The Debate

By FRANCE 24 English

The Debate episodes

June 26, 2019 Boiling point: As Europe sizzles, France misses climate targets
Last summer it was forest fires near the Arctic Circle. Now, it's a freak June heatwave that has France's southern Provence region braced for a possible 45 degrees Celsius on Thursday. The previous record from 2003 came in August. Why June? What is going on? Paris is slapping a first-ever ban on gas guzzlers because of an ozone alert triggered by the heat. While EU leaders talk of vows to go carbon neutral by 2050, it's right now that France is failing to meet its own CO2 targets.
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June 25, 2019 Trump's endgame: Palestinians boycott US-led Bahrain Conference
The US president has delighted Israel and Gulf allies by ordering fresh sanctions against Iran's leadership. This as a donor conference in Bahrein promises a public-private partnership to develop the Palestinian Territories, an "economy first" approach long espoused by the current right-wing Israeli leadership. Left out is any whiff of compromise on a political solution, hence the boycott of the Bahrain workshop by the Palestinians themselves. So what is Trump's endgame in the Middle East?
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June 24, 2019 Turning point? Turkey's opposition wins Istanbul rerun vote
Recep Tayyip Erdogan's famed mantra "whoever wins Istanbul wins Turkey" rings very loud after the country's president forced a rerun of the March 31 municipal elections and lost. We break down the vote in the city where Erdogan served as mayor a quarter-century ago and ask if it's a turning point for a nation that has seen more and more power concentrated in the hands of one man. The win makes new mayor Ekrem Imamoglu of the centre-left CHP an instant factor to reckon with in Turkish politics.
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June 20, 2019 Last of the Tory prime ministers? Boris Johnson's bid to revive UK Conservatives
He is the darling of the Tory faithful, but is Boris Johnson the man to save his party from doom? In the race to succeed Theresa May, Conservative MPs have narrowed down the finalists to Johnson and Hunt. So what does BoJo really stand for? The opposition Labour Party is also on the brink over Brexit. And it may be about much more than that one issue: as the confused wrangling at a Brussels summit to fill top jobs at the EU proves, the political map is being redrawn across Europe.
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June 19, 2019 Off and running: What eventual Trump re-election would mean for Europe
How does Europe prepare for the possibility of four more years? Donald Trump formally launched his bid for reelection at a rally in Orlando, Florida on Tuesday evening. His tenure so far has included skirmishes with Brussels, Berlin and Paris over trade, climate change and defence as well as an embrace of like-minded eurosceptics from Italy, Poland, Hungary and the Brexit camp in the UK. We discuss to what extent Trump is the embodiment of a broader blowback against globalisation.
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June 18, 2019 Death of a president: Egypt's bitter divide over Mohamed Morsi
Mohamed Morsi collapsed in court on Monday after six years of trials and solitary confinement. The Muslim Brotherhood high-up was 67. Turkey's president hailed Morsi as a martyr, a reminder of that sharp Middle East divide over the Muslim Brotherhood that came to a head after the Arab Spring with the 2013 coup that ousted Morsi, the blockade of Qatar by Gulf States, and even Donald Trump's potential plans to put the Brotherhood on its list of terror organisations.
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June 17, 2019 People power: What next for Hong Kong after Beijing climbdown?
One week ago it was a million. Organisers in Hong Kong claim it was double on Sunday. Two million marching, despite the suspension of a bill that would allow the extradition of political prisoners to mainland China. Protesters remain unmoved by the freeing of activist Joshua Wong and the apology of the territory's Chief Executive Carrie Lam. So where now? Do residents of the former British colony press their advantage and call for more rule of law, or is it best not to push Beijing too hard?
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June 13, 2019 Showdown in Sudan: What response to junta crackdown?
Can the junta in Khartoum shut down Sudan's Spring? The military certainly shut down the internet, forcing protesters to come up with creative means of resisting the crackdown which last week left dozens dead among the movement pushing for a wholesale handover of power to civilians after the ouster of Omar al-Bashir. We discuss whether the alliance of activists, opposition parties and rebel movements can stay united.
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June 12, 2019 Brink of peace? Japan's Shinzo Abe called on to play mediator in Iran
What is Shinzo Abe doing in Tehran? The first visit by a Japanese prime minister to Iran in 40 years follows the recent state visit by Donald Trump to Tokyo. Trump and Abe enjoy strong relations. Japan is not a signatory of the nuclear deal from which the US walked away from last year and has had to bow to US warnings not to buy Iranian oil. So is Trump willing to shrug off his most hawkish allies in the region – the Saudis and the Israelis – to try to do a deal with Iran?
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June 11, 2019 Blind justice? Brazil's judiciary accused of targeting Lula
How blind is justice in Brazil? Justice Minister Sergio Moro is in the hot seat in the wake of leaked messages and audio tapes that show the then-crusading anti-corruption magistrate conspiring with prosecutors to hasten their case against the country's most popular politician. Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who was prevented from running for president again last year, instead sits in jail - convicted over kickbacks and money laundering as part of the Operation Car Wash scandal.
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A live debate on the topic of the day, with four guests. From Monday to Thursday at 7:10pm Paris time.

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