Sounds Strategic

By International Institute for Strategic StudiesNews

Sounds Strategic episodes

June 15, 2020 Caught in shifting tides: ASEAN, Australia and the geopolitics of the South China Sea
In this week’s episode, Meia is joined by Lynn Kuok and Euan Graham for an in-depth discussion on what China’s activity in the South China Sea means for ASEAN, Australia, the US and Europe, and whether such actions are indicative of shifting geopolitical power dynamics.

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, China has maintained a constant presence in the South China Sea, even encroaching on the Exclusive Economic Zones of several Southeast Asian countries, including Indonesia, Vietnam and Malaysia. Lynn explains the factors hindering ASEAN’s ability to curtail such Chinese activity and Euan assesses how Australia is adapting its foreign relations in response to China’s rising status within the international community.

Meia, Lynn and Euan also consider the strategic implications of the new Chinese national security laws being imposed on Hong Kong and how they may impact China’s policy towards Taiwan and its foreign policy more broadly.

We hope you enjoy listening to the episode. Don’t forget to follow, rate and subscribe to Sounds Strategic on wherever you listen to your favourite podcasts.

Date of recording: 4 June 2020

Sounds Strategic is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.

Theme music: ‘Safety in Numbers’ by We Were Promised Jetpacks
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56 min
June 08, 2020 The end of US supremacy at sea? China and Russia’s naval ambitions and how to counter them
This week, Meia and Antônio are joined by Nick Childs, Senior Fellow for Naval Forces and Maritime Security, for a conversation on the increasingly contested realm of maritime security, how Russia and China are developing their naval capabilities, and what technologies could revolutionise defence affairs at sea in the near future.

During the episode, Nick explains why the traditional naval supremacy the US and its allies have enjoyed in recent decades is now eroding, as Russia and China develop their own maritime capabilities, and what impact this may have on both US power projection and global security at sea.

They also discuss the specific capabilities Russia and China are adding to their respective navies and why uninhabited systems may be the new frontier for naval competition.

We hope you enjoy listening to the episode. Don’t forget to follow, rate and subscribe to Sounds Strategic on wherever you listen to your favourite podcasts.

Date of recording: 2 June 2020

Sounds Strategic is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.

Theme music: ‘Safety in Numbers’ by We Were Promised Jetpacks
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
32 min
June 01, 2020 The World Bank’s strategy for fragility, conflict and violence
This week, Antonio and Meia are joined by Franck Bousquet, Senior Director of the World Bank's Fragility, Conflict and Violence Group, to discuss a new strategy that aims to enhance the organisation’s ability to support fragile states.

By 2030 up to two-thirds of the world’s extreme poor will live in fragile or conflict-afflicted states. The World Bank Group Strategy for Fragility, Conflict and Violence marks an evolution in how the World Bank aims to address the root causes of state fragility and violence. Franck explains how this strategy empowers the World Bank to work across the ‘fragility spectrum’, including a renewed focus on conflict prevention.

Meia, Antonio and Franck also discuss the important role public, private and civil-society partnerships play within World Bank projects, the benefits of technology in monitoring and capacity-building in fragile states, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the world’s most vulnerable populations.

Date of recording: Tuesday 29 April 2020

Sounds Strategic is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.

Theme music: ‘Safety in Numbers’ by We Were Promised Jetpacks
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
30 min
May 21, 2020 Armed Conflict Survey 2020: identifying major trends in modern armed conflict
In this special episode of Sounds Strategic, Meia Nouwens and Antônio Sampaio discuss the major trends in modern armed conflict with contributors from the Armed Conflict Survey 2020, the annual review of the political, military and humanitarian dimensions of all active armed conflicts from the IISS.

Meia speaks with Virginia Comolli and Eleanor Beevor on the key features of this year’s edition. The book examines 33 armed conflicts and details their respective conflict groups, strategic implications and prospects for resolution. Virginia explains why the growing intractability and internationalisation of conflicts were chosen as two of the key themes in this year’s edition. Eleanor explores the perceived value of armed UAVs for non-state armed groups and how internal dynamics within conflict groups can influence their activities.

