Trump’s Gulf trip will bring fanfare and mega deals – but meaningful regional progress looks uncertain 

Saudi Arabia, Qatar and UAE will seek to deepen ties with Washington – but tariffs and oil prices worry Gulf states, as does continuing violence in Gaza.

In this episode, AU Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security HE Ambassador Bankole Adeoye shares his vision for a more peaceful and secure Africa.

But New Delhi’s policy of strategic autonomy – and its brewing conflict with Pakistan – may hamper cooperation in some areas.

The precarious situation shows the continuing danger of territorial disputes in Kashmir – and of the two countries’ nationalist foreign policies.

Tensions over water have contributed to the outbreak of hostilities, but potential mediation by the World Bank could provide an important chance for engagement.

Washington needs to back projects that support local livelihoods and offer security. It must also clarify US regulation to overcome mining operators’ wariness of investing in the Great Lakes region.

For some, helping Ukraine is not worth the possibility of war. But if Russia is allowed to continue unopposed, almost everything is at risk.

The implications will depend on how effectively the opposition can channel the energy unleashed by the arrest into political processes and narratives.

The move to undermine the organization’s growing appeal has precedent but is risky amid heightened tensions over Gaza and uncertain US policy.

Orysia Lutsevych and Matthew Savill discuss the Ukraine–US mineral deal and the challenges facing Ukraine in the peace negotiations with Russia.

As Friedrich Merz becomes German chancellor, Emmanuel Macron may finally have found the partner he needs for France and Germany to reshape European leadership.

The British government needs a more comprehensive and forward-looking defence-industrial strategy to ensure its national security.

But the scale and shock of the president’s policymaking threatens to undermine his primary foreign policy objective: maintaining an advantage over China.

The International Monetary Fund needs finances and governance that reflect the underlying balance in the world economy if it is to remain universal and effective.

Following the worst terror attack in Kashmir since 2019, military escalation is likely.

Isabelle Mateos y Lago and David Lubin join Bronwen Maddox from the IMF Spring Meetings in Washington DC to discuss the instability in the US dollar.

Ibrahima Cheikh Diong, the executive director of the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage, discusses what progress has been made and what lies ahead for the fund.

Leena Koni Hoffmann joins Bronwen Maddox to discuss Chatham House’s decade long research into how Nigerians can fight corruption in Nigeria.

The argument that the erosion of the dollar’s global status could benefit the US is gaining traction in Washington. That move would be a needless act of self-harm.

Beijing’s ability to prevent US access to rare earths puts Washington’s long-term strategic goals at risk.

US tariffs add to the sense of an increasingly unpredictable and unreliable partner. Allies in Europe and the Pacific are questioning foundational assumptions about their security arrangements as a result.

Beijing will see the removal of South Korea’s president and subsequent election as an opportunity to undermine Seoul’s alliances, at a time of rising tensions with the US.

Despite the bitter exit of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger from ECOWAS and their formation of the rival AES, the destinies of the two blocs remain deeply intertwined.

Yu Jie, Robert Evan Ellis and Bruno Binetti join Chris Sabatini to discuss the battle for influence underway in Latin America between the US and China.

X CEO Elon Musk is close to President Trump at a time when India wants to negotiate on US trade. But X’s case challenges wide-ranging government powers.

Trump’s trade war has brought Norway even closer to the EU and increased the urgency for it to make a decision about membership.

Recent events have undermined the 2018 peace agreement, raising questions over whether the deal can be resuscitated or if a new way forward is needed.

Concerns over foreign-owned platforms may overshadow deeper-rooted threats in the global information environment. Beyond platform ownership, the US and other democracies need coordinated and consistent policy, aligned with democratic values.

ASEAN countries fear being caught in a US–China trade war – punished by US tariffs while being flooded with Chinese goods. They will need to band together to preserve their impressive economies.

Discussing the interplay between critical raw materials and geopolitics – and the challenges associated with extraction.