The Foreign Desk

*Special episode in association with the Nordic Council of Ministers*

We’ve teamed up with the Nordic Council of Ministers for a series of five special episodes delving deeper into topics of global importance from the region. In this episode, Michael Booth explains how the Nordic countries are attempting to see their ageing populations as an economic opportunity rather than a burden.

Uganda’s president, Yoweri Museveni, is no stranger to suppressing opposition – but his move to ban popstar-turned-opposition leader Bobi Wine from wearing his trademark red beret is one of his most inventive yet. Andrew Mueller wonders if it will be enough to calm the country’s restless youth, who are sick of authoritarian rule.

Arab Gulf states owe much of their geo-strategic importance to fossil fuels. But even the most oil-soaked petro-kingdom knows that the wells will cease gushing eventually. If the Gulf becomes a centre of renewable energy, what will that mean for the region’s politics? Andrew Mueller is joined by Mehran Kamrava, Jim Krane and Caline Malek.

This week’s ruling by the UK Supreme Court is a huge blow to prime minister Boris Johnson and his government as they try to shove the country out of the EU on 31 October. Andrew Mueller tries to decipher what should happen now, which is probably nowhere near what will...

Diplomacy used to be a dignified art. But social media has changed that, as it has everything else, into a much faster, more direct and often informal discourse. Is this just a case of governments changing with the times or is the world walking into something much more serious?

With the Tokyo Olympic Games less than a year away, Monocle 24’s Rhys James examines why the success of the Rugby World Cup matters to more than just Japanese rugby fans.

*Special episode in association with the Nordic Council of Ministers*

We’ve teamed up with the Nordic Council of Ministers for a series of five special episodes delving deeper into topics of global importance from the region. In this, the first, Michael Booth hears how the social gastronomy movement is using food and farming to change Nordic society, one meal at a time.

Last weekend’s municipal elections in Moscow shouldn't have made international news. However, due to some less-than-subtle silencing, imprisoning and broad-daylight beating of the opposition, Vladimir Putin made sure they did. Did the protests, and significant losses at the ballot box for Putin’s supporters, mark a shift?

Ending a war is far harder than starting one. That said, once a peace deal has been signed, ensuring that formerly warring parties stick to the deal is even trickier. As Colombia’s deal threatens to unravel, what have we learned elsewhere about how – and how not – to keep the peace?

As the deadline for the UK leaving the European Union draws ever closer Andrew Mueller looks back on yet another wild week in British politics.