Lowy Institute

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with diplomat, foreign policy intellectual and now Chancellor of the University of Queensland, Peter Varghese.

Peter had a distinguished career in the Australian public service over nearly four decades, representing our country abroad, running the foreign ministry and our key intelligence assessments agency and advising a prime minister. He is a rare beast: in addition to being a highly effective bureaucrat, Peter is an original thinker and an elegant writer.

Peter and Michael speak about the history and reality of race relations in Australia and growing up in the suburbs of Brisbane in the 1960s; Peter's time spent working with John Howard and the controversial foreign policy decision to participate in the US-led invasion of Iraq; his time as High Commissioner in New Delhi and his thoughts on the Australia-India bilateral relationship; the future of Australia's relationship with China; and American politics.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with diplomat, foreign policy intellectual and now Chancellor of the University of Queensland, Peter Varghese.

Peter had a distinguished career in the Australian public service over nearly four decades, representing our country abroad, running the foreign ministry and our key intelligence assessments agency and advising a prime minister. He is a rare beast: in addition to being a highly effective bureaucrat, Peter is an original thinker and an elegant writer.

Peter and Michael speak about the history and reality of race relations in Australia and growing up in the suburbs of Brisbane in the 1960s; Peter's time spent working with John Howard and the controversial foreign policy decision to participate in the US-led invasion of Iraq; his time as High Commissioner in New Delhi and his thoughts on the Australia-India bilateral relationship; the future of Australia's relationship with China; and American politics.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with former diplomat, traveller, author and politician, Rory Stewart, a man whose life so far has been both conventional and highly unconventional.

Born in Hong Kong, Rory spent his childhood in Malaysia and Scotland, and passed through a number of establishment institutions including Eton, Balliol, the Black Watch, the Foreign Office and, according to speculation, the Secret Intelligence Service. He was a summer tutor to Princes William and Harry. And yet he has also repeatedly gone off-piste and done interesting and sometimes remarkable things, including walking 10,000km across Asia, and running as an independent candidate for mayor of London.

Rory and Michael speak about Rory's prescient response to the Covid-19 crisis, the disappointment of political life, the hollowing of the centre ground in British politics, and the Black Lives Matter movement.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with former diplomat, traveller, author and politician, Rory Stewart, a man whose life so far has been both conventional and highly unconventional.

Born in Hong Kong, Rory spent his childhood in Malaysia and Scotland, and passed through a number of establishment institutions including Eton, Balliol, the Black Watch, the Foreign Office and, according to speculation, the Secret Intelligence Service. He was a summer tutor to Princes William and Harry. And yet he has also repeatedly gone off-piste and done interesting and sometimes remarkable things, including walking 10,000km across Asia, and running as an independent candidate for mayor of London.

Rory and Michael speak about Rory's prescient response to the Covid-19 crisis, the disappointment of political life, the hollowing of the centre ground in British politics, and the Black Lives Matter movement.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.