Global Roaming with Geraldine Doogue and Hamish Macdonald

A great re-balancing is underway from the Western world to a much more diverse future.As developing nations rise up with greater wealth, military power, demographic heft and cultural influence, will Western nations give up their privileged positions willingly?Guest: Dr Samir Puri, author of Westlessness: The great global rebalancing; Director, Global Governance and Security Centre at Chatham House; former UK diplomat Get in touch:We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

AUKUS doesn't only affect us. From the time that it was announced there were mixed reactions from our neighbours - some who wanted in, and some who thought it unwise and provocative. A big part of the fear - both regionally and within Australia - concerns the nuclear question. As the first non-nuclear country to ever acquire a conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarine, can we be confident of our own safety? And what happens to the waste that will remain dangerous for generations of Australians to come? NOTE: This podcast was first released on 20 December 2024.GUESTS:Gareth Evans - former Australian Foreign Minister (1988 –1996).Maria Rost Rublee - Associate Professor of International Relations at Monash University, with expertise in international security and nuclear politics.Dr Evan Laksmana - Senior Fellow for Southeast Asia Military Modernisation at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).GET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

The death of Pope Francis closes the door on a papacy that was focused on the plight of migrants and other vulnerable groups. In this emergency episode, what was the Pontiff's contribution to global politics and who might come after him?Get in touch:We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Election day is looming at a time when events beyond our borders are shaping the debate as much as the politicians are. The major parties have avoided discussion of foreign policy, despite the need for new policies and partnerships for this uncertain time. With no scheduled debate on foreign policy, we discuss some of the key questions confronting the nation with:Tim Watts, the Assistant Minister for Foreign AffairsSenator Dave Sharma Independent MP Zoe DanielGet in touch:We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Palau is a tiny Pacific nation located in one of the hottest geo-strategic areas on Earth. They are highly dependent on the US for finance and defence but subject to Chinese pressure to revoke their formal recognition of Taiwan. Despite these challenges, Palau's greatest concern is actually the threat of climate change making parts of their country uninhabitable.Guest: President of Palau Surangel Whipps Jr. Get in touch:We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Donald Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariffs are laser-focused on Southeast Asia, with manufacturing countries singled out for the highest tax rates.Australia has got off lightly, but can we avoid the blow back when our region is under pressure?Where do Australia's best interests really lie?Guest: Dr Joseph Liow, author of Navigating Uncertainty: Our Region in an Age of Flux; Tan Kah Kee Chair in international politics, Nanyang Technological University; Singapore representative to ASEAN advisory board. Recommendations:Geraldine: 'I should have seen this coming', The AtlanticHamish: 'Trump’s tariffs will push Southeast Asia uncomfortably close to China', Chatham HouseGet in touch:We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

What is Beijing thinking as it watches Western governments grapple with the chaos created by the US?Does China view the fracturing of long-standing US alliances and trading relationships as an opportunity, or do they share the concerns about what is coming?Guest: Zhou Bo, Senior Colonel (Retired) in the People’s Liberation Army, author of Should the World Fear China? Senior fellow at Tsinghua University’s Center for International Security and StrategyRecommendations:Geraldine: 'China rethinking its role', Engelsberg IdeasHamish: 'Why a weight-loss drug could become a geopolitical bargaining chip', FTGet in touch:We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Donald Trump's strategy on tariffs is inspired by the 'Gilded Age' of US history, when the federal government drew most of its income from taxes on foreign imports. Now some of America's closest allies have been slapped with tariffs and there are growing risks of a trade war.Guest: Justin Wolfers, professor of public policy and economics at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, University of MichiganRecommendations:Geraldine: 'The Wonders of Europe', SBS on DemandHamish: Sir Gareth Southgate - Boys need role models not gaming and porn, BBC Get in touch:We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