Antônio meanwhile chats with Tuesday Reitano from the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime on the practical and political challenges of combatting human trafficking in and out of armed conflict.

The Armed Conflict Survey will be published on 27 May 2020. For more information on this year’s edition and how to register for the online launch event please visit the IISS website.

Date of recording: Tuesday 19 May 2020

Sounds Strategic is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.

Theme music: ‘Safety in Numbers’ by We Were Promised Jetpacks
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
48 min
May 14, 2020 COVID-19 in South Asia: India and Pakistan’s responses and China’s regional ambitions
In this week’s episode, Meia Nouwens speaks with Viraj Solanki and Antoine Levesques on how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected South Asia.

Viraj discusses the ways India’s nationwide lockdown has evolved since it was initially imposed in late March and the impact this response has had on India’s society and economic prospects.

Antoine, meanwhile, examines Pakistan’s own response to COVID-19, including the role the military has played in combatting the virus and what this crisis may mean for Pakistan’s economic future.

Meia, Antoine and Viraj also discuss China’s burgeoning presence in the region, from the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to the technical and medical assistance China has given to small island nations in the Indian Ocean.

Finally, Viraj explains India’s own efforts to develop its regional leadership credentials by reinforcing its bilateral and multilateral relationships in South Asia and beyond.

We hope you enjoy listening to the episode. Don’t forget to follow, rate and subscribe to Sounds Strategic on wherever you listen to your favourite podcasts.

