On Shifting Ground

April marked the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday agreement, bringing to an end decades of violence known as “The Troubles.” But the chaotic implementation of Brexit and a new Northern Ireland Troubles “reconciliation” law from the UK are threatening that historic peace deal. From our friends at Foreign Policy’s “The Negotiators,” Jonathan Powell, a chief negotiator of the Good Friday agreement, shares what actually happened in the room. Find the show’s new season wherever you get your podcasts. Guest: Jonathan Powell, chief negotiator for the Good Friday Talks under UK Prime Minister Tony Blair Foreign Policy Production Team: Host: Jenn Williams | Executive producers: Amjad Atallah, Jigar Mehta, and Japhet Weeks | Lead producer: Laura Rosbrow-Telem | Managing Editor: Dan Ephron | Additional support from: Rob Sachs, Rosie Julin, and Maria Ximena Aragon If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

If military cooperation with North Korea is a violation of UN Security Council resolutions, why would Russia do it so publicly? And what’s in it for the Hermit Kingdom? Andrei Lankov, Director at NK News, joins Ray Suarez to explain why Kim Jong Un is solidifying relations with Russia… and not China. Guest: Andrei Lankov, Director at NK News and Professor at Kookmin University Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Russia is firing off more artillery shells than they can produce at home, forcing the Kremlin to shop around for a new supplier. Ray Suarez speaks with New York Times’ national security reporter Julian Barnes about Russia’s alleged arms deal with North Korea, and what it means for the war in Ukraine. Guest: Julian Barnes, national security reporter for The New York Times Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

As many as 150,000 US auto workers have walked out in a historic strike against the Big Three Automakers. In this special rerun episode, Mark Phelan, auto writer and columnist for the Detroit Free Press, joins Ray Suarez to break down why electric vehicles and wages are a red line for autoworkers. Guests: Shawn Fain, President of the United Auto Workers Mark Phelan, auto writer and columnist for the Detroit Free Press Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

In 2023, the rapid pace of innovation in Silicon Valley is making it increasingly challenging for our global partners to keep up. Ray Suarez speaks with Gerard de Graaf, Senior Envoy for Digital to the US, about strengthening US-EU cooperation on digital affairs. Then, Caitlin Chin, Strategic Technologies Program Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, returns with an update on the latest digital drama between Washington and Beijing… and where a possible TikTok ban goes from here. Guests: Gerard de Graaf, Senior Envoy for Digital to the U.S. and head of the EU office in San Francisco Caitlin Chin, Strategic Technologies Program Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Is West Africa going to war over Niger? And is the Niger coup part of a wider decline in French colonial influence – and growing Russian and Chinese interest – in the region? Ray Suarez sits down with security analyst Fola Aina and journalist Nabila Ramdani to discuss the coup in Niger – and across former French colonies in the Sahel region. They explain why the Niger coup could help the Wagner Group expand influence. Guests: Fola Aina, international security analyst at the Royal United Services Institute of Security and Defense Studies in London Nabila Ramdani, French journalist and author of “Fixing France, How to Repair a Broken Republic” Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

What will happen to Wagner without Prigozhin? And can Russia continue to isolate itself from the economic chaos its war has created? Ray Suarez speaks with Catherine Belton, The Washington Post’s Russia reporter, about the mercenary organization’s future and the price Russians — ordinary and oligarch — are paying for Putin’s power plays. Guest: Catherine Belton, international investigative reporter for The Washington Post and author of “Putin's People” Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

On August 23rd, Yevgeny Prigozhin was killed in a mysterious plane crash just 60 days after his mercenary group Wagner led a failed coup attempt that Russian president Vladimir Putin called “treasonous.” Atlantic staff writer Anne Applebaum argues that Putin needed a spectacular act of violence after Prigozhin’s challenge to his power. She and Ray discuss what this means for a fragile Russia. Read Applebaum’s latest column for The Atlantic, Prigozhin’s Death Heralds Even More Spectacular Violence - The Atlantic. Guest: Anne Applebaum, Pulitzer-Prize winning historian, author of Twilight of Democracy: The Seductive Lure of Authoritarianism and staff writer at The Atlantic. Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