The Irish rockstar is fired up as he claims his life's work is being ripped apart by the new US administration. In this passionate and surprising conversation Sir Bob discusses cuts to aid budgets in the US and UK, what Australia should be doing to stand up to Donald Trump and why he no longer listens to music. Guest: Bob Geldof, musician and co-founder of the Band Aid Charitable TrustRecommendations: Geraldine: Repeat: A Warning from History, Dennis GloverHamish: Queen performs at Live Aid, 1985Get in touch: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Former Prime Minister Paul Keating has said of AUKUS that "we don't need to be a pair of shoes hanging out of America's backside". Is that a fair characterisation of Australia's position vis a vis AUKUS? Are we getting the short end of the stick with this deal, and sacrificing our sovereignty to boot? NOTE: This podcast was first released on 20 December 2024.GUESTS:Sam Roggeveen - Director of the Lowy Institute’s International Security Program. He is the author of The Echidna Strategy: Australia’s Search for Power and PeaceMalcolm Turnbull - 29th Prime Minister of Australia 2015-2018.Richard Marles - the Deputy Prime Minister of Australia, Minister for Defence and the Federal Member for Corio.GET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

There was jubilation in Syria last year when Bashar Al-Assad fled the country after 14 years of civil war.But peace won't come easy and the country's new rulers face a host of hurdles as they try to bring order to a country riven by years of conflict.GUEST: Heidi Pett - Freelance producer, journalist and videographer.Get in touch:We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

The United States is tearing down the foundations that have underpinned the west since the end of the second world war.Traditional alliances have been turned on their head, and Australia is not immune.Should we go it alone without our biggest ally, and are Australia's future leaders ready for the job ahead?Guests: Latika Bourke - Writer at Large, The Nightly and an Expert Associate at the ANU’s National Security College. Sam Roggeveen - Director of the Lowy Institute's International Security Program Recommendations:Geraldine: What Trump miscalculates about American power | The Saturday PaperHamish: Trump and the end of American soft powerGet in touch:We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

In this episode Hamish and Geraldine examine the strategic thinking behind AUKUS. If China has undertaken the most rapid military expansion of any country since WWII, how does the AUKUS pact factor into Beijing's thinking? And does a plan that ties us more closely to the United States make us more or less safe?NOTE: This podcast was first released on 20 December 2024.GUESTS:Zhou Bo – Senior Colonel (Ret.) of China's People's Liberation Army, is Senior Fellow at the Center for International Security and Strategy, Tsinghua University. Vice Admiral Mark Hammond - Chief of the Royal Australian Navy.Hugh Jeffrey - Deputy Secretary Strategy, Policy, and Industry, Department of DefenceGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

As talk of American isolationism under Donald Trump grows louder, big questions are being asked about the future of the US-Australia alliance.How should Australia see its place in the Indo-Pacific if China ultimately takes control of east Asia?Guest: Hugh White - Emeritus Professor of Strategic Studies at the Australian National University.Recommendations:Geraldine: SpielbergHamish: Deal With Kurds May Benefit Erdogan at Home and AbroadGet in touch:We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Hamish and Geraldine react to the showdown in Washington DC as Donald Trump seemingly all but abandons support for Ukraine in its war against Russia. Guest: Nick Bryant - Host of Saturday Extra and former Washington correspondent for the BBC.Get in touch: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Australia's top spy sits down for a candid conversation with Hamish and Geraldine about the modern art of spycraft and the current threats - foreign and domestic - facing Australia.Guest: Mike Burgess - Director-General of Security in charge of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation.Recommendations:Geraldine: The Rest is Politics: Leading - The new President of SyriaHamish: There's a term for what Trump and Musk are doing - Anne ApplebaumGet in touch: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

The plan for us to acquire nuclear submarines has been dubbed the 'Optimal Pathway', but achieving it will be no mean feat. In this episode we explore what the scheme involves, what the key challenges are to making it work, and we get some cold hard facts about what it is really going to cost us. NOTE: This podcast was first released on 20 December 2024.GUESTS:Jennifer Parker - expert associate at the national security college ANU, an adjunct fellow at UNSW, and associate fellow at the Council on Geostrategy.Vice Admiral Peter Jones - a retired senior officer in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), who served as the Chief Capability Development Group (CCDG) from 2011 until his retirement in October 2014.Vice Admiral Jonathan Mead - the inaugural Director-General of the Australian Submarine Agency.GET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