Date of recording: 12 May 2020

Sounds Strategic is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.
Theme music: ‘Safety in Numbers’ by We Were Promised Jetpacks
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
37 min
May 07, 2020 COVID-19 in Brazil: political crisis and state responses
This week, Meia speaks with her co-host, Antônio Sampaio, Research Fellow for Conflict, Security and Development, on how Brazil has been impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro has made headlines due to his unorthodox response to the COVID-19 virus, sacking his health minister, Luiz Mandetta, and largely disregarding or undermining the medical community’s advice on how best to limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus in Brazil. As Antônio explains, this has left the onus on state governments to develop their own responses to the pandemic and put extreme pressure on Brazil’s public health system.
Amid this pandemic, Brazil is also experiencing an acute political crisis following the resignation of Bolsonaro’s popular Minister of Justice and Public Security, Sérgio Moro. Antônio assesses how this scandal could impact the Bolsonaro government and Brazilian politics in the future.
Finally, in the absence of strong federal leadership, Antonio explores how civil societies, and even some criminal organisations, are taking on new responsibilities to combat COVID-19.
We hope you enjoy listening and don’t forget to follow, rate and subscribe to Sounds Strategic on wherever you listen to podcasts.
Date of recording: 5 May 2020
Sounds Strategic is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.
Theme music: ‘Safety in Numbers’ by We Were Promised Jetpacks.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
35 min
April 30, 2020 Episode 37 - COVID-19 in fragile states: fighting conflict in the midst of a pandemic
In this week’s episode of Sounds Strategic, Antônio Sampaio speaks with Senior Fellow Virginia Comolli and Research Associate Eleanor Beevor from the Conflict, Security and Development Programme at the IISS. They discuss the challenges fragile states face in managing the COVID-19 pandemic, why international organisations are struggling to deliver humanitarian aid and how non-state armed groups have been responding to this global crisis.International organisations, such as the UN and the African Union, have struggled to maintain their commitments in conflict-afflicted countries during the pandemic. Virginia details why this has been the case and how the delivery of humanitarian assistance has been impacted. She also looks at the second-order effects this crisis is having on food security.Non-state armed groups such as Al-Shabaab in Somalia are also complicating responses to the COVID-19 virus. As Eleanor explains, many armed groups are restricting humanitarian access to areas they control, as well as generating counter-narratives on how to best fight the spread of the virus. These factors will likely only worsen the virus among some of the most vulnerable populations.We hope you enjoy listening and don’t forget to follow, rate and subscribe to Sounds Strategic on wherever you listen to podcasts.Date of recording: 28 April 2020Sounds Strategic is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.Theme music: ‘Safety in Numbers’ by We Were Promised Jetpacks.
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40 min
April 23, 2020 Episode 36 - COVID-19 in Southeast Asia: regional challenges and geopolitical implications
In this week’s episode of Sounds Strategic, Meia Nouwens speaks with Executive Director of IISS–Asia, Dr Tim Huxley, on how countries in Southeast Asia have been handling the COVID-19 pandemic and the wider geopolitical impact the crisis may have on the region.Although a hugely diverse region in political, economic and cultural terms, Tim explains how and why Southeast Asia has, for the most part, managed the COVID-19 crisis more successfully than many Western countries. Crucially, Tim warns that as the economic cost of the COVID-19 pandemic becomes more pronounced, traditional Western security commitments in Southeast Asia, and the Asia-Pacific region more broadly, could weaken further. This possible absence of Western support could provide a committed China an opportunity to change the balance of power in the region in its favour.Tim and Meia also discuss the political risks present in how Indonesia and the Philippines have handled the crisis and why this pandemic could mark a historic shift in geopolitical authority away from the West and towards the East.We hope you enjoy listening and don’t forget to follow, rate and subscribe to Sounds Strategic on wherever you listen to podcasts.Date of recording: 22 April 2020Sounds Strategic is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.Theme music: ‘Safety in Numbers’ by We Were Promised Jetpacks.
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38 min
April 17, 2020 Episode 35 - COVID-19 and the global economy: shutdown but not out?
In this week’s episode, Antonio and Meia are joined by David Gordon, IISS Senior Adviser for Geo-Economics and Strategy, to discuss how the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the global economy, why this crisis is so unique and the prospects for an eventual recovery.The COVID-19 pandemic has caused an unprecedented and, crucially, near-universal closing of the world’s economy. As David explains, the synchronicity of this shutdown and the simmering rivalry between the US and China are key factors that will likely worsen the economic impact of the crisis and complicate the recovery. David predicts that we will see major changes to global supply-chain dynamics as a result of this crisis, as well as challenges ahead for the international institutions tasked with restoring the global economy in the post-crisis period.During the episode, Antonio, Meia and David also explore how COVID-19 has affected emerging markets, countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative and domestic politics in China.We hope you enjoy listening and don’t forget to follow, rate and subscribe to Sounds Strategic on wherever you listen to podcasts.Date of recording: 17 April 2020Sounds Strategic is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.Theme music: ‘Safety in Numbers’ by We Were Promised Jetpacks.
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42 min
April 09, 2020 Episode 34 - COVID-19 in Russia: Can Putin turn a crisis into an opportunity?
This week, Meia and Antonio are joined by Nigel Gould-Davies, the new IISS Senior Fellow for Russia and Eurasia and Editor of Strategic Survey, for a discussion on how Russia has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.Despite a slow initial response, the Russian government has started enacting stricter controls in an effort to control the outbreak of COVID-19 in the country. However, Putin has remained notably absent in the public management of the crisis and Nigel explores why Putin is instead delegating this key task to trusted allies.While the reliability of official Russian statistics on the extent of the COVID-19 outbreak may be in doubt, Nigel notes the real concerns that this crisis, coupled with a serious drop in the price of oil and gas, could have an even more detrimental impact on Russia’s economy than the 2008 financial crash.Finally, Meia, Antonio and Nigel discuss the methods and motivations behind persistent Russian efforts to use the pandemic to sow further divisions among Western states. Nigel also explores how the COVID-19 crisis has derailed Putin’s domestic agenda, harming his popularity and delaying the planned constitutional amendments that would allow him to remain in power until 2036.We hope you enjoy listening and don’t forget to follow, rate and subscribe to Sounds Strategic on wherever you listen to podcasts.Date of recording: 7 April 2020Sounds Strategic is recorded and produced at the IISS in London.Theme music: ‘Safety in Numbers’ by We Were Promised Jetpacks.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
32 min

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We are a world-leading authority on global security, political risk and military conflict. We were founded in 1958, and have offices in London, Washington, Singapore and Bahrain.

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