The Foreign Desk

What’s behind the great Nordic cultural wave which has swept across the world in recent years – the great TV series, burgeoning art scene, and Oscar-winning films? The answer is collaboration, as we hear from star of ‘The Bridge’ Sofia Helin, among other leading figures from the Nordic arts scene. ‘The Foreign Desk’ and our Denmark correspondent Michael Booth have teamed up with the Nordic Council of Ministers for a series of five special, monthly episodes delving deeper into topics of global importance from the region, the second of which looks at cultural collaboration.

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One thing that coronavirus didn’t change in the US was the country’s shocking rate of gun deaths: even under widespread lockdowns, mass shootings spiked sharply. But Joe Biden has declared his intention to address a scourge he has described as a national embarrassment. What can actually be done? And is a beleaguered NRA quite the obstacle it once was? Andrew Mueller speaks to Kris Brown, Robert Spitzer and Frank Smyth.

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The European Super League was proudly presented on Sunday 18 April as a new facet of weekday football, set to earn the 12 confirmed teams vast sums into the hundreds of millions. Just three days later, only two teams remain committed. Andrew Mueller explains why it all fell to pieces.

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After an Iranian nuclear facility was reportedly the subject of an attack over the weekend, Tehran’s fingers firmly pointed in the direction of Israel. Andrew Mueller explains why this may not be a false judgement.

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After an Iranian nuclear facility was reportedly the subject of an attack over the weekend, Tehran’s fingers firmly pointed in the direction of Israel. Andrew Mueller explains why this may not be a false judgement.

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How did the Middle East get broken, and how can it be fixed? What does the future look like for its 500 million – mostly very young – people? And what role should the West play? These are among the questions considered by Iyad El-Baghdadi and Ahmed Gatnash in their new book ‘The Middle East Crisis Factory’. Andrew Mueller is joined by El–Baghdadi to explore a vision for peace and democracy in the region and asks former member of the Tunisian parliament Khawla Ben Aicha how she went about trying to achieve it.

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Jordan’s usually placid and stable monarchy has been rocked this week, after the sudden arrest of Prince Hamzah following claims of a planned coup against his brother, King Abdullah II. Andrew Mueller explains how Saudi Arabia might have played a role in the events.

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In the biggest crisis of Jair Bolsonaro’s presidency so far, the heads of the army, navy and air force all resigned. What are they trying to achieve? What does it mean for Bolsonaro’s future? And what role has the military played in Brazil’s recent political history? Andrew Mueller asks Fernando Augusto Pacheco, Vinicius Mariano de Carvalho and Samantha Pearson.

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‘The Foreign Desk’ has teamed up with the Nordic Council of Ministers for a series of five special, monthly episodes delving deeper into topics of global importance from the region, the first of which looks at education. The Nordic countries have a proud history of high achievement in international education rankings but how are they future-proofing the next generation, and what can the world learn from the Nordic model? Michael Booth finds out.

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In this special episode of ‘The Foreign Desk’, Monocle’s news editor Christopher Cermak speaks with United Nations secretary-general António Guterres about his plans to revive international diplomacy and reform the UN, and why he is feeling “hopeful” about 2021.

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