U.S. President Joe Biden delivers his last State of the Union address before elections to a polarized Congress; Iran holds its first parliamentary and Assembly of Experts elections since the 2022 protests sparked by the death of activist Mahsa Amini; Bosnia and Herzegovina marks independence as ethnic divisions fester; and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) welcomes Sweden as its newest member state.

Mentioned on the Podcast

Arash Ghafouri and Alex Vatanka, “Five Key Takeaways From New Poll Ahead of Iran’s Parliamentary Elections,” Middle East Institute

Andrew Higgins, “A Land Once Emptied by War Now Faces a Peacetime Exodus,” New York Times

Andrew Osborn and Vladimir Soldatkin, “Putin Warns West of Risk of Nuclear War, Says Moscow can Strike Western Targets,” Reuters