The Debate

By FRANCE 24 English

The Debate episodes

February 09, 2022 Famine in Afghanistan: Will crisis force reset of relations with the Taliban?
Is tying humanitarian assistance to human rights the right course for Afghanistan? Aid agencies are this week imploring the West and in particular the US Treasury to allow money transfers to flow unhindered and to unblock desperately needed funds.
43 min
February 08, 2022 Diplomatic frenzy: How to prevent Russian invasion of Ukraine?
After Moscow and Kiev, Emmanuel Macron is in Berlin to huddle over Ukraine. The French president's host is also fresh off the plane. German chancellor Olaf Scholz is just back from Washington to host Macron and his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda. We find out if the three are on the same page, what with 100,000-plus Russian troops still surrounding Ukraine on three sides.
40 min
February 07, 2022 Macron the mediator: Can France help calm Ukraine crisis?
Emmanuel Macron is on a special trip to Moscow to meet and talk with Vladimir Putin. The mission: to try and calm matters on the Ukraine-Russia border and avoid what many analysts say is certain war. Macron is representing the EU, with France holding the rotating presidency. What influence does he take into these talks?
41 min
February 03, 2022 Olympics in a bubble: How high are the stakes for Xi Jinping's China?
Can Xi Jinping's China pull it off? Can happy pictures of a torch relay reduced to 72 hours and tightly cropped images of top-level competitions make the world forget about the empty seats, the Covid bubble, the artificial snow, the tight security and the pressure on sponsors over human rights abuses in Xinjiang and Hong Kong?
42 min
February 02, 2022 Changing conversation about Covid: What to do when Big Tech spreads misinformation?
Denmark is the EU's first nation to lift all domestic Covid restrictions, raising hopes in northern Europe and beyond. Here in France, new infections have never been higher, but the authorities are relaxing rules too. That's because the vaccination rate is near 90 percent and hospitals are managing. The omicron variant is more infectious but milder. Milder if you are vaccinated, warns the World Health Organization. Many nations remain vulnerable.
39 min
February 01, 2022 Myanmar's deadly spiral: One year after coup, can civil war be avoided?
Is there no stopping all-out civil war in Myanmar? On the first anniversary of the coup that ended power sharing between Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy and a military whose candidates had just been trounced in a general election, a silent strike took place to protest the brutal crackdown against calls to return to civilian rule. Can peaceful protest still work?
41 min
January 31, 2022 Good coup, bad coup? Mali defies France as Burkina Faso calls for understanding
Condemn or cooperate? West African leaders are grappling with that question as they scramble for the antidote to coup contagion. Since regional bloc ECOWAS decided earlier this month to play hardball with Mali's junta, tensions have spiralled far and wide. Now Bamako is expelling France's ambassador amid a war of words over the hiring of the Russian mercenaries of Wagner, right under the noses of French and EU forces there to fight a jihadist insurgency.
42 min
January 28, 2022 Ukraine Diplomacy continues, a coup in Burkina Faso, Johnson's birthday bash & Neil Young vs Spotify
The Kremlin is unimpressed by the West's written responses their demands over Ukraine.
And Russian flags flew in Burkina Faso this week after a coup ousted yet another civilian government over failure to get a handle on Jihadist insurgency.
The UK PM's 2021 birthday involved up to 30 guests and a cake - some might call that a party... Will the Police?
And the latest instalment of the Big Tech misinformation saga: Neil Young is off spotify in a stand against dodgy claims by podcaster Joe Rogan.
42 min
January 27, 2022 Africa's moment: What makes the AFCON football tournament unique?
Every two years, football comes home... to Africa. This year, the Africa Cup of Nations is hosted by Cameroon and, no doubt, there's plenty to criticise: dodgy calls by the ref, questionable Covid-19 protocols and a deadly stampede that left eight dead. And yet, football fans the world over are enthralled. Every day brings new twists: minnows have upset powerhouses, and stars who normally spend winter in the European leagues have shown up for their national sides. So what exactly is it about AFCON that's got us riveted?
41 min
January 26, 2022 Ukraine in the middle: What endgame for Russia in stand-off with the West?
As Antony Blinken responds in writing to Russia's demands for an overhaul of Eastern Europe's security architecture, in the same breath he urges American citizens in Ukraine to leave. This Wednesday's "Normandy Format" talks, including France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine, serve as a reminder that Ukraine has already lost its territorial integrity – back in 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea and supported the insurgency that's raged since in the southeast. So what is Moscow after this time?
42 min

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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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