No longer a super power, how does Russia view itself in 2013? Is a new cold war between Russia and the West possible? To learn more about Russia and the world, co-host Andrew Thompson welcomes Sergei Khrushchev, Senior Fellow, Thomas J. Watson Jr. Institute For International Studies, Brown University, to the Inside the Issues studio.

This week on Inside the Issues, former Canadian Ambassador Jeremy Kinsman draws from the new book, A Diplomat's Handbook for Democracy Development Support, in discussing diplomacy, democracy and civil society networks.

What tensions exist between the interests of state sovereignty and global capital? How did financial governing bodies fail in the lead up to the 2008 financial crisis? This week, Paul Blustein visits the Inside the Issues studio to discuss his new book, Off Balance: The Travails of Institutions that Govern the Global Financial System.

A set of principles to protect against crimes against humanity, genocide, ethnic cleansing and war crimes, the responsibility to protect (R2P) calls on political commitment from both states and the wider international community. This week, Jennifer Welsh, Special Adviser to the UN Secretary General on the Responsibility to Protect, joins co-host David Welch for a conversation on the development and evolution of R2P.

What will be the legacy of the war in Afghanistan? What are we leaving behind? What have we learned? Co-host Andrew Thompson welcomes Graeme Smith, Senior Analyst, International Crisis Group for a discussion on Smith's new book The Dogs Are Eating Them Now: Our War in Afghanistan.

This week, co-host Andrew Thompson welcomes Jim Lederman, Senior Middle East Regional Analyst, Oxford Analytica for a discussion on misunderstandings and misconceptions of the Middle East.

In the kick-off to season 4, Inside the Issues co-host and CIGI Chair of Global Security David Welch welcomes Shaun Narine, Associate Professor, St. Thomas University for a discussion on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

With states issuing apologies to indigenous peoples and the adoption of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, it is an historically interesting time to consider questions around the internationalization of indigenous rights and governance.

In a special edition of Inside the Issues, guest host and CIGI Senior Fellow Barry Carin speaks with Mukesh Kapila, Professor of Global Health and Humanitarian Affairs, University Of Manchester, about the conflict in Darfur and ongoing situation in Sudan. Beginning with background on his experiences at the U.N., Kapila shares insights on how Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) and the media have impacted accountability and global awareness.

Dan Herman, PhD Candidate in Global Governance at the Balsillie School of International Affairs (BSIA) joins David Welch, CIGI Chair of Global Security and podcast host, for a discussion on trade governance. Touching on his recent policy brief, Herman offers a review of the history of trade governance before the creation of the World Trade Organization (WTO) along with what we have been seeing post Doha.