Geopolitical competition is an increasingly common feature of armed conflicts around the world. From Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to competing regional influences in Yemen, regional contests in Mozambique and climate-change mitigation efforts across continents. This podcast episode marks the launch of The Armed Conflict Survey 2022 with a discussion about the global conflict landscape and the conflict trends and developments that have left a mark on this year’s report. Podcast host Meia Nouwens is joined by some of the team behind the annual flagship publication – Dr Irene Mia, Dr Benjamin Petrini, Juan Pablo Bickel and Erica Pepe. 

Meia, Irene, Benjamin, Juan and Erica discuss some of the key topics explored in The Armed Conflict Survey 2022, including:  

• Recent developments in the global conflict landscape, including the global significance of the Russia–Ukraine war 
• The nexus between climate change and conflict 
• The re-emergence of protracted conflict
• The political and military weaponisation of natural resources  
• The internationalisation of conflicts in sub-Saharan Africa 
• The synthetic opioid issue that is causing troubles for policymakers in the Americas 
• The IISS Armed Conflict Global Relevance Indicator

Host and speakers:

• Meia Nouwens, IISS Senior Fellow for China | Twitter: @MeiaNouwens | Meia Nouwens (iiss.org)  
• Dr Irene Mia, Editor, Armed Conflict Survey; Senior Fellow for Latin America, and Conflict, Security and Development | Twitter: @_IreneMia | Dr Irene Mia (iiss.org) 
• Dr Benjamin Petrini, Research Fellow for Conflict, Security and Development | Twitter: @BenjaminPetrini | Dr Benjamin Petrini (iiss.org) 
• Juan Pablo Medina Bickel, Research Analyst for Conflict, Security and Development, and Latin America | Twitter: @JP_Bickel | Juan Pablo Bickel (iiss.org) 
• Erica Pepe, Senior Coordinator for Research; Research Analyst for Conflict, Security and Development | Twitter: @ericapepe7 | Erica Pepe (iiss.org) 

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: 20 October 2022 

Sounds Strategic is recorded and produced at the IISS. 

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