If you think political shifts in Germany don't effect the rest of the world, think again. The country has been rocked by the interference of American Vice President JD Vance and Elon Musk, who are openly backing the far-right, and the security of Europe may hang on whoever takes power next. Guest: Dr Constanze Stelzenmüller - Director of the Center on the United States and Europe and the inaugural holder of the Fritz Stern Chair on Germany and trans-Atlantic Relations at Brookings.Recommendations:Geraldine: Who will defend Europe? Keir Giles, FT.Hamish: German Election Campaign Flooded with Fake News and Videos Spiegel International.Get in touch: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

In a special mini-series, Geraldine Doogue and Hamish Macdonald get the answers to all your burning questions about AUKUS. In this first episode, we investigate how AUKUS came about - who spoke to who, what the true motivation was for going nuclear and whether the total secrecy around the deal was justified. NOTE: This podcast was first released on 20 December 2024.GUESTS: Andrew Fowler - investigative journalist and author of Nuked: The Submarine Fiasco that Sank Australia’s Sovereignty (MUP), which won the 2024 Walkley Book Award.Scott Morrison - 30th Prime Minister of Australia, now Non-Executive Vice Chairman of the US-headquartered advisory and consulting firm American Global Strategies LLC and member of several advisory boards, including the DYNE Strategic Advisory Board.GET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

We've handed over $798 million to the US, but can we really be sure that President Trump is as 'supportive' of AUKUS as we've been told? It's just one of the burning questions you've been sending us about AUKUS, that we'll be answering in this special Q&A episode of Global Roaming. Guests: Jennifer Parker - Expert Associate at ANU’s National Security College, wo has over 20 years of service with the Royal Australian Navy (RAN).Rex Patrick - former Senator for South Australia and earlier a submariner in the armed forces. Rex is running for the Senate on the Lambie Network ticket this year. Recommendations:Jennifer: The Hunt for Red OctoberRex: Down PeriscopeGet in touch: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Canada has a lot going on right now. It's facing a potential trade war with the United States, President Trump wants it to become the 51st US state and its long-standing leader Justin Trudeau is set to depart in March, ahead of a general election where a Conservative victory looks likely. Former leader of Canada's Liberal Party Michael Ignatieff joins Geraldine and Hamish to discuss why he is taking President Trump's threats very seriously, and why he thinks we should too. Guest: Michael Ignatieff - former leader of the Liberal party of Canada. He teaches history at Central European University, Vienna. Audio grab courtesy of Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.Recommendations:Geraldine: Fire and Ashes: Success and Failure in Politics, by Michael IgnatieffHamish: Syria's new Islamist president consolidates power, Financial TimesGet in touch: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

A scrappy Chinese startup turned the tech world on its head this week, when news broke that DeepSeek had developed a competitive AI model much faster and cheaper than anyone thought possible. Does this mean China has pulled ahead in the arms race that could define our time? And what's really at stake in the battle for AI supremacy?Guest: Alice Han - an expert in Chinese macroeconomics, political economy, and global fintech and the Director of China at Greenmantle.Recommendations:Geraldine: Rogue Russia: nuclear poker - Slow Newscast podcast by Tortoise Media Hamish: A bushwalkGet in touch: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Geraldine and Hamish ask Donald Trump’s longest serving national security advisor whether there is method to what seems like madness in President Trump’s foreign policy announcements, and they get a message for Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Guest: Ambassador John Bolton - served as national security adviser under US President Donald Trump for 17 months and is the author of "The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir". Recommendations:Geraldine: Canada, Trump and the new world order by Michael IgnatieffHamish: Freedom by Angela MerkelGet in touch: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

There are two states that have the most to gain, and the most to lose, when it comes to AUKUS: South Australia and Western Australia. In the final episode of AUKUS Investigated Hamish and Geraldine speak to South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas about why he thinks the rest of the country needs to come to the AUKUS party. GET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