The aftermath of the Chinese surveillance balloon saga reveals a growing diplomatic divide between the US and China. Where does this mistrust come from? In “Wealth and Power,” authors Orville Schell and John Delury argue that foreign humiliation over the past century and a half is the story that holds China together. They join host Ray Suarez to discuss China’s quest for global dominance. Guests: John Delury, US Professor of Chinese Studies at Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea Orville Schell, director of the Center on US-China relations at the Asia Society Host: Ray Suarez, host of World Affairs If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Groups like the Reichsbürger and Sovereign Citizens are not new, but the ways in which they radicalize each other on the Internet are. Ray Suarez and journalist Julia Ebner explore how once-fringe movements like QAnon are popping up in European political circles. Guest: Julia Ebner, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue and author of “Going Dark: The Secret Lives of Extremists” Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

When former President Trump incited his followers to storm the US Capitol, he punctured a 220-year-old tradition in the US. And from the looks of things, the country is headed for another contentious election in 2024. Ray Suarez and New York Times columnist Tom Edsall explore whether we’ve passed a point of no return in American politics. Guest: Thomas B. Edsall, political columnist at The New York Times and author of “The Point of No Return: American Democracy at the Crossroads” Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Asian carmakers have pulled ahead in the race for EV innovation, leaving the US in their rearview mirrors. International auto journalist Hans Greimel joins Ray Suarez to break down how Asian countries are tackling the transition, and what the future of electric vehicles looks like. Guest: Hans Greimel, Asia editor for Automotive News Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

President Biden’s bold energy future features significant investment in electric vehicles, but the United Auto Workers are pumping the breaks. Mark Phelan, auto writer and columnist for the Detroit Free Press, joins Ray Suarez to break down why the threat of EVs is a red line for autoworkers. Guest: Mark Phelan, auto writer and columnist for the Detroit Free Press Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Elon Musk’s leadership at “X” (formerly Twitter) has been messy, and his disregard for user safeguards is part of a troubling trend in Silicon Valley. Ray Suarez sits down with NYU professor Dr. Scott Galloway to explore how Silicon Valley’s profit-chasing – and unchecked influence – is destroying American society… and our kids. Guest: Scott Galloway, Professor of Marketing at NYU Stern School of Business Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

With a few keystrokes, users across the world can find virtually anything online. But at what cost? UC Berkeley researchers Alexa Koenig and Andrea Lampros join Ray Suarez to break down how everyday exposure to trauma is affecting social media users worldwide, and to discuss their upcoming book, “Graphic: Trauma and Meaning in our Online Lives.” Plus: check out our past conversation with Alexa Koenig on How Technology Fights – and Fuels – Misinformation to learn more about what UC Berkeley’s Human Rights Investigations Lab does. Guests: Alexa Koenig and Andrea Lampros, co-founders of UC Berkeley’s Human Rights Center Investigations Lab and co-authors of “Graphic: Trauma and Meaning in our Online Lives” Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

In June, retired General David Petraeus joined the Marines’ Memorial Association “Leading From the Front” speaker series, where he offered insights on how small nations can contend with formidable superpowers, and how President Volodymyr Zelenskyy scored the role of a lifetime. Guest: General David Petraeus, Former CIA Director and Chairman of the KKR Global Institute Host: Mike Cerre, PBSNewsHour Special Correspondent If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

After 20 years of “forever wars,” the American contest for influence and control in the Middle East hasn’t stopped. But now the US has company, and the countries in the region have options. Mara Rudman, Executive Vice President for Policy at the Center for American Progress, joins Ray Suarez to dissect the delicate state of play in the Middle East. Guest: Mara Rudman, Executive Vice President for Policy at the Center for American Progress Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

At the 2023 APEC Forum in Detroit, Malaysian Deputy Minister Liew Chin Tong tells Ray Suarez how spaces like APEC are key to balancing relationships with competing superpowers. Then, Deputy Secretary Vangelis Vitalis shares how the demand for traditional Kiwi exports has kept Aotearoa’s economy afloat. Guest: Liew Chin Tong, Deputy Minister of Malaysian Investment, Trade and Industry Vangelis Vitalis, Deputy Secretary, New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

US Trade Representative Katherine Tai played host to the APEC Forum in Detroit, where she balanced American interests, international trade agreements and ongoing rivalries with China. Ambassador Tai joined Ray Suarez to speak about how that meeting went, and what it really means to put workers at the center of US trade policy. Guest: Ambassador Katherine Tai, US Trade Representative Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.

Researcher Christopher Reddy has watched in despair as public confidence in science has plummeted. He joins Ray Suarez to discuss his new book, “Science Communication in a Crisis,” and why scientists may be part of the problem in science denialism. Guest: Christopher Reddy, Senior Scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and author of “Science Communication in a Crisis” Host: Ray Suarez If you appreciate this episode and want to support the work we do, please consider making a donation to World Affairs. We cannot do this work without your help. Thank you.