Delphi Talks

Is there “gaslighting” in politics? What are the rules for creating a counter-narrative to reality to serve a political agenda? Is there a way for humanity to defend against a world of deep-fakes and and post-truth?

Recorded at the Delphi Economic Forum in April 2024, this podcast features a fascinating discussion between renowned Greek historian Lena Divani with Kathimerini journalist Margarita Pournara, taking us on a historical journey, in Greece and beyond, on the use of deception, lies, half-truths and misinformation for political purposes.

Can Europe provide solutions to the West’s existential crisis? Is the continent sleepwalking into a further diminished international role and geopolitical irrelevance? Can a “Kantian” Europe still thrive vs a “Hobbesian” rest of the world?

Recorded at the Delphi Economic Forum in April 2024, this podcast presents a captivating discussion between Evangelos Venizelos, Deputy PM & MFA (2013 –2015) of Greece and Pavlos Tsimas, journalist of SKAI TV and Ta Nea newspaper, on Europe’s quest to achieve strategic autonomy and position itself as a credible world actor, in the face of unprecedented geopolitical turmoil in Ukraine, the Middle East and beyond.

Radoslaw Sikorski

At the Delphi Economic Forum in April 2024, Poland’s outspoken Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski sat down with British journalist Nick Gowing to discuss Europe’s - and the West’s - response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

They discussed the EU’s troubles at unity against russian aggression and becoming more resilient to foreign interference, which ranges from military capacity to allowing russian interference in election campaigns and public discourse. His sobering takeaway: The war will be decided on economic capacity, so the issue is who will outlast whom. And Ukraine cannot outlast Russia without the West’s support.

Is this the end of the post - Cold War era? This existential challenge will define our children’s future, Sikorski concludes. 

How do we get back to the pre October 7th rapprochement of different actors in the region? How was the security architecture shaping up before Hamas’s attack on Israel? What is the role of leadership and how the regional and  global security architectures intersect? How can the West “win” the global South from China, by bringing the two global conflicts of our time, Ukraine and Gaza, to a fair and sustainable resolution?

Recorded at the Delphi Economic Forum in April 2024, this podcast presents an in-depth conversation on the future of Middle East security, featuring some of the top foreign policy and security experts of the region.  

THE GAZA WAR AND THE FUTURE OF THE MIDDLE EAST SECURITY ARCHITECTURE

Ebtesam Al-Ketbi, President, Emirates Policy Center, UAE

Ahmed Aboudouh, Associate Fellow, Chatham House and Head of China Studies at Emirates Policy Center, UK

Dlawer Ala’ Aldeen, President, Middle East Research Institute, Iraq

Abdullah Al Saud, Assistant Director General for Policy Planning, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Saudi Arabia

Moderator: Ivana Dragicevic, Journalist, N1 TV, Croatia

A reflective conversation between leading public intellectual Ivan Krastev, chairman of the Centre for Liberal Strategies in Sofia and ELIAMEP’s Loukas Tsoukalis, on the prospects of future EU enlargements, in both the Western Balkans and Ukraine.

Is an EU of 35 realistic? Recorded at the Delphi Economic Forum in April 2024, Krastev and Tsoukalis offer valuable insights on how a future enlargement will be different than previous ones, how can it be achieved, whether Western Balkans integration in the EU is directly linked to the outcome of the war in Ukraine and how demographics change the nature of the democratic process. Ultimately, can Ukraine change Europe from a project of peace to a project of war and peace?

Recorded at the Delphi Economic Forum in April 2024, best selling author and globally prominent geopolitical analyst Robert Kaplan delivers a tour de force on the prospects and aspirations of the wider Middle East, in conversation with Reuters’ Hugo Dixon.

Drawing from his new book “The Loom of Time: Between Empire and Anarchy, from the Mediterranean to China”, Kaplan explains that contrary to the usual narrative that engulfs the region (democracy vs authoritarianism), a vast part of the world, ranging from North Africa to Western China is influenced by a deeper theme: division between imperial tyranny and fear of anarchy.

Kaplan then analyzes developments in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Iran and of course Israel and Palestine, to end with a tone of optimism: Change can come to the region, but does not come according to a Western script.

Drawing from a wealth of experience as a 4 star US Army General and Director of the CIA, David H. Petraeus delivers an insightful overview of the state of play of different conflict regions of the world, in conversation with Kathimerini’s Athanassios Ellis.

Recorded at the Delphi Economic Forum in April 2024, Petraeus states that the future of Ukraine relies on the triptych: military innovation, men, and foreign assistance. On the Gaza conflict, he puts forward the proposition that civilian casualties should be kept to a minimum, otherwise we are sowing the seeds of a Hamas 2.0. The conversation concludes with Petraeus’ thoughts on Turkey and the complicated relationship with the US, and the bright future of Greek - American elections.

One of the world’s most read authors and historians, Anne Applebaum spoke in the Delphi Economic Forum last April with Ta Nea’s Michalis Mitsos, on a critical question of our time: Why do people who live in democracies find authoritarianism appealing?

Drawing inspiration from her newly published book “Autocracy, Inc: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World”, Applebaum explains how autocratic figures like Russia’s President Vladimir Putin sell the image of a supporter of traditional values and position themselves as “deniers” of Western values. For Applebaum, the conclusion is clear: in an era of radical change like today, the need for a strongman arises. And to counter that, we must devine a kind of “tough liberalism”, which is not naive about the realities of our time and the extent of foreign influence in our democracies.

In a sobering conversation with the Financial Times’ Peter Spiegel, Phillip Hildebrand, vice chairman of BlackRock offers his expert outlook on the causes and possible longevity of the current global inflation crisis.

Recorded at the Delphi Economic Forum in April 2024, the conversation provides answers to a series of critical questions for the future of the european economy: could AI provide the world with a burst of innovation necessary to overcome the fall of the global production capacity caused by the pandemic, geopolitical turmoil and the antagonism with China? What lies ahead for the European banking sector, in a continent still lacking a Capital Markets Union and a Banking Union? How can Europe avoid losing its industrial competitiveness capacity following this crisis and preserve the European way of life?

Arthur Larok highlights refugee challenges, poverty, and empowerment for a just future

Recorded at the Delphi Economic Forum in April 2024, Larok, drawing from his own experience as a refugee, shares his insights and experiences on the challenges faced by vulnerable communities around the world. The discussion focuses on poverty, injustice, and the importance of empowering people to build a just and sustainable future.

Interview by Niki Lymperaki, Journalist, Co-Founder at pod.gr, Greece