AUKUS doesn't only affect us. From the time that it was announced there were mixed reactions from our neighbours - some who wanted in, and some who thought it unwise and provocative. A big part of the fear - both regionally and within Australia - concerns the nuclear question. As the first non-nuclear country to ever acquire a conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarine, can we be confident of our own safety? And what happens to the waste that will remain dangerous for generations of Australians to come? *Correction: An earlier version of this caption suggested that Australia is acquiring a nuclear weapon, which is incorrect. The caption has been updated to reflect that Australia is acquiring conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarines. GUESTS:Gareth Evans - former Australian Foreign Minister (1988 –1996).Maria Rost Rublee - Associate Professor of International Relations at Monash University, with expertise in international security and nuclear politics.Dr Evan Laksmana - Senior Fellow for Southeast Asia Military Modernisation at the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).GET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Former Prime Minister Paul Keating has said of AUKUS that "we don't need to be a pair of shoes hanging out of America's backside". Is that a fair characterisation of Australia's position vis a vis AUKUS? Are we getting the short end of the stick with this deal, and sacrificing our sovereignty to boot? GUESTS:Sam Roggeveen - Director of the Lowy Institute’s International Security Program. He is the author of The Echidna Strategy: Australia’s Search for Power and PeaceMalcolm Turnbull - 29th Prime Minister of Australia 2015-2018.Richard Marles - the Deputy Prime Minister of Australia, Minister for Defence and the Federal Member for Corio.GET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

In this episode Hamish and Geraldine examine the strategic thinking behind AUKUS. If China has undertaken the most rapid military expansion of any country since WWII, how does the AUKUS pact factor into Beijing's thinking? And does a plan that ties us more closely to the United States make us more or less safe?GUESTS:Zhou Bo – Senior Colonel (Ret.) of China's People's Liberation Army, is Senior Fellow at the Center for International Security and Strategy, Tsinghua University. Vice Admiral Mark Hammond - Chief of the Royal Australian Navy.Hugh Jeffrey - Deputy Secretary Strategy, Policy, and Industry, Department of DefenceGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

The plan for us to acquire nuclear submarines has been dubbed the 'Optimal Pathway', but achieving it will be no mean feat. In this episode we explore what the scheme involves, what the key challenges are to making it work, and we get some cold hard facts about what it is really going to cost us. GUESTS:Jennifer Parker - expert associate at the national security college ANU, an adjunct fellow at UNSW, and associate fellow at the Council on Geostrategy.Vice Admiral Peter Jones - a retired senior officer in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), who served as the Chief Capability Development Group (CCDG) from 2011 until his retirement in October 2014.Vice Admiral Jonathan Mead - the inaugural Director-General of the Australian Submarine Agency.GET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

In a special mini-series, Geraldine Doogue and Hamish Macdonald get the answers to all your burning questions about AUKUS. In this first episode, we investigate how AUKUS came about - who spoke to who, what the true motivation was for going nuclear and whether the total secrecy around the deal was justified. GUESTS: Andrew Fowler - investigative journalist and author of Nuked: The Submarine Fiasco that Sank Australia’s Sovereignty (MUP), which won the 2024 Walkley Book Award.Scott Morrison - 30th Prime Minister of Australia, now Non-Executive Vice Chairman of the US-headquartered advisory and consulting firm American Global Strategies LLC and member of several advisory boards, including the DYNE Strategic Advisory Board.GET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

2024 has been an extraordinary year in terms of global affairs. And as we try to wind down, events internationally have been ramping up.Global Roaming's inaugural year has been packed, and we thank our audience for being so engaged. This episode we highlight some of those moments and look back at what an incredible year it's been around the world.GET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

