Global Dispatches -- World News That Matters

In February 2021, the Myanmar military toppled the civilian government of Burma, lead by Aung San Suu Kyi. Mass protests followed this coup and were brutally suppressed by the military junta. Soon, an insurgency sprang up. For much of this conflict, the Burmese military has had the upper hand.  But things changed dramatically in recent weeks. Now, the Burmese military looks as weak as it ever has in its nearly 40 years of on and off again control of Myanmar. The Junta's defeat suddenly looks like a real possibility.  Joining me to provide important context for understanding the civil war in Myanmar is Gregory Poling, director of the Southeast Asia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. We kick off discussing the outbreak of conflict in Myanmar following the 2021 coup. Gregory Poling does a good job of breaking down the complexities of a civil war that involves a wide number of ethnic armed groups, many of which have now joined in an alliance to defeat Burmese military. We also discuss the role of China and the United States, and whether or not we can expect a collapse of the Myanmar Junta in the near future. 

This episode of Global Dispatches was recorded as a live taping of the podcast, produced in partnership with CGIAR, a global research partnership for a food-secure future dedicated to transforming food, land, and water systems in a climate crisis. Global Dispatches and CGIAR are partnering on a series of episodes about the nexus between climate and security. In our conversation today expert panelists discuss the path to resilient societies in a polycrisis era and soft launch CGIAR's new Climate Security Sensitivity Tool to assess the peace potential of climate adaptation The episode kicks off with some opening remarks from, Peter Laderach, Co-lead CGIAR Climate Security, Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT  I then moderate a panel discussion featuring : Carolina Sarzana – Climate Security Specialist with CGIAR, the Alliance of Bioveristy and CIAT  Linda Ogallo – Climate Change Adaptation Expert at the Climate Prediction and Applications Centre, Intergovernmental Authority on Development Suzanna Huber -- Climate and Energy Advisor World Food Programme, Regional Bureau Eastern Africa Erick Mariga -- Regional Fragility and Resilience Coordinator, at the Africa Development Bank Group Mana Farooghi -- Climate and Environment Adviser at the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office  

Raj Shah, former USAID administrator and current President of the Rockefeller Foundation, discusses his book on the importance of 'big bets' for systemic change in global development. He emphasizes the need for ambitious strategies to combat issues like hunger, health crises, and climate change. Through examples like Gavi and lessons from COVID-19, he illustrates the impact of high-stakes commitments. Shah advocates for transformational approaches, highlighting the role of innovation and local partnerships in achieving sustainable development goals.

I caught up with Estonia's top military commander General Martin Herem at the Halifax International Security Forum in November. Estonia is a NATO member that borders Russia and I was interested in drawing out General Herem's perspective on the conflict in Ukraine.  We kick off with General Herem's military and strategic analysis of the current state of play of the war in Ukraine. We then have an extended conversation about the implications of a long and drawn out war for frontline countries like Estonia -- and for Europe more broadly. He explains what he believes Ukraine needs to break the current military impasse, and why a long war in Ukraine undermines Estonian security.  https://www.globaldispatches.org/   

There is a mounting humanitarian emergency on the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Since October, hundreds of thousands of Afghans living in Pakistan have fled back to Afghanistan. They are being forcibly repatriated by the Pakistani government which began a crackdown on so-called illegal immigrants, compelling the expulsion of over three hundred thousand Afghans in just the last few weeks.  On the line to explain the unfolding humanitarian crisis is Samira Sayed-Rahman, director of policy advocacy and communications for The International Rescue Committee in Afghanistan. We kick off discussing the reasons for Pakistan's sudden crackdown and then discuss the crisis this is generating inside Afghanistan. We also discuss the complications of international humanitarian relief work in Afghanistan under Taliban rule.    

This episode of Global Dispatches was recorded as a live taping of the podcast, produced in partnership with CGIAR, a global research partnership for a food-secure future dedicated to transforming food, land, and water systems in a climate crisis. Global Dispatches and CGIAR are partnering on a series of episodes about the nexus between climate and security. In our conversation today expert panelists discuss the multiple benefits of climate adaptation for disaster related displacement.  The episode kicks off with some opening remarks from, Peter Laderach, Co-lead CGIAR Climate Security, Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT  I then moderate a panel discussion featuring : Michelle Yonetani, Senior Policy Officer, Office of the Special Advisor to the High Commissioner on Climate Action, UNHCR  Sandra Ruckstuhl, Senior Researcher, International Water Management Institute and Co-lead, CGIAR Fragility, Conflict and Migration Initiative Tasneem Siddiqui, Professor, University of Dhaka   Raphaela Shveiger, Yale World Fellow, Yale University  

I caught up with Congressman Jason Crow at the Halifax International Security Forum, a major global security conference held each year in Nova Scotia that brings together military leaders, politicians, media and civil society groups from democratic countries. Congressman Crow is a Democrat from Colorado, first elected in 2019 and someone widely viewed as a rising star in national security and foreign policy circles. We discuss the Israel-Palestine crisis, kicking off with a question about the propriety of calling for a ceasefire. We then discuss the impact this crisis is having in the broader Middle East, on domestic politics in the United States --  and why Israel should not repeat the mistakes of the US War on Terror.    

This episode was recorded as a live taping of the podcast, produced in partnership with CGIAR, a global research partnership for a food-secure future dedicated to transforming food, land, and water systems in a climate crisis. It is part of a series of episodes about the nexus between climate and security, and in our conversation today expert panelists discuss the multiple benefits of climate Adaptation for Peace Building and Human Security. The episode kicks off with some opening remarks from, Cesare Scartozzi, Climate Finance and Peace Specialist, Senior research fellow, CGIAR/Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT  I then moderate a panel discussion featuring : Grazia Pacillo,   Senior Scientist and co-lead CGIAR FOCUS - Climate Security Catherine Wong, Team Leader for Climate and Security Risk at the United Nations Development Programme Helana de Jong is Senior Specialist for Fragility with the COP28 UAE Presidency  

In early November the United States and China held their first talks on nuclear security and arms control since 2019. The talks came ahead of a much anticipated meeting between President Biden and President Xi in San Francisco. There were no tangible outcomes from these initial nuclear security talks, but the fact that they happened at all is a sign of progress according to my guest today Rachel Elizabeth Whitlark. She is an Associate Professor in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs at the Georgia Institute of Technology and a Nonresident senior fellow in the Forward Defense practice of the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security. She is also author of the book "All Options on the Table: Leaders, Preventive War, and Nuclear Proliferation" which includes archival research on how past US administrations approached the Chinese nuclear program. And as you will see from our conversation, that history is instructive for understanding why China may be seeking to expand its nuclear program today.   https://www.patreon.com/GlobalDispatches https://www.globaldispatches.org/  

The much anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive began in earnest in June and certainly made some gains, but nothing approaching expectations. Ukraine's top military commander admitted the conflict was a stalemate, likening it to the trench warfare of World War One. Meanwhile the world's attention has shifted to the Middle East and the future of American support for Ukraine is uncertain.  Joining me from Kyiv is journalist Tim Mak. He's been in Ukraine for most of the last two years to report on the war, first for NPR ans now on his substack publication called The Counter-Offensive with Tim Mak. We kick off discussing the current state of the war in Ukraine and the significance of the top commander's remarks. We then discuss how this seemingly bleak moment for Ukraine is impacting the lives of Ukrainians and the domestic political implications of a future in which an outright Ukrainian victory is looking less and less likely.