a reality show star on the world stage? On this episode of the Fourcast, Krishnan Guru-Murthy is joined by our Foreign Affairs Correspondent Secunder Kermani and the Palestinian journalist Yousef Hammash, who reported from inside Gaza for Channel 4 News from October 2023. Produced by Silvia Maresca, Ka Yee Mak, Rob Thomson, Calum Fraser.  

Yanis Varoufakis, the former Greek finance minister known for his bold economic insights, joins Erica York from the Tax Foundation to dissect the implications of Trump's trade war. They explore how the recent tariffs on Chinese goods could backfire, affecting American importers and international trade. The discussion highlights the political maneuvering behind these tariffs and questions their real effectiveness. They also address the broader geopolitical tensions and the challenges of multilateral cooperation in this rapidly changing landscape.

In a major speech on growing the UK economy, Chancellor Rachel Reeves says she will make Cambridge and Oxford the “Silicon Valley of Europe” and build a third runway at Heathrow Airport - which is now backed by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer even though he opposed it in the past. So will Labour deliver? Can Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves really get the economy firing again? And will it be enough to turn around their recent political woes? Discussing this and more in this episode of the Fourcast, Krishnan Guru-Murthy is joined by Gillian Tett, Financial Times columnist, and Rupert Harrison, senior advisor at Macro Advisory Partners and former advisor to Goerge Osborne when he was chancellor.   Produced by Silvia Maresca, Calum Fraser, Rob Thomson and Ka Yee Mak.  

In Donald Trump’s speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos he said, again, that he wants a peace deal with Vladimir Putin over the war in Ukraine, again suggested Canada could become part of America and again raised the spectre of tariffs that economists say could devastate the global economy, so what is the new American president’s vision of the world order and how will he deal with China and Xi Jinping’s claims over Taiwan? In his inaugural address President Trump said America would expand its territory, what does this actually mean? A future land grab? Or just a more aggressive American influence in parts of the world? And what does it mean for some of worlds’ other strongmen, who have their own expansionist ambitions? In this episode of the Fourcast, Matt Frei is joined by Nina Khrushcheva, professor of international affairs at the New School, and Lindsey Hilsum, Channel 4 News’ international editor. Produced by Calum Fraser, Silvia Maresca, Rob Thomson, Ka Yee Mak and Amani Huges.

Hours after Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States of America, he signed executive orders to take the US out of the World Health Organisation and the Paris Climate Accords; around 1,500 January 6 rioters were freed; a national emergency at the US-Mexico border was declared, he made the designation of two genders an official government policy and the TikTok ban was paused - and that’s before he made off-hand comments on whether the fragile ceasefire in Gaza will last.   To discuss all this and more in this edition of the Fourcast, Matt Frei is joined by Nayyera Haq, senior director of the Obama White House and Deana Bass Williams, a Republican strategist.   Produced by Calum Fraser, Silvia Maresca, Rob Thomson, Gracie Jerome, Amani Hughes and Ka Yee Mak.  

Donald Trump is set to be sworn in as President of the United States of America for the second time - but, from TikTok and the southern border, to Ukraine and the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza - he faces even bigger challenges than he did eight years ago.   Will he really end the Ukraine war on day one, pardon the January 6 rioters in the “first hour” and potentially bring back TikTok? And while his personal brand of right-wing populism is totally dominant now, will there be a progressive backlash or resistance?   In this week’s episode of the Fourcast, Matt Frei is joined by Channel 4 News's very own America experts - Siobhan Kennedy and Kiran Moodley.   Produced by Calum Fraser, Rob Thomson, Ka Yee Mak.

Israel and Hamas have finally reached a ceasefire deal over the war in Gaza days before Donald Trump takes over from Joe Biden as the next US president - but Benjamin Netanyahu’s government hasn't signed it yet - and while Palestinians in Gaza are celebrating, there’s still a chance it could be derailed. Yet, if the deal holds, it will be a historic moment, but why has it taken so long and what’s next for the people of Gaza and Israel? In this episode of the Fourcast, Matt Frei is joined by Channel 4 News International Editor Lindsey Hilsum and Foreign Correspondent Secunder Kermani to discuss all the unanswered questions. Produced by Silvia Maresca, Calum Fraser, Ka Yee Mak, Rob Thomson.