A short bonus episode where Geraldine and Hamish discuss the shock fall of Damascus, and the rest of Syria, to opposition group Hayat Tahir al-Sham. The hardline Sunni Islamic group has its roots in Al Qaeda but has refined its image to be more moderate. With Syrian president Bashar al-Assad and family getting asylum in Russia, Syrians around the world are celebrating. But what happens next?RECOMMENDATIONS:Hamish: New Yorker: How Syria became the Middle East's drug dealerGeraldine: Firas Maksad with the Middle East InstituteGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

When Hamish visited Finland he met up with Finland's Minister of Education Anders Adlercreutz - although unfortunately not in a sauna.But they do discuss the importance of saunas in keeping Finnish society egalitarian. And of course its focus on public education. Finland takes a holistic approach that gives teachers freedom and flexibility to teach multiple subjects together - a lesson might include maths, geography and art. Schools also focus on creativity, play and practical skills but don't test until the final years. And now the curriculum includes lessons on decoding fake news and assessing online sources for reliability.RECOMMENDATIONS:When Anders Adlercreutz’s cello performance of a patriotic Ukrainian song was widely shared it attracted backlash from Russian officials.GET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Why is Germany in a bit of a funk? How did the superstar of Europe go so far off the rails - even the German trains aren't running on time.Germany is governed by a three party centre-left coalition that's in disarray, a snap election has been called for February, and polls show the main ruling SPD party is set to suffer a big loss. Meanwhile, the far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) is the second most popular party.Tobias Cremer is a German member of the European Parliament and he’s with the SPD party. But he was only elected a few months back so still has several years in parliament, at least. Tobias also has an interesting background researching the relationship between religion, secularisation and the rise of right-wing identity politics throughout western societies.RECOMMENDATIONS:Geraldine: The Granddaughter By Bernhard SchlinkHamish: The Quiet German feature in The New Yorker GET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Last week New Zealand parliament went viral when MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke performed a haka and tore up a controversial bill. And this week tens of thousands of New Zealanders marched in protest, opposing the bill. At the heart of the debate is the Treaty of Waitangi and a bill that seeks to reinterpret it, with some fearing it will dilute Maori rights. Guest: Taiha Molyneux, Māori News Editor Radio New Zealand RECOMMENDATIONS: Hamish - Rear Vision episode on the Treaty of Waitangi and the podcast The Last Voyage of the Rainbow WarriorGeraldine - Fateful mix: Great powers, strongman leaders and manifest destinies, essay by Michael Wesley in Australian Foreign AffairsGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Much has been going on around the world this year so climate and environment have taken a back seat. Now with the US electing a president who calls climate change a hoax, how will conversations and actions change globally? Perhaps there are opportunities for Australia as China increases its dominance. Martijn Wilder joins us to discuss - and it's not all bad. Martijn founded Pollination, a climate change advisory and investment firm that's working to speed up the transition to net zero. But he's worked in climate law and policy for many years, advising governments and organisations. RECOMMENDATIONS:Geraldine: Documentary film Martha on Netflix Hamish: The Jury: Death on the Staircase directed by Tosca Looby on SBS on DemandGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Donald Trump has a mandate to do what he promised after winning easily. But how far will he actually go and how fast? And will he try to unite the country a little, as hinted at in his victory speech? Jonathan Swan, who’s been covering Trump for close to a decade, warns that Trump's been emboldened to take more risk, and little stands in his way this time. Swan is a reporter for The New York Times covering national politics and the US government but known for his Emmy-award winning interview with Trump when he was president.RECOMMENDATIONS:Hamish: The Great Global Rebalancing with Dr Samir Puri - episode of War Studies podcastGeraldine: Noble Fragments: The maverick who broke up the world’s greatest book, by Michael VisontayGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

