In December protests erupted in cities across Bangladesh, including the capital Dhaka. The proximate cause was skyrocketing inflation triggered in part by Russia's war in Ukraine. But as my guest Michael Kugelman explains these were not mass protests, but rather highly partisan events ahead of elections scheduled for this year.  Michael Kugelman is director of the South Asia Institute at the Wilson Center in Washington DC.  We kick off discussing the significance of these protests. We then have a longer conversation about how these protests fits into broader trends in Bangladeshi politics and economy -- including Bangladesh's remarkable economic growth and its increasing authoritarianism under prime minister Sheikh Hasina. 

Bangladesh: Protests, Crackdowns and a Coming Election

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Elections for the European Parliament saw sweeping gains for far-right parties in Germany and France. It was in France that these election results led to the surprising—and very daring—decision by Emmanuel Macron to dissolve parliament and call for snap elections. The first round of these legislative elections will be held on June 30th. Macron is facing a challenge from the far-right National Rally, a party that used to be known as the National Front, which was founded by the Nazi-adjacent Jean-Marie Le Pen and is now led by his daughter, Marine Le Pen. These elections could lead to the far right winning enough seats in the French parliament to lead the government. On the line to discuss the European Parliament elections in general and the results in France is Art Goldhammer, a senior affiliate at the Center for European Studies at Harvard. He explains the political dynamics leading up to these snap elections, and we have a long conversation about the implications for Europe should France be led by the hard-right National Rally.

What Snap Elections in France Mean For Europe and the World

India's election was supposed to be a coronation for Narendra Modi. Instead, he got a comeuppance. India is, of course, the world's largest democracy, and after a nearly month-long election season, the final results were declared in early June. Narendra Modi and his political party, the BJP, fared much worse than expected. They secured far fewer seats in the Lok Sabha, the parliament, than anticipated, and now Modi and the BJP will have to form a coalition government after losing an outright majority. On the line to discuss the election results and what they mean for Indian politics and foreign policy going forward is Michael Kugelman, director of the Wilson Center's South Asia Institute and also the deputy director of the Wilson Center's new Indo-Pacific program. As Michael Kugelman explains, the outcome of this election suggests a growing skepticism among the Indian public of Modi's brand of Hindu nationalism and the authoritarian tendencies he's embraced.

How Will a Chastened Narendra Modi Lead India?

"To Save Us From Hell" is a new weekly chat show about the United Nations. Each week, two veteran UN watchers break down the latest news from the United Nations, giving our audience insights into what is driving the agenda at UN headquarters and in its operations around the world. Co-host Mark Leon Goldberg is a veteran journalist who’s the editor-in-chief of UN Dispatch and founder of Global Dispatches. He's covered the UN for nearly 20 years. Anjali Dayal is a Professor of International Relations at Fordham University who’s written widely about the UN and teaches students about its intricacies. They are teaming up for this one-of-a-kind podcast that will launch in the middle of June. For full access to the show at a discounted price, please visit GlobalDispatches.org: https://www.globaldispatches.org/SaveUs   

Introducing: "To Save Us From Hell," Our New Podcast about the United Nations!

On Friday, May 31, President Biden made a surprising announcement about a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. Biden laid out the terms of this three-phased cessation of hostilities and said that this deal was proposed by Israel and sent to Hamas. The optics of a U.S. president making public what he said was an Israeli proposal made many people question whether or not Israel was fully behind this deal. Meanwhile, Biden aimed much of his remarks at Hamas, urging them to accept this ostensibly Israeli deal. At the time of recording, Hamas has neither accepted nor rejected this proposal. My guest today is Joel Braunold, managing director of the S. Daniel Abraham Center for Middle East Peace. We kick off by discussing what is included in this ceasefire agreement before having a long conversation about the reactions and responses to the Biden announcement by Hamas and Israel. We spend a good deal of time discussing some of the motivations behind Hamas' approach to a ceasefire deal and the complex domestic politics in Israel surrounding this deal. Check out our new weekly podcast about the United Nations!  https://www.globaldispatches.org/s/to-save-us-from-hell   

Are We Really Close to a Ceasefire Deal in Gaza?

Claudia Sheinbaum will be the next President of Mexico. In national elections on June 2, the protégé of President López Obrador and former Mayor of Mexico City won a landslide victory, earning nearly 59% of the vote. She is a former climate scientist and will be the first woman and the first person of Jewish origin to lead the overwhelmingly Catholic country. But beyond the presidency, there were over 20,000 positions at all levels of government up for election, and it was in these state and local elections that things turned violent. Very violent. This was by far the bloodiest election in Mexico's history, with over 30 candidates assassinated during the campaigning. My guest today, Falko Ernst, is the senior analyst for Mexico at the International Crisis Group. As he explains, this election-related violence is a product of criminal gangs competing for control, influence, power, and wealth. We kick off by discussing Claudia Sheinbaum's background and her unique approach to violent crime as mayor of Mexico City. We then discuss the dynamics that led to violence in the lead-up to these elections and what can be done to disrupt criminal gangs' sway over local politics in Mexico.  

Bangladesh: Protests, Crackdowns and a Coming Election

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