Mark Leonard's World in 30 Minutes

Discussing NATO's future without US support, implications for France, Poland, and Germany, challenges facing their militaries, and impact on Ukraine. Exploring the role of the Weimar Triangle in European defense and reducing dependency on America.

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 this special episode, Mark Leonard welcomes the head of ECFR Paris and senior policy fellow Célia Belin to discuss the unexpected results of this snap election. What changed between the first and second round that led to such drastically different results? How are parties organising themselves within their electoral alliances? What are the coalition options for this new distribution in the National Assembly and who is the leading choice for prime minister?   Bookshelf  Ravage, by René Barjavel Represent, directed by Francois Uzan and Jean-Pascal Zadi  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After 14 years of Conservative government in the United Kingdom, the Labour Party is back. Dissatisfaction with economic and tax policies, various political scandals, and a growing distrust in the Conservative leadership have all contributed to a Labour majority in the UK parliament. And, while the new Labour-led cabinet has already distanced itself from the prospect of rejoining the European Union is now potential for greater economic cooperation and alignment in a post-Brexit EU-UK relationship. In this emergency episode of the World in 30 Minutes, Mark Leonard welcomes ECFR Council Member and French Europe Minister, Laurence Boone, the last British European commissioner before Brexit, Julian King, and Britain’s former permanent representative to the EU, Ivan Rogers, to discuss what the Labour victory means for the UK and Europe. What are prime minister Keir Starmer’s, and new foreign secretary David Lammy’s, plan for future EU-UK relations? And, in turn, what exactly does Europe expect from the UK?  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Iran plays a key role in the global order. The leadership in Tehran asserts Iran’s role in the Middle East through the backing of allied groups, most notably Hizbullah in Lebanon. Meanwhile, on the global stage, its nuclear program has positioned Iran as an adversary of the West, and as a result the country faces heavy economic sanctions. In the second episode of the Re:Order series, Mark Leonard welcomes Nasser Hadian, professor of political science at the University of Tehran, where he served as the director of graduate studies, to delve into Iran’s geopolitical positioning. To what extent does Iran replicate its strategy of regional influence and deterrence on the world stage[PK2] ? How does Iran’s relationships with China and Russia affect the global order? How does Iranian participation in new institutions such as BRICS+ and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation shape both the organisations themselves and Iran’s foreign policy?This podcast is part of Re:Order and was produced with support from Stiftung Mercator.We encountered some technical difficulties during the recording process and apologize for the not optimal sound quality.BookshelfWorks by Javad Zarif Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ayşe Zarakol, an expert on Turkey and international relations, discusses middle power countries' role in shaping global order beyond the West. The podcast explores how Turkey utilizes new international institutions to diversify its alliances and enhance leverage. It also delves into Turkey's evolving foreign policy stance under Erdogan's leadership and the need for Western governments to adapt to changing power dynamics.

European Parliament elections show far-right gains in France, Germany, and Italy. Election fatigue in Bulgaria with low turn-out. Support for pro-EU parties in Poland and Spain. Discussions on shifts in the EU's political landscape and implications of the election results across Europe. Macron's snap election decision in France. Speculation on Ursula von der Leyen becoming the new European Commission president.

How is America’s domestic politics impacting the war in Ukraine? Last week, the Biden administration authorised Ukraine to use US-supplied weapons to strike within Russia’s borders – but, beyond July’s NATO Summit, the United States’ long-term strategy is unclear. As well as how the Biden administration’s response to Ukraine might develop, this uncertainty will only grow should the American public elect Donald Trump again in November.In this week’s episode, Mark Leonard welcomes Jeremy Shapiro, director of research and director of ECFR’s US programme, to discuss the next moves in US policy on Russia’s war in Ukraine. What are the motivations behind the Biden administration’s latest decision? What is the American domestic consensus on supporting the war in Ukraine? And is it possible for NATO to protect itself from Trump?This episode was recorded on 5 June 2024.BookshelfU.S. escalation in Ukraine needs a plan, by Jeremy Shapiro and Samuel CharapAssyria: The Rise and Fall of the World’'s First Empire, by Eckart FrahmNew Cold Wars: China’s Rise, Russia’s Invasion, and America’s Struggle to Defend the West, by David E. Sanger Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the past couple of decades, China has produced a multitude of big tech giants. Companies like Alibaba, Tencent, ByteDance and others are well on their way to becoming household names, unique in their ability to rival their American counterparts, such as Amazon, Google, or Microsoft. Still, their relationship with the Chinese state is far from frictionless, as shown by China’s October 2020 tech crackdown, in which they unleased of an array of regulatory measures against big tech firms.In this week’s episode, Mark Leonard welcomes Angela Zhang, associate professor of law at the University of Hong Kong and director of the Philip K.H. Wong Centre for Chinese Law, to discuss China’s big tech regulation. How is China regulating its big tech firms? What role do these firms play in China’s competition with Europe and the United States? And what are the lessons for Europe’s own attempts at tech regulation?This episode was recorded on 21 May 2024BookshelfHigh Wire: How China Regulates Big Tech and Governs Its Economy, by Angela ZhangWuhan: How the COVID-19 Outbreak in China Spiraled Out of Control, by Dali L. Yang Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Explore the global spread of political technology from its roots in Russia, affecting democracies worldwide. Learn about the manipulation tactics used, including data mining, astroturfing, and propaganda apps. Discover how political technology influences elections in various countries, and the challenges democracies face in defending themselves against manipulation techniques.

A key priority for both the European Union and the United States is to reduce dependencies on China in green industries. Only this week, the United States announced a ramping up of tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles, solar panels, steel, and other goods. However, with China’s dominant position in the production of green technologies, European policymakers are facing difficult decisions when it comes to de-risking. Again and again, national security and domestic economic considerations have to be weighed against the effects of climate change.  In this week’s episode, Mark Leonard welcomes Robbie Diamond, founder and CEO of SAFE, and of its European Initiative for Energy Security (EIES), and Janka Oertel, director of ECFR’s Asia programme and co-author of ECFR’s upcoming policy brief on de-risking, to discuss de-risking and the future of Europe’s green industries. How should the EU tackle the issue of dependency on China? Is it possible to find a sweet spot between successful de-risking and not slowing down the green transition? And how is the US response different from the EU’s? This episode was recorded on 15 May 2024  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.