An election on a knife-edge, and a nation seemingly on the brink. How do we make sense of this fever-pitched moment? First a snapshot from USA Today political reporter Deborah Berry, who's been in Georgia a lot lately. Then we hear how strategist Rachel Bitecofer has advised the Democrats to beat the Republicans at their own game, with less focus on policies and more on negative attacks.And we discuss the deluge of listener feedback to our Niall Ferguson episode. RECOMMENDATIONS:Geraldine: Don Waton's Quarterly Essay - High NoonStopping the Steal documentary on SBS Hamish: Elon Musk's Secret Conversation with Vladimir PutinGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Our friends at If You're Listening have a new series about the US presidential election that we want to tell you about. Donald Trump still refuses to accept the result of the 2020 election. Now he’s on the ballot again, and in his campaign against Kamala Harris he’s calling on his supporters to make the race ‘too big to rig’. In America's Last Election, Matt Bevan leaves his basement and heads to the US, examining the chaotic aftermath of the 2020 election and what it means for the vote this November. Find the latest episodes by searching for If You're Listening in the ABC listen app.

In this extended conversation with Geraldine and Hamish, renowned historian Sir Niall Ferguson warns that Donald Trump is not the biggest threat to American democracy. A bigger threat, he says, lies much closer to Australia...RECOMMENDATIONS:Geraldine: Niall Ferguson: The Treason of the Intellectuals article in The Free PressHamish: The tragedy of a 50-50 America article in the Financial Times by Janan GaneshGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Like it or not, we all have a stake when Americans head to the polls in November. So what would a Harris or Trump presidency mean for the global economy, conflicts in the Middle East and Europe, and an increasingly powerful China?Guest: Edward Luce - US national editor, Financial Times.RECOMMENDATIONS:Geraldine: Secret Documents Show Hamas Tried to Persuade Iran to Join Its Oct. 7 Attack by Ronen Bergman in The New York TimesHamish: The World from Down Under by George Negus.GET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

In the final instalment of our New Frontlines mini-series, we look at the ideological fault-lines that are dividing countries from within. Identity, values and fears are being weaponised by those on the political extremes, and it's working. Guest: Margaritis Schinas - the European Commission vice president for Promoting our European Way of Life.RECOMMENDATIONS:Geraldine: Europe Takes a Trumpian Turn by Hans Kundnani in Foreign Affairs MagazineHamish: Kosciuszko: The incredible life of the man behind the mountain by Anthony SharwoodGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Iran talks a big game, but in the last two weeks Israel has dealt some serious blows to the ‘axis of resistance’, while Tehran has done little to deter Netanyahu from going even further. Is the balance of power in the Middle East swinging away from Iran and towards Israel? Or is there more going on inside Iran than meets the eye?Guests: Ali Ansari - Professor of Iranian History & Founding Director of the Institute for Iranian Studies at the University of St Andrews David Hale - Global Fellow, Wilson Center; Former Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs; Former Ambassador to Pakistan, Lebanon, and Jordan.RECOMMENDATIONS:Geraldine: Kaos, series on NetflixRaf: English teacher, series on Disney +VOTE FOR US:Love the pod? Vote for us in the Australian Podcast Awards here: Voting - Australian Podcast AwardsGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Exploding pagers, attacks on underwater gas pipelines and deepfake videos - we’ve entered a terrifying new realm of hybrid warfare, where the aim is to sow discord deep within our democracies. But how do you fight a war that isn’t really a war, against an invisible enemy? We visit a centre in Finland where they are urgently trying to find the answers to that question. Teija Tiilikainen - Director of the European Centre of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats. Elina Valtonen - Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland RECOMMENDATIONS:Geraldine: Ezra Klein podcast with David Remnick: Israel vs. Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran — and ItselfHamish: We have changed, says Indonesia’s Jemaah Islamiah leader Para Wijayanto by Amanda Hodge in The AustralianVOTE FOR US:Love the pod? Vote for us in the Australian Podcast Awards here: Voting - Australian Podcast AwardsGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

As the war in Ukraine spills into Poland, Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski makes an impassioned call to countries around the world to wake up to what he sees as Putin's true imperialist intentions. RECOMMENDATIONS:Geraldine: America’s Role in the World Is Hard. It Just Got Much Harder. Thomas Friedman in The New York Times.Hamish: Take Me To Your Leader Season 3: Dictators & Demagogues on ABC Listen App.VOTE FOR US:Love the pod? Vote for us in the Australian Podcast Awards here: Voting - Australian Podcast AwardsGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

