Angela Merkel won a fourth term as Chancellor of Germany but the far-right AfD Party also gained seats for the first time since World War II, complicating her leadership. Kenneth R. Weinstein, President and CEO of The Hudson Institute and Karen Donfried, President of the German Marshall Fund of the United States, discuss with host Carol Castiel the ramifications of the German election results for Germany, the European Union and the world.

On this edition of Encounter, Katayoun Kishi, research associate at Pew Research Center and Kent Hill, Executive Director of the Religious Freedom Institute, discuss the US Department of State's most recent Annual Report on International Religious Freedom with host Carol Castiel.

On this edition of Encounter, Katayoun Kishi, research associate at Pew Research Center and Kent Hill, Executive Director of the Religious Freedom Institute, discuss the US Department of State’s most recent Annual Report on International Religious Freedom with host Carol Castiel.

In the aftermath of the latest crackdown on Muslim Rohingya in Burma, also known as Myanmar, Christina Fink, Professor of International Affairs at George Washington University and Lex Rieffel, Senior Fellow on Global Economy and Development at Brookings Institution discuss with host Carol Castiel root causes of the conflict between the indigenous Rohingya population in Myanmar and the predominantly Buddhist Burmese, and what steps should be taken to peacefully resolve the issue.

In the aftermath of the latest crackdown on Muslim Rohingya in Burma, also known as Myanmar, Christina Fink, Professor of International Affairs at George Washington University and Lex Rieffel, Senior Fellow on Global Economy and Development at Brookings Institution discuss with host Carol Castiel root causes of the conflict between the indigenous Rohingya population in Myanmar and the predominantly Buddhist Burmese, and what steps should be taken to peacefully resolve the issue.

On Part II of this edition of Encounter, we continue our discussion about the opioid crisis in America with Dr. Wilson Compton, Deputy Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse at the National Institutes of Health, and Dr. Caleb Alexander, co-director of the Johns Hopkins University Center for Drug Safety and Effectiveness, and VOA TV correspondent Chris Simkins. They talk with host Carol Castiel about alternatives to opioids and the role of local communities, individuals and the federal government in addressing the scourge.

On Part II of this edition of Encounter, we continue our discussion about the opioid crisis in America with Dr. Wilson Compton, Deputy Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse at the National Institutes of Health, and Dr. Caleb Alexander, co-director of the Johns Hopkins University Center for Drug Safety and Effectiveness, and VOA TV correspondent Chris Simkins. They talk with host Carol Castiel about alternatives to opioids and the role of local communities, individuals and the federal government in addressing the scourge.

On this edition of Encounter we address the opioid crisis in America. Dr. Wilson Compton, Deputy Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse at the National Institutes of Health, and Dr. Caleb Alexander, co-Director of the Johns Hopkins University Center for Drug Safety and Effectiveness, discuss the causes and scope of the crisis in the United States with host Carol Castiel.

On this edition of Encounter we address the opioid crisis in America. Dr. Wilson Compton, Deputy Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse at the National Institutes of Health, and Dr. Caleb Alexander, co-Director of the Johns Hopkins University Center for Drug Safety and Effectiveness, discuss the causes and scope of the crisis in the United States with host Carol Castiel.

More than 150 years after the last shots of the US Civil War were fired, a divisive controversy is raging among many Americans over whether statues, erected to honor those who led and fought for the Confederacy, should be removed from public display or left to stand untouched. Host Rick Pantaleo and his guests discuss various aspects of this contentious issue.