We kick off this Global Roaming mini-series by looking at the ways wars will be fought in the future. From drones to electronic warfare and even social media, war today looks completely different to what it did even a decade ago. Russia’s war on Ukraine is providing a breeding ground for testing and innovation of new weapons, but are we in Australia prepared for any of this? Do we need to be? Guest: Dr Jack Watling - Senior Research Fellow for Land Warfare at the Royal United Services Institute. His 2023 book is The Arms of the Future: Technology and Close Combat in the Twenty-First CenturyRECOMMENDATIONS:Geraldine: A Trump loss could stabilise US politics for a generation by Janan Ganesh, Financial TimesHamish: ‘Whatever Happens in the Sauna Stays in the Sauna’: Diplomacy, Conducted in the Nude By Alison Krueger, The New York TimesVOTE FOR US:Love the pod? Vote for us in the Australian Podcast Awards here: Voting - Australian Podcast AwardsGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

Sure, we have great beaches, but when it comes to forging strong economic and security ties, does Australia leave something to be desired?Guest: Dr Kyung-wha Kang – President and CEO of the Asia Society; South Korea’s 38th Minister of Foreign Affairs (2017 to 2021) under President Moon Jae-in RECOMMENDATIONS:Geraldine: Kiss the Future documentary - SBS On DemandHamish: Zhou Enlai: A Life - review in London Review of BooksVOTE FOR US:Love the pod? Vote for us in the Australian Podcast Awards here: Voting - Australian Podcast AwardsGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

With 40 million eligible Gen Z voters, the tight US presidential race has become a battle for followers, likes and shares on social media. But will this actually translate to votes in November? GUEST: Katie Harbath - founder and CEO of technology policy firm Anchor Change; Former Facebook Public Policy Director for global elections RECOMMENDATIONS:Geraldine: The Born in the USA fallacy - The New Statesman Hamish: This wasn't 't the social media election everyone expected - BBCVOTE FOR US:Love the pod? Vote for us in the Australian Podcast Awards here: Voting - Australian Podcast AwardsGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

With the rest of the world swinging left and right, how do we make the progressive centre of politics more attractive, and its proponents sound less like 'pious schoolteachers'? Rory Stewart thinks Australia may hold the key...GUEST: Rory Stewart is the co-presenter of the hit podcast The Rest is Politics. He served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Penrith and The Border between 2010 and 2019, representing the Conservative Party.Rory is coming out to Australia at the end of October to discuss his political memoir Politics on the Edge.RECOMMENDATIONS:Geraldine: BBC podcast The Long History Of... IgnoranceHamish: ABC Rear Vision The Kamala Harris StoryGET IN TOUCH: We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]

At the eleventh hour, journalist Masha Gessen has been granted a visa to enter Australia, but why are they considered so dangerous? Guest: Masha Gessen - Russian-American journalist and author. Masha is due to appear at The Edge, Fed Square in Melbourne for the Wheeler Centre (21 August) and at Carriageworks in Sydney, as part of the Festival of Dangerous Ideas (24-25 August).KEEP AN EYE OUT:Our main episode will drop Friday, with special guest Rory Stewart, co-host of The Rest Is Politics podcast.

In a sign of our deepening strategic ties, Australia will play host to more frequent US military deployments across air, land, and maritime domains. At the same time, an updated AUKUS agreement provides a 'get-out' clause for the US and the UK. Former prime minister Paul Keating has raised his concerns, but he's not alone is asking: Is Australia getting the short end of the stick? Guest: David E. Sanger is chief Washington correspondent for The New York Times and the author, most recently of New Cold Wars: China's Rise, Russia's Invasion, and America's Struggle to Defend the West.Recommendations:Geraldine - When Keating went to war with the White House Australian Financial Review article by James Curran. Hamish - The Places in Between by Rory Stewart.Get in touch:We'd love to hear from you! Email us at [email protected]